About this Artist

The Los Angeles Unified School District’s Beyond the Bell All-District Jazz Academy (Big Band and Combo) in partnership with the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz, comprises the top high school music students currently enrolled in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), the second largest public school district in the nation. Under the co-direction of LAUSD’s Beyond the Bell Music and Entertainment Coordinator Tony White and Monk Institute VP for Education and Curriculum Development JB Dyas, the Ensemble rehearses and performs all styles of jazz from its inception to today. The bands have performed with jazz artist such as Herbie Hancock, Patti Austin, Layla Hathaway, Tierney Sutton, Joshua Redman, Tom Scott, James Carter, and Kris Bowers at venues such as the Roxy, the Grammy Museum, and various jazz clubs just to name a few.

Students in the program receive instruction in jazz improvisation, theory, and history as well as performance opportunities, scholarships, and valuable information on how to further their jazz careers. The program also provides the students with further insight into the deeply held American values that jazz represents: teamwork, unity with ethnic diversity, democracy, and the vital importance of really listening to one another. Many students from the All-District Jazz Academy program have gone on to attend major universities majoring in jazz, win numerous jazz scholarships, and play in ensembles throughout the nation.