Three local bands snatch honors at Bellevue High Jazz Festival
Published 10:48 am Friday, May 30, 2014
Three local jazz bands snared honors at the recent 32nd annual Bellevue High School Jazz Festival.
Newport High School Jazz Band I, directed by Todd Mahaffey, earned third place in the high school 4A division. Interlake High School Jazz Band I, directed by David Kim, won second place in the high school 3A division. In the high school A/AA division, Interlake High School Jazz II, directed by Paul Gillespie, took third place.
Outstanding soloists selected by judges included alto saxophonist Nick Barbarick and drummer Brandon Suzuki from Newport High School; tenor saxophonist Carlos Eine and bassist Stanley Ruvinov from Interlake High School; and Andrew McDonald and Eric Yoon from Chinook Middle School.
Nearly 50 middle school and high school jazz bands from throughout the Northwest participated in the competition May 9-10.
“Thirty-two years ago, renowned drummer Buddy Rich agreed to play at Bellevue High School for $5,000, so this Jazz Festival was started as a way to cover his expense and for students to compete, learn from and listen to professional musicians,” said Edd George, Bellevue High School’s director of bands. “We’re proud to have had this event continue annually and evolve into one of the largest school jazz festivals. We appreciate the involvement of the students, their families, the schools and the community to ensure jazz continues to thrive as an educational experience.”
In addition to the school competition, the festival showcased the Bellevue High Jazz Ensemble performing with festival adjudicators. This year’s adjudicators included saxophonist Adam Rupert, trumpet player Jim Sisko — also the director of instrumental music at Bellevue College — Central Washington University Director of Jazz Studies Chris Bruya and trombonist Jenny Kellogg, who is Director of Jazz and Brass at Eastern Washington University. Kellogg grew up in Bellevue, attended Tyee Middle School, and graduated from Newport High School.
The festival is the primary fundraiser for the Bellevue High band program.
