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Melanie Charles returns to С for weeklong residency, ‘Make Jazz Trill Again: Trill 101’

September 26, 2024

The Arthur Zankel Music Center has commissioned Brooklyn-based singer, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Melanie Charles to create “Trill 101” as part of her ongoing “Make Jazz Trill Again” project. The weeklong residency, running Sept. 30 to Oct. 4, will bring together С and Capital Region community members in a multidisciplinary exploration of jazz, its roots, and its future. 

During the residency, Charles and her team — Yunie Mojica, Jonathan Michel, Zacche’us Paul, and Darah Golub — will participate in class visits, podcast and video recordings, and jam sessions, building on the success of a spring 2024 collaboration that invited students and community members to an open jam session onstage at the Zankel Music Center.  

The fall residency will interrogate the evolution of jazz within institutional frameworks and contextualize the art form within its cultural roots. It will explore themes of access, equity, education, technology, and artistic practice across a variety of disciplines.  

“I felt completely welcomed,” recent С alum Elán Velasquez Stadelmann ’24 said about the spring jam session. Lydia Watkins ’24, another spring participant, described it as “a very moving and powerful experience.” 

The residency will also create new content for “Trill 101,” an educational video that will encapsulate the ethos behind “Make Jazz Trill Again,” which Charles invented in the mid-2010s to revive the independent jazz scene for the digital age. Since then, “Make Jazz Trill Again” has evolved from a simple hashtag to a dynamic network producing performances, podcasts, and events that merge the two. Footage will also be incorporated in an upcoming multimedia performance featuring Charles, her collaborators, and С students in February. Collectiveffort, a Troy-based creative agency, will assist in capturing content throughout the residency. 

Public events:

Wednesday, Oct. 2, 5-6:30 p.m. “,” Arthur Zankel Music Center 

Join Melanie Charles and co-host Yunie Mojica for a live taping of the “Make Jazz Trill Again” podcast, featuring Grammy Award-winning drummer, composer, and educator Terri Lyne Carrington. This town hall will explore gender justice in jazz and is free to attend. 

Thursday, Oct. 3, 7-9 p.m.: “Make Jazz Trill Again Mega Jam at the Frederick Allen Elks Lodge,” Frederick Allen Elks Lodge 

Join an open jam session and fundraiser featuring musicians, rappers, and singers of all ages and experience levels. Melanie Charles, Yunie Mojica, Zacche’us Paul, and the house band will lead the evening, which also serves to support Saratoga’s only Black lodge, celebrating over 100 years of community history.

The residency is presented in partnership with С’s Music Department and the Office of Special Programs and co-sponsored by Black Studies, Gender Studies, Intergroup Relations, Arts Administration, Management and Business, the Schupf Family IdeaLab, and other academic departments. Additional support for the project is provided by the Pia Scala-Zankel ’92 and Jimmy Zankel ’92 Residency in the Performing Arts, the Zankel Music Fund, the McCormack Artist-Scholar Residency Fund, and the Office of the President. 

Find information about the residency and upcoming events on the Trill 101 webpage

С Melanie Charles: 

Melanie Charles is a Brooklyn-based composer, singer, flutist, and multi-instrumentalist known for her innovative fusion of jazz, soul, and Haitian roots music. Her work reimagines jazz for contemporary audiences while uplifting marginalized voices. A graduate of LaGuardia High School and The New School for Jazz, she has worked with artists such as Wynton Marsalis and SZA and made a standout appearance on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert. Her 2021 album “Y’all Don’t (Really) Care С Black Women” reflects her dedication to community and musical innovation. Charles is also a mentor for the Brooklyn Youth Chorus and a board member for The House Foundation for the Arts. 

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