View the 2009 Application (for reference)

One of the Institute's earliest goals was to create a unique college-level jazz program where the masters of jazz could pass on their expertise to the next generation of jazz musicians the way Thelonious Monk had done in his Manhattan apartment throughout the '50s and '60s. In September 1995, the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance was launched and the first class of seven students began their intensive training with some of the world's greatest musicians.

The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance is a tuition-free two-year program that accepts one ensemble of musicians for each class. Three-time Grammy Award-winning composer and world-renowned trumpeter Terence Blanchard serves as Artistic Director. All of the students receive full scholarships, as well as stipends to cover their monthly living expenses. The students study both individually and as a small group, receiving personal mentoring, ensemble coaching, and lectures on the jazz tradition. They are also encouraged to experiment in expanding jazz in new directions through their compositions and performances.

The Institute of Jazz Performance students and instructors present a number of major concerts and community outreach programs throughout the United States and overseas. International highlights include performances at the celebration commemorating the 50th anniversary of the coronation of the King of Thailand, the 1998 Summit of the Americas in Chile before 34 heads of state, the United Nations "Day of Philosophy" event in Paris sponsored by UNESCO, and the Tokyo Jazz Festival.  The students have also participated in tours of Egypt, Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Vietnam with Institute Chairman Herbie Hancock.

Renowned jazz musicians Wayne Shorter, Clark Terry, Jimmy Heath, Barry Harris, Terence Blanchard, Hal Crook, Steve Turre, Carmen Lundy, Dave Holland and Kenny Barron are among the distinguished Artists-in-Residence who have taught at the Institute of Jazz Performance in recent years.

The current class is an eclectic group of amazing musicians:

Billy Buss, trumpet, was born in Berkeley, California and began playing trumpet at the age of nine.  He earned his undergraduate degree in professional music from Berklee College of Music in 2009.  Buss has received numerous awards, including the Monterey Jazz Festival’s full-tuition Jimmy Lyons Scholarship to Berklee, two Outstanding Performance/Soloist awards from the DownBeat Student Music Awards, as well as the Gold Award in Jazz from the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts. Buss was selected as a 2006 Presidential Scholar in the Arts and was honored by the President in a ceremony at the White House. His talents have allowed him the opportunity to perform at the Monterey, Umbria, and Montreux Jazz festivals; the Dubrovnik Summer Music Festival in Croatia; numerous festivals in Japan; and a variety of clubs in New York.

 

Godwin Louis, alto saxophone, was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and began playing saxophone at age seven. Louis graduated with a degree in professional music from Berklee College of Music in 2008. He has performed with Wynton Marsalis, Paquito D’Rivera, Michael Brecker, Jimmy Heath, Ralph Peterson, Billy Preston, and others, and has studied under George Garzone, Hal Crook, Dave Liebman, and Joe Lovano. In May of 2005, Louis represented Berklee at the Blue Note in New York, as part of a student group led by bassist Esperanza Spalding and drummer Francisco Mela.

 

Matt Marantz, tenor saxophone, was born and raised in Dallas, Texas.  He began playing saxophone at age eleven.  Marantz holds a bachelor’s degree in jazz performance from the Manhattan School of Music.  He has received 26 awards from DownBeat magazine, including top jazz soloist for four years in a row and co-winner of the top jazz soloist award in 2006 for university level musicians.  In 2001, Marantz was invited by Keilwerth Saxophones and Rico Reeds to be the companies’ youngest artist-clinician. He has performed with Dave Brubeck, Christian McBride, Roy Hargrove, Kurt Elling, Chris Potter, Branford Marsalis, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Ingrid Jensen, Frank LoCrasto, and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.

 

Victor Gould, piano, grew up in Los Angeles, California and began playing piano at the age of four.  While attending the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, he augmented his studies at the Berklee Five-Week Summer Performance Program, and was selected for the Brubeck Summer Institute Program. Gould recently completed his undergraduate degree at Berklee College of Music, where he was the recipient of the Herbie Hancock Presidential Scholarship. He has been awarded chairs in the Monterey Jazz Festival’s Next Generation All-Star Band and the 2005 Gibson/Baldwin Grammy Jazz Band. Gould’s honors include the Los Angeles Music Center's 2004 Spotlight Award and the Charles (Dolo) Coker Scholarship Foundation prize.

 

Hogyu Hwang, bass, grew up in Seoul, South Korea, and began playing bass at the age of ten. The winner of multiple major scholarships in his native Korea, Hwang was awarded a bachelor’s degree from Berklee College of Music as dual major in performance and jazz composition in 2007. While at Berklee, he earned a full scholarship and worked as an international ambassador. He has toured with various musicians in Spain, Poland, Germany, France, Ecuador, and Japan. He has performed at the International Association of Jazz Educators annual conferences, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, and many international jazz festivals such as the JVC Jazz Festivals, Monterey Jazz Festival, and the Beantown Jazz Festival. Hwang also has performed at many renowned jazz clubs such as New York’s Blue Note, Iridium, and Jazz Standard. Hwang has performed with Terri Lyne Carrington, Jimmy Heath, Joe Lovano, Hal Crook, and Dave Douglas.

 

Nicholas Falk, drums, is from Cape Elizabeth, Maine and began playing drums at age ten. He graduated from Berklee College of Music in 2006 with a degree in performance. He has studied with Bob Gulotti, Hal Crook, Dave Samuels and Jamey Haddad. After graduating from Berklee, Falk moved to New York where he has performed and recorded with Greg Osby, Hal Crook, George Garzone, John Lockwood, and Seamus Blake. He is also active on the Americana circuit touring extensively with Old School Freight Train. Falk has performed in venues such as the Blue Note, Monterey Jazz Festival, House of Blues Chicago, and internationally in Portugal, Japan, France, Korea, and Equador.

Steinway is the official piano and Hall Piano Company is the exclusive piano dealership  for the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance.  Residencies, master classes, and public concerts are supported by NEA Jazz Masters Live, an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.