The 31st annual Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival happened from April 30 to May 2
Credit: Gilberto Tadday/Jazz at Lincoln Center
NEED TO KNOW
- Chris Faison and his former mentor Chris De Leon reunited as band leaders at the 31st annual Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition
- Both instructors emphasized the importance of jazz as a communal art form and a way to teach values
- The festival featured masterclasses, jam sessions, and opportunities for fostering connections among young musicians and mentors
Just a few years ago, Chris Faison was a high school senior performing at a prestigious jazz competition held at New York's Lincoln Center, with mentor Chris De Leon guiding the way.
This year, the duo returned to the 31st annual Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival — but this time as friendly rivals leading their own Florida jazz programs.
"As a freshman in high school, I was a decent saxophone player but I knew nothing about jazz. He introduced me to everything," Faison, who now leads Tarpon Springs High School in Tarpon Springs, Fla., says.
Credit: Gilberto Tadday/Jazz at Lincoln Center
"The whole concept of jazz. What it is as an art form but also a communal aspect. We come to class and play music but there was a bigger, deeper meaning and culture behind it. And that's something that now myself as a teacher, it's a culture I try to promote in my own classroom," he continues.
Reflecting on De Leon's teachings, Faison says that the most important piece of advice he carries with him — and something he teaches to his students — is that jazz "should sound good but more importantly feel good."
Meanwhile, De Leon always knew that Faison had potential based on how talented, musical and expressive he was as a middle schooler.
"If I would tell him, 'Hey, go check this out,' he would go deep on that specific thing and he would obsessively listen to it and he was into it at a really, really high level and a really young age," De Leon says.
"I can say this with confidence: the success our band had in 2019 and 2020 had largely to do with him and his fellow leaders in the bands that were driving that energy," he continues.
Credit: Gilberto Tadday/Jazz at Lincoln Center
Now, De Leon is proud of the man Faison has become.
"I'm proud of the human being he is to his kids. He inspires them. He works really, really hard. He pushes them. He's doing everything that I try to do with my students," he says, adding that he loves that he's passing the jazz tradition down.
At the festival, De Leon's band at Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach, Fla. finished in third place overall — though both instructors view the festival as a way to come together and celebrate the love of jazz.
"It's called a competition, but it's really a celebration of the music and the community. This is an oral tradition type of music, so if people weren't passing it down to the next generation, it wouldn't exist anymore. So it's a lot of love," De Leon says.
Credit: Gilberto Tadday/Jazz at Lincoln Center
This year's festival took place from April 30 to May 2 and students participated in section-specific masterclasses, jam sessions with Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra members, pre-performance rehearsals, a celebratory dinner and more.
With Teacher Appreciation Day happening on Tuesday, May 5, both instructors reflected on the art of teaching — and what keeps them coming back.
"I don't think there's anything more American or more human than jazz because it teaches so many values about listening to somebody else and leaving space for somebody else to express their opinion, even if it's different than yours," De Leon says. "I think that it's really, really important that kids are exposed to this and understand how that's a part of life."
He continues, "When you're here, this place is magical. Kids get to see like-minded peers that look different, but have the same ambition, same drive in life to be really great at something, and they make these amazing connections. Nothing quite like this festival and how it connects people for life."
Faison adds, "This festival was the one thing that we went to where it felt like more than just a competition or the band with the most money. This is a place where every man loves each other and supports each other."
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