Saxophonist Bill Sears will host a master class on Wednesday January 28, 2015 in the Strickland Jazz Studio at 7:00 pm. The class is open to all Emory Jazz Studies students and EJA members.
Bill Sears has been director of jazz studies at the Interlochen Arts Academy since 1987 and the Interlochen Arts Camp since 2010. The Interlochen Center for the Arts is a privately owned 1200 acre arts education institution in the woods of Northwest Michigan near Traverse City. The Interlochen Arts Camp, originally founded as the National Music Camp in 1928, gathers young artists from around the world each summer to learn, create and perform alongside leading artists and instructors. Prior to teaching at Interlochen, Mr. Sears lived in Chicago where he led an active performing career and also taught at the American Conservatory of Music and Concordia University. He was a faculty member of the Shell Lake (Wisconsin) Arts Center Summer Jazz Camp from 1977-2009 and the Saskatchewan Center for the Arts from 1980-89.
Bill’s groups at Interlochen have achieved considerable notoriety during his tenure having garnered more than 20 db awards from Downbeat magazine and twice being named a finalist in Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Essentially Ellington competition. In 2008 two combos from Interlochen were selected to perform at the Prestigious Next Generation Festival in Monterrey, California. His groups have also been featured in performance at conferences of the International Association for Jazz Education. 
An active jazz saxophonist, Bill Sears has performed, toured and recorded with many leading musicians including Ray Charles, Dizzy Gillespie, Saxophonist Bill Evans, Rick Margitza, Art Farmer, Joe Williams and Nancy Wilson. Bill has two CD’s under his own leadership, Chasin’ The Goal and With One Accord, both of which feature not only his engaging and individual saxophone voice, but also several of his compositions.
In addition to his jazz credentials, Bill is a versatile performer who is a contracted saxophonist with the Grand Rapids and Traverse Symphony Orchestras, and he has played in the backup orchestras for countless popular artists including Natalie Cole, Aretha Franklin, The Temptations and Tony Bennett.