Saxophonist Erik Stabnau of Brighton and guitarist Alex Patrick of Penfield are the recipients of the ninth annual Rochester International Jazz Festival/Eastman School of Music Scholarships and will attend the Eastman School this fall as first-years in the Department of Jazz Studies and Contemporary Media.
As part of the 2010 Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival, the two were recognized during a joint concert of the Eastman Community Music School’s Eastman Youth Jazz Orchestra and the Eastman Jazz Ensemble on Monday, June 14, in Kodak Hall.
The awards are sponsored by XRIJF producers John Nugent and Marc Iaconna and funded by proceeds from the Festival. The scholarships support continued jazz education for area high school students who have been part of the Eastman Community Music School and the Eastman Youth Jazz Orchestra; the scholarships are part of the Festival’s mission to invest in the next generation of musicians.
Stabnau has been a member of the Eastman Youth Jazz Orchestra (EYJO) since middle school. A senior at Brighton High School, he has studied at the Eastman Community Music School with Jose Encarnacion and Chien-Kwan Lin. Along with such notable achievements as a New York State Summer School of the Arts Scholarship, a chair in the New York State Band Directors Association All-State Jazz Band, and recognition as a finalist for this year’s Grammy Awards Youth Jazz Ensemble, Stabnau received an outstanding soloist award at the Charles Mingus Competition in New York City while performing with the Eastman Youth Jazz Orchestra. This fall, Stabnau will be a double degree student, pursuing a Bachelor of Music at the Eastman School and a bachelor’s degree in economics at the University of Rochester.
Patrick, currently a senior at Penfield High School, has been with the EYJO for one year and has studied with guitarist Bob Sneider since 2008. He has studied music since the age of six, when he began playing violin through the Penfield music program. A composer as well as a performer, Patrick received Penfield High School’s Charlie Cote Music Scholarship for composition and has had his works featured in Penfield High School concerts. He performs with a rock group, The Absolutes, recently celebrating the release of their debut album, She’s Alright With Me.
Stabnau and Patrick joined past recipients of the Rochester International Jazz Festival/Eastman jazz scholarship in an all-star alumni concert on Wednesday, June 16, Jazz Street Stage. Performers included sophomore bassist Matt Krol, junior guitarist Adrian Dimatteo, graduate drummer Chris Potter (BM ’09), sophomore guitarist Gabe Condon, graduate pianist Chris Ziemba (BM ’09), sophomore drummer Jeff Krol, trombonist Nick Finzer (BM ’09), junior trumpeter Evan Henry, junior bassist Danny Ziemann, and senior saxophonist Karl Stabnau. Special guests for the performance included vibraphonist and Eastman Community Music School Associate Dean for Community and Continuing Studies Howard Potter and saxophonist and Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival producer and artistic director John Nugent.
# # #