Festival draws jazz enthusiasts to campus

BY PIERRE ORTLIEB
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Last weekend, Yale’s second Jazz festival brought together Yale and New Haven’s jazz communities on the stage.

The festival was organized by Yale’s Undergraduate Jazz Collective, a cluster of jazz enthusiasts which provides a forum for musicians to meet, share ideas and make music together. This year’s event included performances by the Yale Jazz Ensemble, accomplished multi-instrumentalist Paul Lieberman ’78 and a master class from steel pan player and composer Andy Akiho MUS ’11. Organizers said their aim is to expose students to jazz music by bringing young, innovative musicians to perform on campus.

Jake Backer ’14, treasurer of the Yale Jazz Collective, called the event “a resounding success.” Backer added that he was pleased with the turnout and praised the diversity and enthusiasm of the audience, which numbered approximately 600 people and included members of both the Yale and New Haven communities.

Hans Bilger ’16, who attended the concerts, said that the festival included some of the best performances he has seen at Yale.

Bilger applauded the diversity of the artists, noting that the group was able to bring many talented musicians to campus. Backer agreed, emphasizing that the group primarily attempts to attract “cool, unknown” artists.

As the culmination of a year’s worth of effort from the entire Jazz Collective, the festival aims to stage free, high-quality performances while exposing students to jazz, said Alexander Dobovoy ’16, the organization’s vice president. The group aspires to heighten awareness of the genre, Dobovoy said, adding that many people aren’t sure what to expect from a jazz concert.

“People think it’s not something they’re interested in, and then I will drag them to a concert and [they] see what it’s actually about,” Dobovoy said.

In addition to attracting more interest on campus, Dobovoy and Backer mentioned that they hope to initiate a change in the way jazz is taught at Yale. Both lamented the absence of a formalized jazz curriculum on campus and said they hope that jazz musicians can receive the same amount of recognition as performers of other genres.
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