In his 11th year at the Jazz Harmony Retreat...
Dr. Jeremy Fox !

Grammy-nominated arranger Jeremy Fox graduated from The School for Music Vocations in 1996, then earned a B.M. degree in Piano Jazz Studies from Western Michigan University. He later received his Masters degree in Studio Jazz Writing from the University of Miami, and a Doctoral degree there in Jazz Composition.  In 8 years as a full-time faculty at The School for Music Vocations, Jeremy taught classical theory, vocal and instrumental arranging, studio recording, and solo jazz literature. He directed various instrumental and choral and vocal ensembles including the vocal jazz group First Take.  Since its inception, Jeremy has coordinated and led the SMV Vocal Jazz Camps around the U.S. and Canada (www.VocalJazzCamp.com), which this summer are in their 13th year.

He is active as a clinician, and has presented clinics and served as guest conductor of All-State and Honour ensembles throughout the United States and Canada.  The SWCC Vocal Festival that Jeremy revived – and which brought in such artists as The Real Group, NY Voices, Rajaton, Mark Murphy, Nancy King, and m-pact – is now called the Fox Festival, bearing Jeremy’s name.

Jeremy was nominated for a GRAMMY® award for his orchestral arrangement of "All My Tomorrows" featuring Kate McGarry, off his "With Love" album (available on iTunes, and at www.JeremyFox.net).  He has also received 10 awards from Downbeat magazine, including ones for: Best Written Song, Best Arrangement, Studio Engineering, and for his vocal jazz ensembles.  Jeremy’s charts are published with UNC Jazz Press, Sound Music Publications, and with his own publishing company, Foxtrot Publishing.  He has written for: Kevin Mahogany, NY Voices singers Lauren Kinhan and Peter Eldridge, Theo Bleckmann, Kate McGarry, m-pact, Cadence, Sunny Wilkinson, Terence Blanchard, and Metropolitan Opera singers Eric Owens and Denyce Graves.  Last spring, he conducted a concert of mostly his Bossa Nova arrangements with the Costa Rican National Orchestra with Brazilian singer Rose Max – leading the orchestra to a 2013 Latin Grammy nomination.  He has also twice acted as the guest conductor for the famed Henry Mancini Institute Jazz Orchestra, based in Miami.  For more info, please visit: www.JeremyFox.net

AND FOR THE FIRST TIME AT THE JAZZ HARMONY RETREAT in IOWA... 
MATT FALKER!

Kawai artist Matt Falker is a jazz and gospel pianist, vocalist, arranger and clinician. As a full-time professor at MiraCosta College, Matt directs the Downbeat award-winning Frequency vocal jazz program, teaches theory and piano classes, and is founder and director of the Oceanside Jazz Festival, a non-competitive vocal jazz festival hosted at MiraCosta. Matt was also one of a select group of teachers chosen as a quarter-finalist for the GRAMMY’s Music Educator Award. 

Matt distributes music through his own publishing company, Matfal Music, and many of his vocal arrangements are also published by Sound Music Publications, Sheet Music Plus, and JW Pepper. He is the musical director and baritone singer for professional vocal ensemble True North, who has performed at many educational festivals, and presented featured sets at both the Jazz Education Network (JEN) Conference and the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) Western Division Conference. Matfal Music also runs a series of one-day vocal jazz workshops for teachers and students called the Vocal Jazz Academy. In 2020, the Academy will be hosted in five locations around the United States.

A native of northern Michigan, Matt received his undergraduate degree from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo in jazz piano and his graduate degree from the University of Southern California in jazz voice. An active performer and clinician internationally, his recent appearances as a guest clinician or performer include festivals in Washington, Oklahoma, Illinois, Alberta, Manitoba, and California, including prominent events such as the Monterey Jazz Festival and the ACDA National Convention. He has also served as the guest conductor for All-State Vocal Jazz Ensembles for Washington, Colorado, Iowa, Arizona, and others. In 2019, he presented a performance of his singing, playing, and arranging at the International Jazz Voice Conference in Helsinki, Finland, and in 2020, he will work with and perform with choirs in Adelaide, Australia.

He has published an instructional DVD through Sound Music Publications entitled “Jazz Piano For Singers, Volume 1”. On Matt’s last sabbatical, he arranged and scored a new musical based on the life of Nat ‘King’ Cole, which premiered at Morgan State University in Baltimore, and will be performed as a staged reading in New York City in April 2020.

Matt’s most recent albums include his solo CD ‘Playpen’ featuring his singing, playing, and writing, and the True North CD ‘Voyage’. Matt also plays keyboards for the Los Angeles Chapter of the Gospel Music Workshop of America. 

For more info, please visit matfalmusic.com / oceansidejazzfestival.com / vocaljazzacademy.com