Each year, the North Carolina Bandmasters Eastern District holds numerous events associated with the development of musicianship skills in the area of Jazz music. As a part of the East Region Jazz, middle and high school students in the district are given the opportunity to audition for the East Region All-Region Jazz Band. Similar to All-District, students spend numerous months preparing certain scales, an instrumental solo, and practicing their improvisational skills in preparation for the audition with the intent of making the band and participating in the two-day clinic. Additionally, the East Region Jazz gives directors and their students the opportunity to showcase their jazz ensembles through their participation in the East Region Jazz Music Performance Adjudication, where they perform various jazz pieces, while being adjudicated and given a rating by judges from across North Carolina and the United States.
“Jazz is a feeling more than anything else. It isn’t music, it’s language...” - Enos Payne