Newark Academy’s Chameleon Jazz Band Earns 15th-Straight State Title

Newark Academy’s jazz band, Chameleon, earned its 15th-straight state championship at the New Jersey Association for Jazz Education (NJAJE) State Finals on Saturday, April 25. NA performed in the Division I category with the largest schools in the state.

“It’s been an amazing 15-year run, and I often think back to my first two years at NA,” says Director of Bands Julius Tolentino. “The Chameleon group was literally half the size of a full big band, and by the next year we had grown into a complete ensemble and placed third at the NJAJE State Finals for the first time. Fast forward to today, and the level our students are playing at is beyond anything I could have imagined. Congratulations to our students for continuing to raise the bar and serve as a leading example of jazz education in the United States.”

Chameleon received the Sight-Reading Award; Jay Thatte ’28 received an Outstanding Soloist award for his tenor saxophone performance; and trumpeter Matthew Lee ’26 earned the Rick Kerber Scholarship Soloist Award, which is a $750 scholarship presented to an outstanding senior who will be attending college for the further study of music after graduation.

“Receiving the Rick Kerber Scholarship is incredibly meaningful to me, and it reflects not just my growth, but the mentorship and musicianship that shaped me along the way,” Matthew says.