Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead Application Deadline Nears

Hey, young jazz world! If you’re older than 12 and younger than 30, and you have a special gift which needs to be developed by extraordinary teachers, you might well want to apply to Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead, an annual music residency sponsored by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Jazz Program. You’ll get a week of Washington, D.C. living paid for by the program, free tutelage from experienced jazz musicians, and the chance to play two public concerts at the Kennedy Center. But the deadline is December 21st, and this is one time when it’s unacceptable to come in late.

Applicants must be both jazz composers and performers, and must submit a resume and an audio recording of their work. Betty Carter helped to launch the careers of Cyrus Chestnut and Jacky Terrasson, and there’s no reason why the graduates of a program honoring her couldn’t have similar success.

Applications and further information are available from Kennedy Center Jazz, 2700 F. St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20566, (202) 416-8348, or http://kennedy-center.org/jazzahead.

Originally Published October 20, 2001