Ottawa, Canada – The National Arts Centre’s 2011-2012 Manhattan on the Rideau series of five jazz masterclasses begins on Tuesday, November 8, with drummer John Riley in the NAC’s Fourth Stage from noon to 2 p.m. Admission is free.

The Manhattan on the Rideau program links leading jazz faculty members of Manhattan School of Music (MSM) with accomplished music students at the National Arts Centre. The sessions use the very latest in broadband videoconference technology to connect teachers and students in real time with high fidelity audio and video. The series is produced by the NAC’s Hexagon project in association with the Manhattan School of Music.

The public will be able to view the live November 8 Manhattan on the Rideau masterclass webcast at live.nac-cna.ca.

Manhattan on the Rideau continues with pianist Vijay Iyer on December 6, saxophonist Dave Liebman on January 17, saxophonist Donny McCaslin on February 7, and vocalist Peter Eldridge on April 3. All masterclasses are from noon to 2 p.m. and take place in the National Arts Centre’s Fourth Stage.

A masterclass is a one-on-one lesson in which a master musician teaches a selected student or ensemble under the watchful eyes of fellow students and members of the public. The audience can learn from the master along with the talented student in the spotlight. Each masterclass involves two to three students in succession followed by questions-and-answers. John Riley will teach students from Ottawa and Toronto.

Biography – John Riley

At age twelve, John Riley began playing in rock bands and heard his first jazz recordings, the soundtrack to The Gene Krupa Story and Max Roach's Conversation. Two years later, he played his first "professional" gig, which he obtained through an audition played over the telephone. Mr. Riley began studying with Joe Morello in 1971, after meeting him at a drum symposium. John went on to attend the University of North Texas, where he was introduced to a larger world of music and percussion. While at UNT, he played in, toured, and recorded with the famed One O'clock Lab Band. In 1976, he moved to New York City and was soon called to join the Woody Herman Band. Following that great experience, John returned to New York and began freelancing with a wide spectrum of world class musicians including Stan Getz, Milt Jackson, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, John Scofield, Bob Mintzer, Gary Peacock, Mike Stern, Joe Lovano, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, John Patitucci, Bob Berg, and many others.

John Riley has a Bachelor of Music degree in jazz education from the University of North Texas and a Master of Music in jazz studies from Manhattan School of Music. He is on the faculty of Manhattan School of Music, and SUNY Purchase, and is an Artist in Residence at Amsterdam Conservatory, Holland. John Riley is also the author of The Art of Bop Drumming, Beyond Bop Drumming, The Jazz Drummer's Workshop, and has taught master classes around the world.

The NAC’s Hexagon project supports education outreach activities by leveraging next-generation networks like Canada’s CANARIE network (www.canarie.ca) and Internet2 (www.internet2.org) in the United States as well as regional high speed networks throughout the world. The NAC’s broadband infrastructure includes state-of-the-art optical network access in all its performance spaces as well as on-site videoconference and audio-video production facilities. Hexagon projects include tele-mentoring sessions with master teachers in music, theatre and dance.

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For more information, please contact:

Carl Martin
Communications Advisor
National Arts Centre
(613)947-7000, ext. 560