Ottawa Jazz Festival 2019 | Stingray Rising Stars winners
Once again on a scorching Canada Day, Stingray visited the nation’s capital for the fourth year in a row to attend the 2019 TD Ottawa Jazz Festival. We were welcomed with incredible music and had the chance to provide four bursaries to deserving new talent.
Stingray is proud to renew its longstanding partnership with the TD Jazz Youth Summit. The TD Jazz Youth Summit is a program run by the TD Ottawa Jazz Festival that brings together the top young musicians from across the nation. Taking place during the festival, it provides young Canadian musicians a rare platform to develop their big band experience by working with internationally acclaimed musicians and clinicians, culminating in two performances on the Main Stage.
Year after year, the group of performing teens at the TD Jazz Youth Summit have impressed us with talent well beyond musicians their senior. Spending a week together while learning to hone their craft from masters of the genre, these young Canadians put together incredibly mature compositions they were visibly proud to perform on stage at the Ottawa Jazz Festival, this year to a packed house.
Though every member of this year’s summit was exceptional, four students really showed their passion, dedication, and ability to push through hard work to achieve their musical goals.
Stingray is proud to offer the following four students bursaries to help them on their path to future successes:
- Alex Argatoff – $2,000
- Jacob Do – $1,000
- Eamon Donovan Sheil – $500
- Ben Lyndon Isenstein – $500
Zachary Monson with Stingray Rising Stars award winner Alex Argatoff. © Chris Parker
Zachary Monson with Stingray Rising Stars award winner Jacob Do. © Chris Parker
Zachary Monson with Stingray Rising Stars award winner Eamon Donovan Sheil. © Chris Parker
Zachary Monson with Stingray Rising Stars award winner Ben Lyndon Isenstein. © Chris Parker
Jacob Do put into words his experience:
"I had an amazing week working with the TD Ottawa Jazz Youth Summit. The band was very balanced and worked extremely hard under the direction of Jim Lewis. With his help, it was amazing to witness how much the band improved throughout the week. The program was a great help in connecting me with excellent young musicians from all over Canada, some of whom I may never have met. A program like this is extremely important for the future of the Canadian jazz scene, as it connects many of the young musicians who will change this music. I couldn’t recommend this program enough to other young jazz musicians; it’s an amazing opportunity that couldn’t be possible without TD and Stingray. The scholarships that Stingray provides at the end of the week are greatly appreciated by all of the participants. Since most of us are students, the scholarships really go a long way in helping us worry less about finances and focus more on what we are most passionate about: making music!"
A huge congratulations to all of this year’s participants on an incredibly successful and impressive performance:
- Alex Argatoff - Bass
- Jacob Do - Tenor Saxophone
- Eamon Sheil - Alto Saxophone
- Ben Lyndon Isenstein - Piano
- Anna Blackmore - Baritone Saxophone
- Nicholas Adema – Trombone
- Annie Lu – Trumpet
- Adam Cesarone – Guitar
- Tetyana Haraschuk – Drumset
For more information regarding the Stingray Rising Stars program, click here.
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