U of T Jazz is a close-knit community of creative spirit where the best and brightest young musical minds interact with Canada’s top professional jazz artists in the heart of the country’s largest urban centre.

At the core of the program is a philosophy of honoring the jazz tradition while incorporating current trends in modern jazz performance, composition and arranging. With an emphasis on team spirit and individual creativity, U of T Jazz students form lifelong bonds with like-minded peers as they interact closely with a world-class faculty, acquiring the knowledge, skill, freedom, responsibility and encouragement to forge musical paths into the future.

Located in the heart of Toronto, students have easy access to everything the city has to offer. We are very close to the world-famous REX Jazz Bar, where our students perform virtually every week of the school year. International artists appear at the school as part of our Masterclass and Guest Artist series, and at nearby clubs and theatres, such as the spectacular Koerner Hall, located just outside our back door.

Abundant performance opportunities are central to the U of T Jazz curriculum. Our new home at 90 Wellesley Street West provides ample space for rehearsals, sessions and individual practice. Students enjoy many performance opportunities on and off campus, playing in large and small school ensembles and a wide variety of independent projects.

Graduate programs (MM and DMA) offer academic challenges consistent with the University of Toronto’s high standards, while allowing creative musical growth to be enhanced through self-directed curriculum opportunities.

All told, the students, the faculty and the location make the University of Toronto one of the premier locations to study jazz in North America.

ADMISSION/AUDITION

In addition to meeting University of Toronto general requirements for admission, applicants for the jazz program are chosen via audition. Step one is the submission of a pre-screening DVD and supporting materials. Successful applicants will be invited to audition in person. Click the link below for more information on the audition process.

Visit the Faculty of Music website for further information on degrees offered at the University of Toronto:

THE FACULTY

Everyone on the U of T Jazz faculty is a working professional musician; many are award-winning recording artists. Since students are taught by musicians who are actively involved in the business, the information and advice they receive is relevant and current. Small class sizes guarantee a high degree of personal interaction between students and faculty.

THE STUDENTS

The U of T Jazz students represent some the best and brightest young minds on the musical horizon. A high percentage of the most prominent young jazz musicians in Canada today are graduates of this program. Camaraderie is strong; students share a love of jazz in its myriad forms and challenge and encourage each other to learn, improve, and innovate. At U of T, the jazz stars of tomorrow will become your friends and colleagues today. The relationships that are forged here will last a lifetime.

LESSONS

Each student receives 24 hours of private instruction per year. Lessons deal with not only the technical and musical aspects of playing your instrument and improvising, but also all facets of managing a musical career. Your teacher will become your mentor, a source of advice and inspiration.

CLASSES

Classes cover theory, jazz composition, jazz arranging and orchestration, improvisation and ear training. Click the links below for specific course information.

ENSEMBLES

U of T Jazz boasts two jazz orchestras, a mid-size chamber jazz ensemble, 13 small ensembles, 2 graduate ensembles and a vocal jazz ensemble. Each student plays in at least two ensembles. Performance opportunities are numerous throughout the year, at The Rex Jazz Bar, Hart House, Walter Hall and MacMillan Theatre. Each ensemble has the opportunity to record at the end of the year. Click the link below for more information.

MASTERCLASSES

A weekly masterclass series brings in musicians and representatives from the music business. These are lively sessions filled with questions. A short list of musicians who have visited the school includes: Tim Hagans, Lee Konitz, Donny McCaslin, David Binny, Jim Black, Kenny Werner, Jim McNeely, Kenny Wheeler, Fred Hersch, John Aebercrombie, Bill Reichenbach, Kurt Elling, Jim Snidero, Ian Froman, Scott Robinson, Maria Schneider, Scott Colley and Rich Perry.

THE CAMPUS

U of T is located in the heart of downtown Toronto, one of the most vibrant and diverse cities in the world. You are steps from great shopping and restaurants and the subway stops at our door, giving you quick and easy access to everything that Toronto has to offer. While the Jazz Program is small and intimate, you are very much a part of the overall U of T community and in the center of the city action.

OUTREACH

U of T Jazz offers an Outreach Program. Our students will come to your school to perform for and work with your students. This peer-to-peer interaction is extraordinarily effective for all. Your students see what is possible to achieve in just a few years with hard work and dedication, and our students get valuable experience teaching what they have so recently learned. Outreach groups can range from a quartet all the way to a jazz orchestra.

JAZZ DOWNTOWN WORKSHOP

Study and play in the heart of the city with the creative professional jazz faculty from the Jazz Studies Program at U of T. Experience the University of Toronto’s continuing tradition of excellence in jazz performance, and meet other young creative jazz students from across the city and beyond in a challenging and rewarding 4-day summer program.