July Newsletter
Happy Fourth of July weekend! This month, I'm passing the mic to Kate Sammons, one of our most dedicated volunteers, who wrote this update about our recently awarded LJS Scholarship. Many thanks to Wayland Coker for his inspiring presentation at the June jam.
John Kocur
President
Loudoun Jazz Society
Loudoun Jazz Society is celebrating the realization of one of its main goals since its founding in 2018: the establishment of a scholarship to encourage local jazz music talent. At a time when the arts are more at risk than usual despite being needed more than ever, this accomplishment has been an exciting step forward. LJS is proud to announce local Broad Run graduate William Hamman as the first recipient of the Loudoun Jazz Society scholarship. William, a tenor sax player and rising freshman at William Paterson University, received a $1,000 scholarship that was presented during the June Loudoun Jazz jam session at ChefScape.
About William Hamman
A Loudoun native, William first started studying music in middle school where he played saxophone in his school band. He grew up in a musical family and listened to bossa nova from a young age, and though he started with classical arrangements, he quickly gravitated toward jazz. He cites Dexter Gordon as an early and significant influence on his playing, as well as Stan Getz, and at this stage takes most of his inspiration from Antônio Carlos Jobim and Grover Washington Jr. Next year William will be pursuing music studies and jazz performance at William Paterson. Until then, he’s spending the summer working, getting as much time outside as possible, and of course, continuing to play.
William says that above all, he’s grateful for his father’s unending support and encouragement, and thankful for his many encouraging teachers: private instructors Elijah Jamal Balbed and James Sivard, Paul Pieper of the Jazz Workshop in Tyson’s, his high school director Eric Banks, and directors of the Bethesda Blues and Jazz Youth Orchestra Kenny Rittenhouse, Bob Murad, and the late Fred Foss.
LJS is thrilled to have William as its inaugural scholarship recipient and looks forward to seeing where his jazz studies take him next. Thank you to Loudoun Jazz Society’s members, donors, jazz jam participants, and volunteers—it’s you who made this possible.
Kate Sammons