Seminar “Kind of Blue” 2021

For this 12th edition of ‘Kind of Blue’ in 2021, Siena Jazz has produced a very strict and detailed safety protocol to combat the ongoing global pandemic, in order to raise safety levels as much as possible for students, teachers and staff, so that we can all devote ourselves to the music we love with the utmost concentration and peace of mind.

Every morning, the premises will be sanitised, and the bathrooms will be sanitised twice a day.

The classrooms are equipped with 80 polycarbonate panels measuring 2 metres in height and 1 metre 50 centimetres in length.

Face masks, social distancing of over 1 metre, and disinfection of hands and musical instruments are mandatory.

Special staff will ensure that the health regulations established for the Seminar are properly maintained.

The twelfth edition of ‘Kind of Blue’ is aimed at two levels of young musicians. The first introduces students to the language of jazz, with a particular focus on musical improvisation techniques. The second, based mainly on musical refinement, is aimed at young musicians who are already familiar with jazz and need to deepen their instrumental technique and improvisation skills.

All this is achieved through intense daily work, with the musicians practising every day in two different musical ensembles.

The course is therefore open to musicians of all instruments and ages who want to learn about and explore the musical world of improvisation.

Starting with this edition, Siena Jazz is paying particular attention to students at Italian music high schools so that they can develop their studies by expanding them to include professional jazz music training, given that the Ministry of Education has approved the inclusion of jazz music in the curriculum of music high schools.

The Kind of Blue seminar can be an excellent stimulus for young music students to acquire the knowledge necessary to attend preparatory courses for entry into three-year higher music education programmes leading to a first-level academic diploma.

We would like to remind you that Siena Jazz was the first non-state institution in Italy to be authorised by the Ministry to issue legally valid qualifications equivalent to a three-year bachelor’s degree (with Ministerial Decree no. 193 of 10-11-2011).

The training course will therefore focus on specific stylistic aspects, improvisation and modern composition. The topics will be chosen by the teachers based on the type of students enrolled.

Every day, participants will be engaged in 7 hours of lessons, in a truly intensive course.

On the afternoon of the last day of the seminar, the final recitals of the courses will take place, with the participation of all the ensemble groups, the orchestra workshop and the choral ensemble.

Siena Jazz is offering four scholarships to young musicians enrolled in the seminar to attend the 13th edition of Kind of Blue, which will be held from 23 to 28 August 2022.

The selection of the four students for the scholarship is made by a committee composed of the seminar teachers and the Director of Siena Jazz.

The committee’s decision is final.

The Siena Jazz venue is normally open seven days a week from 9.00 am until 1.00 am.

During the Kind of Blue Seminar, the venue will close at 7.30 pm for dinner, reopen at 9.00 pm and then close at 1.00 am to allow participants to practise individually or in groups.

The venue will not reopen between 9.00 pm and 1.00 am only on the evening of the opening concert and the evening of the final recitals.

The facility has 21 classrooms designed to the highest standards, both in terms of soundproofing and the availability of musical and IT equipment.

The institution provides members with the following tools:

• 18 grand and half-tailed pianos
• 32 electronic keyboards with weighted keys
• 25 full drumsets
• 50 guitar and bass amplifiers
• 21 voice systems for singers
• 21 hi-fi systems
• 21 pentagrammed blackboards
• 40 Apple computers, with music software
• 85 lecterns
• 4 double basses
• 2 electric basses
• 1 Vibraphone
• Brazilian and African percussion
• Free Wi-Fi

• Ear protectors
• Pad
• Libro
• “Aebersold” manuals and CDs
• Educational library with over 800 titles.

Access to the Historical Library and the video-sound archive, with about 90.000 supports, follows a specific regulation to be consulted at the secretariat of the “Arrigo Polillo” Study Centre, research section of the Siena Jazz Association (on the ground floor).