Workshops

In 2006, the Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festival, in collaboration with ArtPlay, a City of Melbourne initiative, presented a new and exciting workshop/concert series open exclusively to Primary school girls aged under 13 years. The workshops ran consecutively on three groupings of two Sundays (in June, August and December) with a performance at the end of the series held on the open stage at Federation Square. These workshops were facilitated by some of Australia's finest female jazz performers: Andrea Keller, Sonja Horbelt, Martha Baartz, Tamara Murphy, Shannon Barnett and Annette Jenko-Yates.

In 2007, the MWIJF has expanded upon the 2006 series, running the workshops from September to December 2007. Eight workshops will culminate in performances at federation Square and Bennetts Lane Jazz Club.

The MWIJF has established a partnership with ArtPlay to address the lack of opportunities for young female students between the ages of 7-13 to discover improvisation and jazz. It aims to foster the improvising talents of students at an age where they are less inhibited (than teenage years), and encourage them to seek out opportunities as they approach their more formative secondary school years.

ArtPlay is a centre for the highest standard of artistic endeavor for young students and the MWIJF is delighted to be in partnership with this world leading cultural centre for young people and the Arts.

For more information click here.