Jazz
Starts
Here
Learn. Create. Improvise. Perform.
The music is
the lesson.
Jazz teaches you to listen. To respond. To lead, then lay out. To take the risk and land it.
That happens every week at NJK. In rehearsal. On stage. In masterclasses with working pros and guest artists from around the world.
Kids from all over Maryland, learning from the best in the business.
Find your sound. Find your people.
Can you rip a solo? Cool.
Never taken one? Cool.
Both belong here.
Big bands. Small groups. Masterclasses. Summer sessions. Gigs.
Every student gets a voice, and room to use it.
Placement
Not a cut. A fit.
Join the Big Band Jazz Academy.
We'll place you where you're challenged, not buried.
Young Lions
EMERGING BIG BAND
Where the foundation gets built. Swing feel. Section playing. First solos. The language of jazz from the ground up.
Jazz Ambassadors
Advanced BIG BAND
Our premier big band. Harder charts. Longer solos. Advanced players pushing each other higher.
Honors Combo
Select Small Ensemble
Small group. Big ears. A select combo drawn from the Academy, out in the community as NJK's ambassadors.
By Invitation
Jazz:
America's
original
art form.
Improvising teaches kids to think on their feet, trust their ear, and say something worth hearing while everyone's listening.
That doesn't just stay on the bandstand.
In their words
Hear it from the families.
Hear from a Naptown Jazz Kids family
One family. One story. Press play.
"They see our son—really see him—musically, emotionally, and as a whole person. Kids don't just show up and do what's required. They give their best because they feel believed in."
Jill · Lewes, DE
"He has simultaneously helped Ryan grow into a better musician and a better human. We are immensely grateful."
Kristen · Crofton
"NJK instructors challenge and encourage students to grow in a welcoming, safe and supportive environment."
Grace · Crofton
Play next to the best.
Musicians from all three of D.C.'s premier military jazz bands have come to play with our students. Workshops. Clinics. Side by side on the bandstand.
The U.S. Army Blues
The U.S. Air Force Airmen of Note
The U.S. Navy Band Commodores
Community
Different schools. One band.
Public, Private, Homeschool, middle school, high school. They come from all over the county and leave as a band.
Concerts. Partnerships. Community gigs. NJK keeps jazz moving through Annapolis and hands it to the next generation.
With support from
