Projects

The Jazz Mentors Project:

The JCA has worked to develop new audiences for Jazz through education
and access. The JCA partners with the Richmond Youth Jazz Guild to
provide unprecedented jazz education for aspiring young musicians in the
Richmond metropolitan area.  Through weekly ensemble and sectional
lessons, youth ages 9 to 18 are mentored by professional composers and
musicians of the JCA.  This sharing of knowledge and skill dates back to
the dawn of recorded history:  nothing is more fundamental to the growth
of our society.  Jazz is no exception, and for decades "apprenticeship" was
the rule for anyone wanting to play in a band.  The JCA is bringing
"apprenticeship" back to raise the next crop of young jazz musicians and
to pass this great American music on to the next generation.