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For decades, Jerry E. Lewis inspired thousands of students as a passionate music educator, performer, and mentor. His impact stretched beyond the classroom, shaping the futures of countless young musicians. We pay tribute to him with this noncompetitive jazz festival.
When: Saturday, January 23, 2027 Where: Joliet West High School. 401 N Larkin Ave, Joliet, IL 60435 12pm Concert/Celebration: Jerry E Lewis scholarships are awarded as well as a performance from clinicians. All participating students are invited to join us on stage to perform a tune and possible improvised solo. (more info soon) Cost for participating schools: $300 for first band, $150 for each additional band. $200 for combos. How it works: Bands perform a 20 minute set and then receive a 20 minute clinic with two clinicians. Bands also receive audio & written clinician feedback on their performance. Contact us at [email protected] |
A Music for All Affiliate Regional Music Festival, presented by Yamaha
2027 Clinicians
Shawn Maxwell
Shawn Maxwell's journey in music began in Joliet, IL, through local school music programs and continued with a Music B.A. from Millikin University. Over the last 25 years, he’s been a notable presence on Chicago’s music scene and has toured across the U.S., developing a distinct voice on the saxophone. Since his debut album of original compositions in 2005 through to J Town Suite in 2023, Shawn has crafted a unique sound rooted in jazz and influenced by rock, funk, hip-hop, R&B, and classical music—the music he grew up with.
Shawn's work has earned praise and radio play worldwide, including “Best Album of the Year” mentions and “Editor’s Picks” in Downbeat Magazine, as well as positive reviews in the Chicago Tribune, Jazz Times, Cadence Magazine, and AllAboutJazz. His recordings have reached the top of the JazzWeek and College Music Journal Jazz charts. His albums have showcased various groups, from quartets to his larger ten-piece ensemble, Shawn Maxwell’s Alliance. His 2021 release, Expectation & Experience, featured collaborations with 29 musicians recorded remotely.
As an artist with Vandoren and Conn-Selmer, Shawn’s Master Classes and guest appearances are popular with students of all ages, combining his teaching skills with his experience as a performer.
shawnmaxwell.com
Glenn Williams
Glenn Williams retired in May of 2021 from Downers Grove South High School, having served as a music teacher and the Fine Arts Department Chair since 2005. In addition to teaching and holding arts administration leadership roles at Highland Park High School (IL) and in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Mr. Williams also was on the brass/jazz faculty of the Indiana University Summer Music Clinic, and was a member of the jazz faculty and co-coordinator of the Jazz Division at the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Twin Lake, Michigan, leading the International Jazz Ensemble on European Tours in 2014 and 2017. Mr. Williams holds degrees from Indiana University, Northwestern University and Concordia University. Mr. Williams has completed coursework towards a DMA in Wind Conducting at Michigan State University. From 2009-2019, Mr. Williams held a National Board Teaching Certification.
Mr. Williams is currently supervising student teachers for DePaul University, Northern Illinois University and the University of Illinois/Champaign-Urbana. Mr. Williams traveled to Cuba in 2024 and 2026 as a Teaching Artist with the Cuban American Youth Orchestra (CAYO) working with student and adult musicians in Havana and Matanzas. Covering a sabbatical leave, Mr. Williams conducted the Wind Symphony at Northern Illinois University during the spring semester of 2025. In the Fall of 2025 Mr. Williams directed the Illinois State University Jazz Ensemble I.
As a professional performer, Mr. Williams has performed with numerous entertainment and jazz luminaries, including The Four Tops, Frank Sinatra, Jr., Michael Brecker, Kenny Wheeler, and the Blue Lake Faculty Jazz Sextet. Mr. Williams has also performed with numerous community ensembles including the North Shore Concert Band directed by John Paynter. In the summer of 1984 Mr. Williams was a member of the Walt Disney World All-American College Marching Band.
Mr. Williams has conducted numerous band and jazz honor ensembles, including the Illinois All-State Jazz Ensemble (2014) and the North Carolina All-State HS Jazz Ensemble (2022.) Mr. Williams led the process to commission Tricycle by Andrew Boysen to celebrate the consolidation of North Shore District 112. Mr. Williams helped initiate the BRIDGE program, an ILMEA professional development strand equipping first year music teachers in Illinois. Mr. Williams received the Mary Hoffman Award of Excellence from ILMEA and the Paynter Lifetime Achievement Award sponsored by Quinlan and Fabish Music. Mr. Williams is on the advisory board for the inaugural Jerry E. Lewis Jazz Festival, an educational festival honoring Mr. Lewis. Mr. Williams is a board member of Brass Beyond, an organization dedicated to building community through workshops and performances centering pre-professional brass musicians.
