New Graduate Program

The master of music degree in contemporary performance (global jazz concentration)
offers advanced studies to instrumentalists and vocalists who demonstrate excellent
musical proficiency and desire to develop their performance career. The program provides
advanced musicians with opportunities to develop their artistry through participation in a
wide array of performance projects.

Through this intensive one year, full-time program, students will have opportunity to be
mentored and learn from some of the current top jazz musicians, including Danilo Pérez,
Terri Lyne Carrington, John Patitucci, George Garzone, and Joe Lovano.

Beginning with the fall 2016 class, students accepted into this program will be awarded
full-tuition grants. These scholarships are made possible thanks to a generous gift from
Jeff Shames, chair of the Berklee Board of Trustees.

1 Danilo Pérez—BGJ! Artistic Director

Pianist and composer Danilo Pérez ‘88, winner of two Grammy Awards, is
among the most influential and dynamic musicians of our time. In just
over a decade, his distinctive blend of Pan-American jazz—incorporating
the music of the Americas, folkloric music, and world music—has attracted
critical acclaim and loyal audiences. Whether leading his own ensembles

  

or touring with renowned jazz masters and groups, such as the Wayne
Shorter Quartet, Roy Haynes, Dizzy Gillespie and the United Nations Orchestra, and Steve
Lacy, Pérez has made a decidedly fresh imprint on contemporary music, guided, as always,
by his love for jazz.

Born in Panama in 1965, Pérez went to Berklee in the 1980s and has led his own groups
since the early 1990s. As a bandleader, he has earned three Grammy nominations for his
ebullient and innovative recordings and six nominations overall. He has also worked as a
music educator in the U.S. and around the world for more than 20 years. In addition to his
role as artistic director of the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, Pérez serves as a UNESCO
Artist for Peace, a cultural ambassador for Panama, and as artistic director of the Panama
Jazz Festival. In previous years, he has served as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and he
has received numerous awards for his social work in Latin America.

In 2015, Pérez premiered two commissions: “Expeditions—Panamania 2015" at the Pan
American games in Toronto and "Detroit World Suite—La leyenda de Bayano” at the Detroit
Jazz Festival. Other recent accomplishments include an honorary doctorate from the University
of Panama and the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago 2015 Gloria Award.

. Our guests from Detroit are made possible through the

“\\, generous support of Wayne State University and the
§%\,‘ Detroit Jazz Festival.