Recognized on both a local and national level, it\u2019s no secret that Mission Bay High School\u2019s music program is one of San Diego\u2019s treasures. Generations of musicians have honed their skills at the school since original music director Rey Vinole founded the program in 1974. Helmed today by alumni Jean-Paul “JP” Balmat, the program continues to expand, with the school\u2019s best musicians taking part in up to 40 performances around the state each year. Funding for the arts is still a struggle at best. So on Saturday, May 18, the MBHS Music Department will hold its third annual “Jazz on the Green” mini music festival at the school. The New Orleans-inspired event will include all three of the school\u2019s music groups, including the Jazz Ensemble, the Concert Jazz Band and the Preservationists, with the Euphoria Brass Band closing with a tribute to New Orleans. Open to all ages, the event includes crafts, activities for children, swing dancing and food from local restaurants. Additionally, the school\u2019s farmers market will offer up a variety of treats. “This event is really a kind of showcase for Mission Bay and the beautiful quad area that we have,” Balmat said. “In the past, Jazz on the Green has really brought the community together. It\u2019s a nice cross-section of people that attend: parents from middle schools, elementary schools and, of course, the high schools, as well as people who just read or see information about our concerts in the local press. It\u2019s wonderful, all these different people coming to celebrate these young musicians at a really great venue. It\u2019s really one of the most beautiful venues that I\u2019d ever want to play in.” According to Balmat, events like this are crucial to keeping the music program going. He\u2019s also quick to note a lot of public support. “The community has been amazing,” he said. “They helped send our students to New Orleans last year and make it a point to be at our performances.\u00a0Organizations like the Mission Beach Woman\u2019s Club, Friends of Pacific Beach Secondary Schools and our longtime sponsors, America\u2019s Finest City Dixieland Jazz Society, have played a huge part in our success.” Balmat said he considers music programs to be a vital part of a student\u2019s education, teaching them to “work hard in music so they can become better, not so they can pass a test.” “Jazz also teaches a lot about their history,” he noted. “Jazz is an American-born art form that follows the progression of some of our most challenging times in our country.\u00a0It\u2019s important for me that students see the connection. It makes them more educated performers.” While most concert guests will only notice the fine music being played on the day, Balmat notes its all an intensive team effort. “It\u2019s hard!” he said good-naturedly. “There is a lot of work practicing, setting up performances, working individually with kids, fundraising for new supplies, keeping up our image in the community and state.\u00a0It never stops.\u00a0I go nonstop all day, every day.\u00a0There is always something to do.\u00a0I\u2019m just lucky I work in such a rewarding profession and the students really make it worthwhile.” \u2022 Jazz on the Green:<\/b> Saturday, May 18 at Mission Bay High School,<\/b> 2475 Grand Ave. at noon. All ages. $10 adults, $5 students\/children. www.missionbaymusic.com.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Recognized on both a local and national level, it\u2019s no secret that Mission Bay High School\u2019s music program is one of San Diego\u2019s treasures. Generations of musicians have honed their skills at the school since original music director Rey Vinole founded the program in 1974. Helmed today by alumni Jean-Paul “JP” Balmat, the program continues […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":260491,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11559","_seopress_titles_title":"\u2018Jazz on the Green\u2019 to thrill listeners, raise funding","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11559,11551],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-260490","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-beach-bay-press","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/260490","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=260490"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/260490\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/260491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=260490"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=260490"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=260490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}