Thelonious Monk

Just got back from what was an exciting installment of the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition. This year, the drummers got to strut their stuff. The only one of the twelve semi-finalists I was familiar with was Jamison Ross. I first saw him in the documentary "Chops" which they screened at the Jazz at Lincoln Center Band Director Academy the year I took the course for jazz educators. If you have not seen this movie, I would highly recommend that you do! It follows several high school jazz ensembles as they prepare for a trip to the Essentially Ellington competition.…