BHS to Compete in the Country’s Largest High School Jazz Competition 

Posted by Sian Wittke

Bethel High School is sending students to compete for $175,000 in summer scholarships at Berklee College of Music's 44th High School Jazz Festival in Boston, MA on March 10.

The annual event will showcase over 3,000 students and 200 bands and vocal ensembles from 13 U.S. states and Ontario, Canada. The largest high school jazz festival in the U.S. will include clinics and concerts by drummer Kendrick Scott, saxophonist Hailey Niswanger, and SF Jazz faculty members. 

Berklee’s Tower of Power and P-Funk ensembles, the Berklee Rainbow Band, and the Berklee City Music High School Academy will perform.

 Prestigious honors will also be awarded to a band director and a student for outstanding achievements.  Dr. Ferdinand A. Pasqua, director of bands and district liaison for Harrison (NY) County Public Schools, will receive the Take Note Award for his innovation in contemporary music education.

As this year’s winner of the Herb Pomeroy Jazz Composition/Arranging Contest, Princeton (NJ) High School student Frank Rein will hear his winning piece, “I Think I’ll Miss You Most Of All,” performed by the Berklee Rainbow Band, and receive a full scholarship for a Berklee Five Week Summer Performance Program.