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Northwest Native 3rd In Jazz Contest

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  • Northwest Native 3rd In Jazz Contest

    NORTHWEST NATIVE 3RD IN JAZZ CONTEST
    by Paul De Barros, Seattle Times jazz critic

    The Seattle Times
    September 18, 2006 Monday
    Fourth Edition

    A pianist raised in Seattle has snagged third place in the 2006
    Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Competition.

    Aaron Parks, 22, was one of three finalists selected Saturday from a
    field of 12 semifinalists. The finals were held Sunday at the Kennedy
    Center's Eisenhower Theater, in Washington, D.C. First place went to
    Tigran Hamasyan, from Armenia, and second place to Gerald Clayton,
    son of bassist John Clayton, artistic director of the Jazz Port
    Townsend Festival.

    One of the most prestigious awards in jazz, the Monk competition has
    launched the careers of Joshua Redman and Jane Monheit, among others.

    The annual contest is presented by the Thelonious Monk Institute of
    Jazz, founded in 1986, which sponsored the first competition in 1987.

    A different instrument is showcased each year.

    The first-place prize is $20,000; second place is $10,000; third
    place is $5,000.

    Parks grew up on Whidbey Island and in Seattle and began playing
    piano when he was 10 years old. A prodigy, he went directly from
    middle school to the University of Washington, where he studied
    with pianist Marc Seales. At 16, Parks left the UW to study at the
    Manhattan School of Music, in New York, and is currently a member of
    trumpeter Terence Blanchard's group.

    This year's Monk competition judges were pianists Kenny Barron, Herbie
    Hancock, Andrew Hill, Danilo Perez, Renee Rosnes, Billy Taylor and
    Randy Weston.
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