The festival has deliberated, and the results are in. The Odlum Brown Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival has selected two talented and up-and-coming jazz students as recipients of the festival’s 2023 Rising Jazz Star Awards
The festival expanded the Rising Jazz Star Award this year to offer two award categories: Secondary School and Post-Secondary.
The award supports the development of emerging young jazz artists by providing a performance opportunity at the festival and a $1,000.00 scholarship sponsored by Coast Capital and the Fort Langley Community Improvement Society.
The two Rising Star Awards are going to multi-instrumentalist Milan Stanga, a grade 11 student from Lord Byng Secondary School in Vancouver for the Secondary School award, and 3rd year Capilano University Jazz Music Program student, trumpet player, and Langley resident, Ethan Lawrence for the Post-Secondary award.
Secondary School winner, Milan Stanga has been playing professionally since the age of 11 and is currently in the 11th grade at Lord Byng Secondary in the Byng Arts Band Program.
He is a multi-instrumentalist playing the drums, bass, hand percussions, and symphonic percussions as well as singing.
For five years Milan studied Cuban, Brazilian, and West African music at the School of Groove.
He has formed three different bands, all of which perform professionally.
Milan’s band will perform on the festival’s Community Hall Stage on Saturday, July 22nd from 10:30-11 am.
The winner of the post-secondary category, Ethan Lawrence is approaching his fourth and final year at Capilano University in the Jazz Music Program.
Ethan often performs around the Fort Langley community and writes film music at a professional level for numerous teams and directors in and around Vancouver.
He intends to continue bridging the gap between film music and jazz. Ethan and his band, the Ethan Lawrence Quartet, is the opening act at the ticketed jazz concert on the first night of the Jazz Fest, Thursday, July 20th at Chief Sepass Theatre.
The Festival’s Opening Night Jazz Concert on Thursday, July 20th at Chief Sepass Theatre which will feature Phil Dwyer’s Connections Quartet will open with a performance by the Ethan Lawrence Quartet.
The “Connections Quartet” brings together West Coast’s premier musicians for the Opening Night Jazz Concert including jazz legend and JUNO award winner, saxophonist, pianist, and composer Phil Dwyer, Juno- Award winner Brad Turner on trumpet and piano, renowned international drummer Alan Jones and Phil’s son, Byron Dwyer on bass.
While you’re at the concert, make sure to stop at the art exhibit by Lizete Dureault in the theatre lobby before the concert begins.
Lizete is a local Langley artist whose art piece was selected for this year’s Fort Langley’s Jazz and Arts Festival Image.
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