Participant Information

Need directions or help upon arrival? Call headquarters at (503) 370-6255 just prior to your arrival and we will make arrangements.

Directions

For campus maps and directions, click here.

Parking and Loading/Unloading

The Sparks Parking Lot, located near the southeast corner of the campus, will be open to the public on on Friday afternoon, February 4 and all day/evening on Saturday, February 5. Buses should park adjacent to the soccer field.

All vans/trucks can unload in the Smith Auditorium loading area on the west side of the building. Please unload/load quickly and move your vehicles to a parking area ASAP. This will allow us to stay on time and not delay other bands. All bands must move vehicles to the parking lot before warming up and performing.

To locate the parking lot and loading area on the campus map, click here.

Schedule

The festival schedule, indicating your warm-up, performance, and clinic times and locations, will be distributed to directors via email.

Evening Festival Concert Tickets

At check-in, you will receive tickets for the evening concert - these are complimentary for all festival performers and directors. You can help us in this process by knowing approximately how many tickets your students will need that evening. Thank you for encouraging parents and boosters to purchase tickets.

Information/Registration

Registration is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Festival Headquarters are located in Rogers Music Center 103.

Each band director must check in upon arrival. A Willamette music student will be assigned to assist you during the full duration of your visit. They will meet you at the registration area unless you call ahead just before your arrival, in which case they can be directed to meet you at your car/bus and direct you to registration and unloading. This student will escort you to warm-up, performance, and clinic rooms. Please remember to submit the Soloist and Setup Form so that we can provide the soloist information to adjudicators and setup information to our backstage crews. There is no compulsion to bring three adjudicators scores although they are appreciated.

Note: We have had some difficulties in past years matching guides to bands that arrived very early. If you know the time you expect to arrive, please email James Miley (jmiley@willamette.edu) with that time and we will be sure to have a guide ready upon your arrival.

Instrument Storage

There will be designated instrument storage rooms in the Fine Arts Building. Please do not leave instruments, cases, equipment, etc. anywhere except in the designated storage area. Willamette University and the Jazz Festival are not responsible for any loss or theft of stored items.

Equipment

There are three spaces in which your group will warm-up, perform, and receive a clinic. Following is a list of what will be provided in each space, followed by a list of equipment that you should plan to bring.

Warm-up Room

We will provide:

• Piano
• Bass amp and power
• guitar amp and power (disclaimer: NOT a performance quality amplifier)
• Skeleton drum set (drums, cymbal stands, throne)

Performance Area

We will provide:

• acoustic piano (amplified)
• vibraphone (on request)
• guitar amp (with power cord)
• bass amp (with power cord)
• drums & throne (please do not switch out)
• cymbal stands (please do not switch out)
• NOTE: YOU WILL NEED TO BRING YOUR OWN CYMBALS AND HI-HAT STAND

A sound system and operator will be provided at the performance area.

Please note that we will not provide patch cords for guitar or bass. If you need equipment not listed above, you should provide your own, including additional extension cords.  If you require vibraphone or extensive stage set-up prior to your performance, please indicate your needs on the soloist/set-up form.

Thank you for not bringing your own drums; the schedule does not allow the time to switch equipment other than cymbals, hi-hat, throne, and (if necessary) snare drum.

Clinic Area

We will provide:

• acoustic piano
• vibraphone (disclaimer: not high quality)
• guitar amp (with power cord)
• bass amp (with power cord)
• drums (please do not switch out)
• cymbal stands (please do not switch out)

You Should Bring…

• Your own cymbals & hi-hat stand
• At your discretion: snare drum, throne
• Additional amps and power not listed above
• Additional percussion equipment
• Sticks, mallets, extra power cords, patch cords

Performance time, on and off, is twenty-five minutes maximum.

Guest Artist Clinic

Ron Miles, our featured guest for the evening concert, will be giving a clinic from 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 5 in Smith Auditorium and is open to all participants. Please encourage your students to attend.

Food

There is one option for eating on campus that is conveniently located near the performance areas. Goudy Commons is a spacious cafeteria-style eatery with an all-you-can-eat brunch buffet at a cost of $5.50 per person. Goudy will be serving brunch from 8:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. Several other food options are available off campus.

Band Clinics

Again this year we will offer individual clinics for each band, featuring the expertise of top jazz educators from our area. Please note that clinics will take place in Rogers Music Center and will necessitate very short outdoor travel.

Awards

Outstanding soloists will be selected by the judges, and will receive a Willamette certificate of recognition. Be sure that you turn in the soloist forms at the check-in table when you register. These awards will be included in the director's packet and will be publicly announced at the evening festival concert.

Please Note: Your student(s) will not be eligible for an award if we do not have these forms in advance of your performance. Outstanding soloists will be recognized at the evening performance.

In keeping with the non-competitive, educational focus of the Festival, Bands will receive written and taped adjudication as well as a clinic. Results will be shared only with the director of each individual band.

Judges-Choice Ensemble

The adjudicators may select an outstanding group from the day to open the evening concert for Ron Miles and the Willamette Jazz Collective. This band will be selected at the conclusion of the schedule and the director will be contacted by cell phone at the earliest possible moment; please be sure that the registration table has a phone number for you during the festival day.

Judges Comments/Recording/Packets

We will be recording all comments directly to mp3 this year and will upload files to the web on Monday morning.  You will be notified via email and sent a link to your comments. Packets with written feedback and performance recording may be picked up at the registration window in Rogers Music Center following your performance.  Please allow about 2 hours following your performance for runners to collect all your materials and return them to the registration desk.

Festival Evaluation Forms

Immediately following the festival, an evaluation form will be available online. Please take a minute to submit your thoughts, ideas, and response to the day's festival.

Remember that this is your festival too, and your comments and suggestions are essential to creating a festival that serves your educational needs. Many of this year's changes were implemented as a result of very helpful feedback from cooperating directors of past years. In past years, these conversations with colleagues have proved invaluable to me, and I look forward to continuing them.

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