Jazz Piano Workshop

2017-18 Jazz Piano Workshop – Saturday, January 27, 2018

Congratulations to the 2018 Jazz Piano Workshop scholarship winners!

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Featuring internationally acclaimed Jazz pianist, Jeremy Siskind and Twin Cities jazz piano stars, Javier Santiago and Sarah Burk.

This FREE workshop series, designed for middle and high school students has three components: The beginner class is intended for students of classical piano who want to learn about jazz, while the middle and advanced classes are for young pianists who have begun to play jazz. 

Three scholarships of $300 each will be awarded for lessons with one of our local piano clinicians. Scholarships are provided by endowments to Schubert Club from the families of Marie Froehlich, Jane Matteson and David Paulus.

For questions please contact Kate Cooper at The Schubert Club, 651.292.3266 or kcooper@schubert.org.

Presented by The Dakota Foundation for Jazz Education and the Schubert Club

About the Clinicians

This year the Jazz Piano Workshop welcomes pianist/composer/clinician Jeremy Siskind of New York, most recently seen in this area playing with vocalist Nancy Harms, with whom he’s recorded here well received album Ellington at Night. 

 Siskind won the 2012 Nottingham International Jazz Piano Competition and second place at the 2011 Montreux Solo Piano Competition, has published seven instructional books with Hal Leonard, and teaches both jazz and classical piano at Western Michigan University.  As a performer, Siskind is a leader of the “in-home concert” movement, having performed in about 100 homes in 25 different states since 2012.  Siskind has also performed at “traditional” venues, such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center, as well as in Europe, Asia, and North Africa. His 2015 CD, Housewarming, features vocals from Grammy winners Kurt Elling and Peter Eldridge, and was called a “shining example” of chamber jazz in Downbeat.  Jeremy Siskind holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music (Jazz Performance and Music Theory) and Columbia University (English and Comparative Literature). He’s the Artistic Director of the American Jazz Pianist Competition. He will be leading the Advanced Jazz Piano clinic (Group 3). See Jeremy Siskind’s website for more information about him and his work.

Sarah Burk is a performer and recording artist on keyboard, violin, vocals and percussion, Sarah Burk has toured the U.S., Europe and the Middle East with a variety of ensembles and theatre troupes. Ongoing endeavors include directing and performing with her jazz trio and 10-piece orchestra, as well as dates with other jazz, big band, R&B, gospel, classical chamber, international dance and variety ensembles. Having played the roles of music director, conductor, composer, pianist, violinist and arranger in over 100 theatre productions in Minnesota and Europe, she is actively involved in the development and production of new works at Stages Theatre Company, the History Theatre, Theater Latté Da, and Green T Productions. Her degrees from the University of Minnesota include a B.M. in theory/composition with a jazz studies minor and a Master of Liberal Studies. She has also studied Latin jazz piano with Nachito Herrera and Afro-Caribbean percussion with Shai Hayo. An Instructor of Jazz Piano at St. Olaf, Sarah has taught a variety of courses at McNally Smith College of Music, St. Cloud State University, College of St. Benedict, University of Minnesota-Duluth and Northland College. Sarah will be leading the Beginner Jazz Piano Clinic (Group 1). 

Javier Santiago is a powerful young artist with a strong vision. Born and raised in Minneapolis, MN, he grew up surrounded by strong artistic support. He was given a strong musical background by his jazz musician parents, as well as stalwarts of the local jazz community. Javier started playing piano at the age of 5, and was classically trained until he discovered his love of jazz music at the age of 11. In high school, he was a prominent player in the Minneapolis/St. Paul music scene. It was around this time that he started composing and working on his music production skills. While still in high school, he organized his own quintet and produced two albums. He also won the Schubert Club Jazz Piano Competition two years in a row. In 2007, Javier was selected by the great Dave Brubeck and a panel of judges to be a part of the Brubeck Institute Fellowship program at the University of the Pacific in California. Javier received his Bachelor’s degree in Jazz Piano Performance in late 2011 at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in NYC. Since then, he has been playing gigs regularly in NYC at venues such as Smalls Jazz Club, 55 Bar, The Iridium, and several others. He also was a finalist in the 2015 American Jazz Pianist Competition. Javier is not limited to just playing the piano. He is also a prolific composer. His work is an eclectic blend of Jazz, R&B, Rock, Hip Hop and everything in between. Javier is also a teacher, arranger, and producer. Javier will lead the Intermediate Jazz Piano clinic (Group 2). 

Past Scholarship Winners from the Jazz Competition