Acclaimed Vocal Group New York Voices to Bring its Summer Camp Home to Ithaca College

By David Maley, February 26, 2016

Acclaimed Vocal Group New York Voices to Bring its Summer Camp Home to Ithaca College

ITHACA, NY—World-renowned vocal group New York Voices — founded by alumni of the Ithaca College School of Music — will bring its summer vocal jazz camp to Ithaca College this August.

“They say you can’t go home again,” said member Peter Eldridge ’82, “but New York Voices intends to defy that concept this summer. It makes sense to return to where it all began.”

Open to professional musicians, choral directors, high school and college students, and anyone ages 14 and up interested in improving and developing their knowledge of the vocal jazz genre, the New York Voices Vocal Jazz Camp will be hosted on the Ithaca College campus August 1–7, 2016. Online registration opens on March 1.

The camp has been held for the past seven years at Bowling Green State University. Though grateful to BGSU for its past support, NYV welcomes the new partnership with Ithaca College. Its members are as excited to present the opportunity to new students in the region as they are to share the new location with returning campers.

“We’re looking forward to bringing our camp back East, to where we started,” said Darmon Meader ’84. “We think the campers will love the IC campus and the excellent facilities at our fingertips in the Whalen Center for Music. We also look forward to enjoying the beauty of the Finger Lakes region during the heart of the summer.”

Eldridge, Meader, Kim Nazarian ’83 and Lauren Kinhan will work with singers and ensembles in clinics, ensemble classes, coachings and special interest sessions pertaining to the art and performance of vocal jazz. In addition to New York Voices, the camp faculty includes longtime performers and educators Greg Jasperse, Rosana Eckert and Jay Ashby ’84.

With deep interests rooted in jazz, Brazilian, R & B, classical and pop, the group is known for its inspired arrangements and unparalleled vocal blend. New York Voices tours the world regularly and has performed on a dozen recordings, including “Live at Manchester Craftmen’s Guild: Count Basie Orchestra with New York Voices,” which won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Performance.

“It is difficult for me to express, in words, the happiness of this particular homecoming for us,” School of Music Dean Karl Paulnack said, welcoming the camp’s arrival. “Yes, all schools feel proud of their accomplished graduates, and all schools are happy to be reconnected with their alumni. But New York Voices has achieved such an extraordinary level of accomplishment, and has had such a palpable impact on the world of vocal jazz. Their return to our campus will be transformative for us.”

More information on tuition, scholarships, registration and housing is available at newyorkvoices.com/summer-camp.

Media Contact:  Kate Kooser, Director, New York Voices Vocal Jazz Camp kate@newyorkvoices.com

About New York Voices
Founded by alumni of the Ithaca College School of Music in 1986, New York Voices originally began as an invitational alumni ensemble that toured the European jazz festival circuit. Darmon Meader ’84, Peter Eldridge ’82, Kim Nazarian ’83 and Caprice Fox ’87 were joined by Sara Krieger as the New York Voices formally launched in 1988. Meader, Eldridge and Nazarian remain from the original group, with Lauren Kinhan joining in 1992 to cement their status as a quartet. Along with their extensive concert performances and recording schedules, New York Voices also works in the field of education, giving clinics at colleges and high schools throughout the world.