Text Box: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 19, 2008 Contact: Daphne Adair 206.443.6791 dadair@KCTS9.org NEW KCTS 9 SPECIAL JAZZ ALIVE CELEBRATES AWARD-WINNING ROOSEVELT JAZZ BAND KCTS 9 is proud to announce Jazz Alive, celebrating the achievements of the region's talented and hard-working young musicians and their mentors. SEATTLE, WA—KCTS 9, Seattle’s PBS affiliate, will premiere the high-definition special Jazz Alive, featuring Roosevelt Jazz Band, on Tuesday, May 27, at 7:30 p.m. on KCTS 9 and KCTS 9 HD. This half-hour show was recorded on May 6, just before the band flew to New York for the prestigious Essentially Ellington annual high school jazz festival and competition. Winners were announced on Saturday, with Roosevelt taking top honors for the second year running. In the special, Roosevelt's student musicians perform some of the songs that helped them bring home the first-place award. These include arrangements of the Duke Ellington classics Theme from "The Asphalt Jungle," Fantazm, Blue Serge and Jam-A-Ditty, as well as The Deacon by Thad Jones. Musicians include Alex Dugdale on clarinet; Wyatt Palmer on alto saxophone; Corey Dansereau on trumpet; and Gus Carns on piano, all of whom earned individual Honorable Mention notations at Essentially Ellington, along with the rest of the award-winning band. "We recorded the Roosevelt Jazz Band earlier this month with an eye toward launching a new series in the fall season, but the tremendous news this weekend that Roosevelt High School's jazz band took first place again this year prompted us to move up our premiere,” says Dick Warsinske, KCTS 9 General Manager. "KCTS 9 is proud to have the opportunity to showcase some of the nation's finest up-and-coming young musicians, reflecting the rich heritage of Northwest music." The Jazz Alive series would feature thirteen Western Washington high school jazz ensembles, several of which have dominated the Essentially Ellington competition for the last decade. This year, the 15 finalists included five bands from Washington state—more than from any other single region—selected from among 82 applicants. Jazz Alive celebrates the achievements that result from the long hours, the hard work and the team building efforts of the young musicians as they strive to become a great, award-winning jazz band. KCTS 9 is now seeking funding for the entire 13-episode series. The Jazz Alive special featuring Roosevelt Jazz Band airs Tuesday, May 27, at 7:30 p.m., and repeats Sunday, June 1, at 10:00 a.m. The program, like all KCTS 9 local productions, will be available via Comcast Video On Demand after its initial broadcast. For complete schedule information, visit KCTS9.org. ### The KCTS 9 mission is to improve the quality of life in the communities we serve by providing meaningful programming on air, online and in the community that informs, involves and inspires.