Arjun Pillai
Daily Herald
The Prince Albert Youth Jazz Band is bringing the groove to two major stages this June: first at the downtown Street Fair on June 14, and then at a community open house concert at Vincent Massey Public School on June 18.
Led by director and founder Scott Roos, the band features 20 young musicians from five different local schools, ranging from Grade 6 to Grade 12. They’ve been rehearsing together since September 2024 and are ready to showcase their hard-earned progress.
“We play the full range of what you’d call typical jazz band repertoire,” said Roos. “Jazz, funk, blues, bossa nova; it’s a pretty wide range of genres.”
The band is scheduled to perform twice on June 14, once at 10 a.m. on the Sunset Country Music Stage and again at 3:45 p.m. on the theatre stage inside the Prince Albert Public Library. On June 18 at 7 p.m., they’ll perform a final wrap-up concert at Vincent Massey Public School, which serves as their rehearsal home.
Roos says this second performance will build on a tradition that started with a casual holiday open house last year, where families and friends could enjoy an informal showcase. This year, it’s grown into a full-fledged concert with stage lighting and a more polished presentation.
“It’s not the Broadway Theatre, don’t get me wrong, but we’re trying to make that space as professional as possible,” said Roos. “It’s giving Vincent Massey, even just as a school maybe, a sense that it can be used as a legitimate performance space as well.”
The band will be performing a mix of familiar tunes and new additions, including their signature funk number, Hey, Elephant! “It’s got a good tempo and a good groove, and the kids always like playing that,” Roos said. He hinted that the open house convert may include a few surprises as well.
Roos hopes these performances do more than just entertain; he sees them as a way of reclaiming public music spaces for youth following years of disruption caused by the pandemic.
“Realistically, we’re only three or four years since students could fully take part in school music programs like band or jazz band again, and that gap left a real impact.”
As the band wraps up its first full season, Roos says the experience has been deeply rewarding. “Some kids maybe hadn’t had the opportunity to play jazz before, but they’ve improved, they’ve built confidence, and they’re really showing it,” he said. “It’s been amazing to watch, and I’m really happy to have been a part of it.”
