From hundreds of applications nationwide, 40 finalists from 19 states have been selected to participate in this year’s Songbook Academy summer intensive in Carmel, the leading youth music program focused on the timeless standards of jazz, pop, Broadway and Hollywood.
Now in its 13th year, the Songbook Academy is the flagship education initiative of the Great American Songbook Foundation, providing an opportunity for talented high school performers to experience a life-changing week of classes, workshops and performances under the guidance of arts and entertainment professionals and leading university educators.
This year’s entertainment industry mentors will include Songbook Foundation Founder Michael Feinstein, Broadway/TV actor Shereen Ahmed, jazz and blues singer Nicole Henry, Broadway performer James T. Lane, jazz singer-musician Aubrey Logan and crossover singer Anthony Nunziata.
After being conducted online the past two years, the Academy is returning to an on-site format July 16 to 23 at the Foundation’s headquarters, the Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel. Starting Friday, June 3, tickets will be available for three public performance events at the Center’s Palladium concert hall. Each will take place before a live audience and also will be livestreamed for viewers worldwide.
- Public Masterclass – 2 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, July 20: Ten randomly selected participants will perform and receive real-time critiques from Michael Feinstein and Nicole Henry.
- Songbook Showcase –2 to 5 p.m. Thursday, July 21: Each of the 40 national finalists will have a turn in the spotlight to perform a selected song.
- Songbook Academy in Concert – 7 p.m. Saturday, July 23: Michael Feinstein will emcee as all 40 singers deliver solo and ensemble performances to demonstrate and celebrate their growth over the course of the week.
For the July 20 and 21 events, on-site tickets and livestream registration are pay-what-you-can with no minimum price. For the final concert, on-site tickets start at just $25, and the livestream option is pay-what-you-can with a $10 minimum. Tickets will be available starting at 10 a.m. o Friday, June 3 at TheCenterPresents.org or by calling (317) 843-3800.
The Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation Mentor Champions support the involvement of the national faculty teams who guide and support the students throughout the week. This year’s faculty includes music directors Jeff Harris, Russ Kassoff, Daryl Kojak, Beckie Menzie and Melanie Shore, along with vocal coaches Kathleen Hacker, Elaine Moebius, Lynne Rothrock and Catherine Walker. Additional guest clinicians will include contemporary vocal artist, arranger and educator Ly Wilder.
The Songbook Academy is sponsored nationally by the Efroymson Family Fund and also supported by the City of Carmel and Salon 01. The Songbook Academy in Concert performance is part of the 2022-2023 Center Presents Season sponsored by Allied Solutions and the Hoosier Village & The Barrington of Carmel Songbook Series.
About the Great American Songbook Foundation
The mission of the Great American Songbook Foundation, founded in 2007 by five-time Grammy Award nominee Michael Feinstein, is to inspire and educate by celebrating the timeless standards of pop, jazz, Broadway and Hollywood. Headquartered at the Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, the Foundation advances this rich legacy by curating physical artifacts of its creators, performers and publishers in the Songbook Library & Archives; operating a multimedia exhibit gallery; overseeing the Songbook Hall of Fame; offering programs for the public and research opportunities for scholars and artists; and providing educational opportunities for student musicians, including the annual Songbook Academy summer intensive. The Foundation is a Cultural Affiliate of the Los Angeles-based Grammy Museum. More information is available at TheSongbook.org.
Other finalists from across the nation are:
- Audrey Bailey, North Logan, Utah; Green Canyon High School
- Alexandra Bauman, Holmdel, N.J.; Holmdel High School
- Madeleine Burnett-Caballero, Taylor, Ala.; Laurel Springs School
- Cece Cummins, Darien, Conn.; Darien High School
- Stella Cushing, Mill Valley, Calif.; Tamalpais High School
- Grace Linnea DeCroix, Middleton, Wis.; Middleton High School
- Jane Delahoussaye, Sugar Land, Texas; Logos Preparatory Academy
- Ava Nicole Frances, San Francisco, Calif.; Ruth Asawa School of the Arts
- Mayme Gerstel, Los Angeles, Calif.; Westridge School for Girls
- Lydia Herrera, Kennesaw, Ga.; homeschooled
- Alannah Hjelm, Arlington, Va.; Yorktown High School
- Ananya Kaushal, Newtown Square, Penn.; Baldwin School
- Edin Kebede, New Albany, Ohio; New Albany High School
- Asiah Keenan, Sagle, Idaho; Sandpoint High School
- Grace Kiamie, Pelham Manor, N.Y.; Pelham Memorial High School
- Alexander Kim, Laguna Niguel, Calif.; St. Margaret’s Episcopal School
- Avery Kissam, Palm Bay, Fla.; Bayside High School
- Scarlett Licina, Oswego, Ill.; Oswego High School
- Sydney MacGilvray, Worthington, Ohio; Thomas Worthington High School
- Annie Matot, Jupiter, Fla.; Kings Academy
- Hawkins Meek, Los Angeles, Calif.; Village Christian High School
- Tucker James Mensen, Urbana, Iowa; Center Point Urbana High School
- Anna Shea Safran, Doylestown, Penn.; Central Bucks High School
- Mikayla Smith, Royal Palm Beach, Fla.; Kings Academy
- Ethan Steiner, Ann Arbor, Mich.; Pioneer High School
- Nahari Suchanek, York, S.C.; South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities
- Sadie Wilson, Dallas, Texas; The Keystone School
- Sophia Yen, Burr Ridge, Ill.; Hinsdale South High School