What it's really like to perform at the pinnacle of high school jazz

Most high school jazz musicians are aware of the national Essentially Ellington competition in New York. But most high school jazz musicians will never go to the festival.

It’s a tight game, with mostly the same schools attending year after year, and most placements and wins going to private schools or arts schools. It’s an expensive competition. For an entire band to stay in New York for a few days, to risk transporting expensive instruments, it can discourage some schools from even auditioning.

So for most high school jazz musicians this festival exists on YouTube. The Jazz at Lincoln Center stage exists in a kind of fantasy, and the kids who play on it, like gods.

Obviously that’s not what it’s really like.

The Jazz at Lincoln Center venue is not at the top of some mythological peak, in fact it sits above Columbus Circle, a shopping mall where New Yorkers can get their groceries and clothes. The kids who play at this festival are skilled and work incredibly hard , but they are not gods.

For every kid shredding in an Instagram highlight, there is another kid trying to tie their necktie in the theater bathroom mirror, or goofing off at a jam session the night before, or a group giddily grinning while riding the Central Park carousel. For every kid who goes on to move to New York to become a professional jazz musician, there’s another who is worried about the AP tests they're going to have to take when they come home.

The ability to perform well in — what is perceived to be — a high stakes environment is a skill. Even though the festival is pretty small, the world of jazz and jazz education is its own niche.

Many of these kids learned jazz while looking up to the musicians at this festival. Some kids are really motivated by the prospect of a trophy or award. Along with that, the music performed on stage is difficult, so the pressure can create an environment similar to playing in a competitive sports setting.

Bands handle the pressure in different ways. In our band we had a few philosophies to keep in mind for our performance. The first day of the festival, the day we played, the band met in the breakfast hall of our hotel.

We sat in a circle with our director, Jared Sessink, in the middle. Half the lights were out while Mr. Sessink solemnly told us a personal story about a performance where he cracked under pressure. He told us to accept mistakes and move on, to stay out of our heads and be in the moment.

For some of us, when we go on stage it feels like we black out. After the performance, you walk out and suddenly realize you're offstage again. Sessink encouraged us to stay present and with each other as a band.

We talked about why we perform; ultimately that it is fulfilling to be able to give something to an audience. It is fulfilling to give, not take, whether it was awards, trophies, or applause we tried to “give more than we take.”

Right before we went on stage the band got in a circle again. “True Dawgs” is a call and response chant that all the Garfield sports teams do before games or meets to hype themselves up. Sure, it’s a little corny but we think it serves a really important purpose.

It gets everyone together; like playing instruments together, voices in unison create a feeling of togetherness. The warm-up room is where the cracks start to show if a break is going to happen onstage. It’s easy to get in your own head in the anticipation of such a big performance. The chant gets everyone unified, out of their own heads, and reminds everyone to stay in the moment.

The final call and response line of “True Dawgs” goes:

Call: “Then what the hell are we?”

Response: “True Dawgs!”

It reminds us who we are . Seattle high schools Garfield and Roosevelt are tied for the most wins in the history of the Essentially Ellington festival, beating out private schools and arts organizations in their eras. Garfield Jazz’s identity is not built on technical precision. Our unbeatable sound came from a great swing feel, a concept brought up and named “The Almighty Groove.”

Gianni's takeaways

Leading up to the performance at Ellington, I spent a lot of time reflecting on why I play jazz.

What I learned after listening and playing on that stage — hearing incredible bands who, just like us, spent hundreds of hours rehearsing and now had 18 minutes to display that and play their hearts out — is that there is a human connection formed between the musician and the audience during a performance.

When the musician plays with emotion, the listener receives the love and passion set loose and reciprocates it. It creates a positive feedback loop, increasing the energy in the room into a massive emotional amalgamation. This is why, as an artist, it’s so important to be vulnerable and honest, because it’s hard to be passionate about something that isn’t true to you.

It is through this honesty and emotion that musicians and all artists can try to give a piece of themselves through their art, hoping it is received and appreciated. This is the ultimate feeling in jazz for me.

Garfield High School was one of 15 high school jazz bands to qualify for Essentially Ellington this year. Bothell High School and Roosevelt High School also attended from Washington state.

Garfield Jazz received honorable mentions for their rhythm section and brass section. Piano player Elliott Beck, drummer Evan Beck and trumpet player Timothy Park were also recognized. See the full list of awardees.

All three Garfield Jazz ensembles will perform Friday, May 31 at the Bulldog Big Bash , a fundraiser for the Garfield Jazz Foundation . On June 16, Garfield Jazz will close out the year with a Farewell to Seniors performance at Garfield High School's Quincy Jones Performing Arts Center.