Stan State Jazz Festival

Registration Form

Registration deadline extended! Deadline now March 8. Registration will be completely online this year.
Fee is $275 per band.

Rosters
Rosters are due April 12 before the event.
Last-minute drops are less important than any last-minute additions to the roster since we need a ROL for everyone prior to their participation in the festival.

Release of Liability
All participants must sign the Release of Liability form before the event on April 12.

More Information
Contact the Jazz Director, Barb Shinaver bshinaver@csustan.edu

Carmen Staaf

Herbie Hancock calls Carmen Staaf "a consummate jazz pianist with equal talent in composition, orchestration and arranging." Carmen is currently pianist and Musical Director for NEA Jazz Master, Tony and three-time Grammy winner Dee Dee Bridgewater. She has performed everywhere from the Village Vanguard with John Zorn, to Lincoln Center as a guest soloist with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, to recordings with Natalie Merchant (“Keep Your Courage”) and Lila Downs (“Pecados Y Milagros”). Staaf was a fellow at the prestigious Thelonious Monk Institute, where she studied with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock. Later, she was tapped, with Herbie’s approval, to transcribe his performances and consult on his course for masterclass.com. A Yamaha Artist, Carmen has played at venues including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, the Newport and Monterey Jazz Festivals, the Playboy Jazz Festival (where she performed in a two-piano setting with Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter), International Jazz Days in Paris and at the White House, and throughout Europe, Latin America, Morocco, India and Japan. She has been a DownBeat Rising Star Pianist for the last three years. Her 2018 co-led album "Science Fair" (with drummer Allison Miller) made both the NY Times and LA Times "Best of 2018" lists, and received 4.5 stars in DownBeat. She is also on recordings by Allison Miller, Jeff Williams, Dan Blake, Jenny Scheinman, Noah Garabedian, The Erica Seguine/Shon Baker Jazz Orchestra, The Ayn Inserto Jazz Orchestra, Austin McMahon, Owen Broder, Michael Winograd, Kris Allen, Andrew Hadro, and many others.

Carmen’s releases as a leader include “Reflection”, “Eye to Eye” and “Day Dream”. Her composition “Symmetry” (recorded on “Science Fair”) was published in “New Standards: 101 Lead Sheets by Women Composers” (Terri Lyne Carrington, ed., 2022). Staaf’s most recent album with her trio (Michael Formanek, bass; Jeff Williams, drums) is "Woodland" (Newvelle, 2020). She and Allison Miller released their duo album "Nearness" (Sunnyside) in 2022 to wide critical acclaim, including selection as one of DownBeat’s “Best of 2022”. Carmen is a regular visiting artist at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, and a faculty member at The New School, Western Connecticut State University and Stanford Jazz Workshop. She taught in the Piano Department at Berklee College of Music in Boston from 2005-2009. She also taught for a semester at the Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music near Chennai, India.

Pablo Menares

Pablo Menares is a New York based bass player, originally from Santiago de Chile. Throughout his career Menares has worked with many internationally recognized artists including Randy Brecker, Melissa Aldana, Greg Osby, Claudia Acuña, Camila Meza, Bob Moses, Christian Gálvez, among many others.

He has performed in many of New York City's most notable jazz venues including Blue Note, Village Vanguard, Jazz Standard, Jazz Gallery, Smalls Jazz Club, Dizzy's Club, Birdland, 55 bar, and also at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and Steinway Hall. He has toured extensively in the United States, Europe, Asia, North, Central and South America.

Roberto Giaquinto

Italian drummer Roberto Giaquinto started his musical journey with his older brother in Naples, Italy, playing with different local bands around the city while still in middle school. Thanks to his family's support, he kept developing his passion for music throughout high school. After he moved to Rome, he graduated at the Conservatorio Licinio Refice. In 2009, he was awarded a scholarship to attend Berklee College of Music. After moving to Boston in 2010, he was selected to be part of the Global Jazz Institute, an intensive honorary program directed by Danilo Perez and with Joe Lovano, George Garzone, Terri Lyne Carrington, John Patitucci, Dave Liebman, Adam Cruz and Ben Street.

Since coming to the States, Giaquinto has performed in many festivals and clubs, including the Blue Note NYC, Birdland Jazz Club, Kimmel Center, Detroit Jazz Festival, Panama Jazz Festival, Toronto Jazz Festival, Nancy Jazz Pulsation, Kennedy Center, Jazz en Comminges, Red Sea Jazz Festival, Montalcino Jazz Festival, Bregenz Jazz Fest among many others. Giaquinto has collaborated with world-renowned musicians such as George Garzone, Chris Cheek, Donny McCaslin, Aaron Parks, Dayna Stephens, Gilad Hekselman, Paul Bollenback, Troy Roberts, Miguel-Atwood Ferguson, Seamus Blake, Joe Sanders, Jake Sherman, Leo Genovese, Philip Dizack, Chris Morrissey, Michael Mayo, Jason Palmer, Steve Wilson and many more.

Beyer HS
Fresno City College Jazz Combo
Golden Valley HS
Golden Valley HS C
Golden Valley HS B
Gregori HS
Jesuit HS
Jesuit HS Combo
Johansen HS
Lower Lake HS
Madera South Latin Jazz Ensemble
Pitman High School
Stan State Jazz Combo II
Stan State Jazz Ensemble
Thomas Jefferson Middle School
Turlock Junior High
Turlock High School