By any measure, the age of 35 is a little late for a coming out party. But no one is likely to hold that against the fresh-faced new version of the Monterey Jazz Festival’s venerable student showcase.

Since it was launched in 1971, the Annual National High School Jazz Competition has served as a prime proving ground for gifted young players, offering an early glimpse at future stars such as saxophonist Joshua Redman, pianist Benny Green, keyboardist Patrice Rushen and bassist Larry Grenadier. But the event has always been held out of public sight on the Monterey County Fairgrounds, attended mostly by journalists, music school talent scouts and the musicians’ family and friends.

This year, however, the high school competition has been transferred to Fisherman’s Wharf and transformed into a musical gala for the entire community.

Running Friday, April 8 through Sunday, April 10 at the Monterey Conference Center, and rechristened the Next Generation Festival, the event features hundreds of accomplished young musicians from around the country, performing and competing in big bands, combos and vocal groups, while a cast of veteran, world-class improvisers serve as clinicians and judges.

“I’ve been chomping at the bit to do something like this for years,” says Tim Jackson, the Monterey Jazz Festival’s artistic director. “This high school competition is one of our cornerstones, a signature event, and it needed a new look. I just didn’t feel like we were maximizing our potential.

“When you’re at the Monterey Jazz Festival, the Fairgrounds feels like the right place to be. But it didn’t feel right for the high school festival. Now we’re downtown next to Fisherman’s Wharf and Cannery Row. We’re going to involve the whole community and make it a major destination event.”

The weekend opens with its traditional Kick-Off Concert featuring the MJF County All-Star Band and MJF Middle School Honor Band, a new ensemble created to showcase the region’s top young players. The student groups are followed by a band made up of the competition judges, led by saxophone star Branford Marsalis, the MJF’s year-round Artist-in-Residence for 2005.

Joining the eldest sibling of the illustrious Marsalis clan is a remarkable cast, including pianist Shelly Berg, trumpeters Gilbert Castellanos and Ron McCurdy, saxophonists Mary Fetig and Paul Contos, trombonist Wayne Wallace, pianist James Miley, guitarist Mimi Fox, bassist Ray Drummond, drummer Yoron Israel and vocalists Alvin Chea and Michele Weir.

Like all Next Generation events, this concert is free, and has traditionally attracted standing room only crowds.

Marsalis is also featured the evening of Thursday, April 7 at the Sunset Cultural Center as part of the MJF’s Jazz at Sunset Spring Concert series. He performs with his stellar quartet, featuring pianist Joey Calderazzo, bassist Nat Reeves and the powerhouse drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts.

BRANFORD: KIDS NEED JAZZ

For Marsalis, it’s imperative to expose young players to jazz at an early age, as the music has to fight its way through a morass of razzle-dazzle electronic competition, from movies and television to video games and music videos.

“We’re an entertainment country, we see music as a means of entertainment and film as a means of entertainment, and that’s pretty much how it works,” Marsalis says. “In a society like ours, the people are adamant about what they want, even though most of their opinions are made in a vacuum. There’s a formula for success in any society, and it hinges upon having your music right at the point of contact with the people.”

Raising awareness about jazz has been a central mission of the MJF since it was founded in 1958. Indeed, the Next Generation Festival is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the festival’s year-round educational programming.

With an annual education budget of about $500,000, the MJF sends top-shelf professional musicians, including many serving as Next Generation judges, into schools throughout the region, offering free instruction to aspiring young musicians. No one knows more about the impact of the MJF’s educational outreach than Rob Klevan, who was hired last year as the Festival’s education director. He saw his students benefit tremendously from MJF education efforts during his 21-year stint as band director at Stevenson School in Pebble Beach.

“Now, being on the other end, I thought, I want the Next Generation experience to be really special, so that the students feel welcomed,” Klevan says. “Instead of signing up in the Fairgrounds’ parking lot, you come into the Conference Center and get free stuff from sponsors.

“When they walk in the door they should feel that they’ve won something already. In many cases, these kids come from quite a distance, and then they’re on stage for 20 minutes. So we created a venue where they could play all day if they want, with a stage on Fisherman’s Wharf. There’s a student jam session every evening at the Marriott Hotel. By bringing groups to the downtown area, we’re exposing them to the true Monterey—the Wharf, the [Monterey Bay] Aquarium, Cannery Row.”

MUSICAL ALL-AMERICANS

The weekend’s National High School Jazz Competition kicks off on Saturday morning with a dozen big bands, six combos and six vocal groups from around the country competing throughout the day for a spot on the stages of the 2005 Monterey Jazz Festival, as well as trophies, cash prizes, scholarships and more. Winners of all events, along with individual winners of scholarships and trophies, will be announced at the conclusion of Saturday night’s big band finals.

Making it to the Next Generation Festival itself is a major accomplishment. High school bands from around the country send in tapes, but only a fraction make the cut. This year, there are some usual suspects, such as the celebrated Berkeley High band, the Gunn High School band from Palo Alto and the Hamilton High band from Los Angeles. But there are also newcomers, who know that by making it to Monterey, they’ve made a quantum leap.

For instance, students in the Albany High band from Alameda County were shocked when they were selected for their first trip to the competition.

“At first it didn’t set in, then we realized that only about 12 bands get in,” says altoist Jake Fleer, a senior. “It put us on an ego trip. Then we had a little band controversy over what we were going to play. Finally we decided to wanted to tackle a new piece, so we’re doing ‘Samba Del Gringo’ by Gordon Goodwin.”

All Next Generation events are free and open to the public. Some highlights: the MJF County All-Star/MSHB performance in the DeAnza Ballroom takes place at 7:15pm Friday, followed by the Judges Concert with Branford Marsalis at 8:15pm.

On Saturday at 5:15pm, the Pico Rivera Community Big Band performs, under the direction of James Bangar. And 7:30pm, the Big Band finalist competition gets under way in the Serra Ballroom, after which all of the final awards will be presented at 9:30pm.

At 10pm, the annual Student Jam Session begins, in Characters Grill down the street at the Marriott Hotel. It’s always been a big deal; somehow this year it’ll probably be a few degrees cooler.