Ideally situated near the jazz capital of Chicago, Northwestern’s Jazz Studies program is opening a new chapter with the recent appointment of Victor L. Goines as director. Goines will assume his new duties in fall 2008.

The jazz studies program currently offers the bachelor of music degree.  In addition to the excellent instruction at the School of Music, students have ready access to a wide array of challenging coursework in other fields, something that can be found only at a major research university.  Performance opportunities for jazz students include large and small ensembles that are heard regularly throughout the year, as well as performance opportunities in the thriving jazz scene in the greater Chicago area.  Program graduates can be found in a variety of important performance and university settings throughout the United States and abroad.

Well-known as both a jazz educator and artist, Goines’ long list of credentials include current membership in the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra as well as recordings and concerts with many of the jazz and popular music greats of today.  Additionally, he served as artistic director of the Juilliard School’s jazz studies program for seven years, developing curricula for the bachelor’s and master’s degrees and the artist diploma program.

Goines firmly believes that jazz performers must have highest-level technical skills and an in-depth knowledge of the language of jazz and its historical roots.  These elements, he feels, combined with self-understanding, are invaluable in developing artists who are articulate in the idiom and who can contribute to the evolution of this important American art form.

Applications for the B.M. degree in Jazz Studies are now being accepted for the 2008-09 academic year.