Slideshow: Berklee Women Shine at Dominican Republic Jazz Festival

Several Berklee alumni, students, and faculty performed at this year’s Dominican Republic Jazz Festival, which was dedicated to women in the jazz world.

December 20, 2016

Several Berklee alumni, students, and faculty performed at this year’s Dominican Republic Jazz Festival. This year, the festival was dedicated to women in the jazz world, and the Berklee Global Jazz Institute (BGJI) organized its activities to align with the event’s focus on preventing violence against women and encouraging gender equality.

Berklee alumni performers at the festival included multi-Grammy winners Esperanza Spalding ’05 and Terri Lyne Carrington ’83 ‘03H, who is BGJI's Zildjian chair in performance, as well as Tia Fuller, a Berklee professor in the Ensemble DepartmentGeri Allen ‘14H; Ingrid Jensen ‘89; Patricia Zarate ’99, executive director of the Panama Jazz Festival; Joanne Brackeen, Berklee piano professor; and the Berklee Global Jazz Institute Ambassadors. Brackeen was joined by an ensemble consisting of Gregory Groover, Naseem Alatrash, Santiago Bosch, Nathaniel Winn, and Jared Henderson.

Prior to Spalding’s performance, Mia Olson, professor of woodwinds, presented an award on behalf of Berklee to the Dominican Republic Jazz Festival for its support of music education. Many other Berklee alumnae also performed, including Lihi Haruvi, Caili O’Doherty, and Marta Roma.

Roma worked behind the scenes for the festival as part of her graduate program internship with the BGJI. Proceeds from the festival went to FEDUJAZZ, a nonprofit foundation that provides free music education for youth in the Dominican Republic.