Carnegie Hall

Each summer, NYO Jazz, led by artistic director Sean Jones, shines a spotlight on the depth of talent found among teen jazz players across the United States. The program offers talented young musicians ages 16–19 the opportunity to perform as cultural ambassadors for their country, sharing a uniquely American musical genre with people around the world through both national and international touring activities. The members of NYO Jazz have been recognized by Carnegie Hall as among the finest jazz musicians in the country following a rigorous and highly competitive audition process. After its Carnegie Hall debut in 2018, the ensemble embarked on its first-ever international tour with vocalist Dianne Reeves at prestigious concert halls and music festivals in London, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Kassel, and Berlin. In the summer of 2019, NYO Jazz made its debut tour to Asia, joined by vocalist Kurt Elling, with performances in Taichung, Beijing, Shanghai, Zhuhai, and Hong Kong. As part of their travel schedule, NYO Jazz musicians also have opportunities to meet and collaborate with young local musicians and experience the richness of different cultures and musical traditions.

In 2021, during NYO Jazz’s residency at Purchase College, State University of New York, the band recorded its first full-length studio album under Jones’s direction, also featuring special guest saxophonist Melissa Aldana. The album includes Carnegie Hall–commissioned works for the ensemble from each year of the program, exploring themes such as social justice, resilience, and the power of music to spark joy. The album—entitled We’re Still Here—was released on June 24, 2022.

NYO Jazz builds on the success of the acclaimed National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA) and its sister ensemble for younger musicians, NYO2—programs created by Carnegie Hall in 2013 and 2016, respectively—to bring together the finest young classical musicians from across the country each summer for training, performances, and international touring. Each of these prestigious national programs—free to all participants—is dedicated to the proposition that talented young musicians thrive when given the opportunity to expand their musical, social, and cultural horizons and share their artistry with audiences around the globe. Since 2013, Carnegie Hall’s national youth ensembles have performed in 15 countries on four continents, including tours to China, South Korea, Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia, Russia, and across Europe.

To learn more about NYO Jazz, visit carnegiehall.org/NYOJazz.

Music and spirituality have always been intertwined in the artistic vision of trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator, and activist Sean Jones. Singing and performing as a child with the church choir in his hometown of Warren, Ohio, he switched from drums to trumpet at the age of 10.

Mr. Jones is a musical chameleon, comfortable in any setting or genre. After a six-month stint with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Wynton Marsalis offered him a permanent position as lead trumpeter of the ensemble, a post he held from 2004 until 2010. In 2015, Mr. Jones was tapped to become a member of the SFJAZZ Collective. During this time, he managed to keep a core group of talented musicians together under his leadership, forming the foundation for groups that have produced and released eight recordings on Mack Avenue Records, the latest being Sean Jones: Live from Jazz at the Bistro in 2017. 

Mr. Jones has been prominently featured in recordings and performances with many major figures in jazz, including Illinois Jacquet, Jimmy Heath, Frank Foster, Nancy Wilson, Dianne Reeves, Gerald Wilson, and Marcus Miller. He was selected by Mr. Miller, Herbie Hancock, and Wayne Shorter for their Tribute to Miles tour in 2011. He has also performed with the Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Youngstown symphony orchestras, as well as Soulful Symphony in Baltimore and a chamber group at the Salt Bay Chamberfest.

Mr. Jones is an internationally recognized educator. In addition to serving as artistic director of NYO Jazz, he is president of the Jazz Education Network and holds the Richard and Elizabeth Case Chair in Jazz Studies at The John Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute in Baltimore. Previously, he served as chair of the brass department at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Blessed with a fitting name—chosen by her jazz-loving, piano-playing grandmother—Jazzmeia Horn was born in Dallas in 1991 and grew up in a tightly knit, church-going family filled with musical talent. She attended Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, known for launching such musical greats as Roy Hargrove, Norah Jones, and Erykah Badu. She then attended The New School in New York City. Ms. Horn steered herself toward mentors who would guide her passion for jazz, including Bobby McFerrin, Abbey Lincoln, and Betty Carter. Winner of the 2013 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition and the 2015 Thelonious Monk Institute International Jazz Competition, she was signed to Concord Records and released her debut album, A Social Call, to great critical acclaim, including a Grammy Award nomination.

In the years since Ms. Horn bowed with her first album, she’s been busy on the road, honing her vocal skills, writing songs with personal and social messages, and perfecting a fearless approach to improvisation and performance. She received her second Grammy nomination for Love and Liberation, a product of drive and deliberation filled with songs of daring musicality, emotional power, and relevant messages. 

Ms. Horn’s first big-band recording effort, Dear Love, brims with the combination of her assured delivery and spoken-word segments, deft arrangements, and fiery musical ideas. Garnering praise from critics and fans alike, Dear Love was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.