Mr. Williams expresses deep gratitude to all the teachers, students, colleagues and friends who continually inform his identity as a human, as an artist, and as an educator.
Glenn Williams retired in May of 2021 from Downers Grove South High School, having served as a music teacher and the Fine Arts Department Chair since 2005. In addition to teaching and holding arts administration leadership roles at Highland Park High School (IL) and in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Mr. Williams also was on the brass/jazz faculty of the Indiana University Summer Music Clinic, and was a member of the jazz faculty and co-coordinator of the Jazz Division at the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Twin Lake, Michigan, leading the International Jazz Ensemble on European Tours in 2014 and 2017. Mr. Williams holds degrees from Indiana University, Northwestern University and Concordia University. Mr. Williams has completed coursework towards a DMA in Wind Conducting at Michigan State University. From 2009-2019, Mr. Williams held a National Board Teaching Certification.
Mr. Williams is currently supervising student teachers for DePaul University, Northern Illinois University and the University of Illinois/Champaign-Urbana. Mr. Williams traveled to Cuba in 2024 and 2026 as a Teaching Artist with the Cuban American Youth Orchestra (CAYO) working with student and adult musicians in Havana and Matanzas. Covering a sabbatical leave, Mr. Williams conducted the Wind Symphony at Northern Illinois University during the spring semester of 2025. In the Fall of 2025 Mr. Williams directed the Illinois State University Jazz Ensemble I.
As a professional performer, Mr. Williams has performed with numerous entertainment and jazz luminaries, including The Four Tops, Frank Sinatra, Jr., Michael Brecker, Kenny Wheeler, and the Blue Lake Faculty Jazz Sextet. Mr. Williams has also performed with numerous community ensembles including the North Shore Concert Band directed by John Paynter. In the summer of 1984 Mr. Williams was a member of the Walt Disney World All-American College Marching Band.
Mr. Williams has conducted numerous band and jazz honor ensembles, including the Illinois All-State Jazz Ensemble (2014) and the North Carolina All-State HS Jazz Ensemble (2022.) Mr. Williams led the process to commission Tricycle by Andrew Boysen to celebrate the consolidation of North Shore District 112. Mr. Williams helped initiate the BRIDGE program, an ILMEA professional development strand equipping first year music teachers in Illinois. Mr. Williams received the Mary Hoffman Award of Excellence from ILMEA and the Paynter Lifetime Achievement Award sponsored by Quinlan and Fabish Music. Mr. Williams is on the advisory board for the inaugural Jerry E. Lewis Jazz Festival, an educational festival honoring Mr. Lewis. Mr. Williams is a board member of Brass Beyond, an organization dedicated to building community through workshops and performances centering pre-professional brass musicians.
Mr. Williams expresses deep gratitude to all the teachers, students, colleagues and friends who continually inform his identity as a human, as an artist, and as an educator.
Marques Carroll
From his emergence in Chicago’s vibrant jazz scene to his standing as an internationally respected trumpeter, composer, bandleader, and educator, Marques Carroll has built a career devoted to expanding jazz’s expressive reach while honoring its deep-rooted traditions. His music moves fluidly across modern and straight-ahead jazz, soul, blues, and contemporary rhythms, reflecting a holistic view of African American musical heritage. For Carroll, these sounds are not separate genres, but interconnected expressions drawn from a shared cultural lineage.
That inclusive vision is paired with a commanding trumpet voice shaped by decades of performance. It is evident on The Ancestors’ Call (2021)—a GRAMMY®-considered release for Best Jazz Album—which offers a soulful exploration of culture and consciousness within the African Diaspora. His follow-up, Foundations (2022), honors mentors, family, and community, with selections featured in the FX series The Bear. His most recent release, Marques Carroll Quintet: Live at Winter’s Jazz Club and Andy’s Jazz Club (2025), captures the spontaneity and collective dialogue that define his live performances.
A former member of the legendary Count Basie Orchestra, Carroll has appeared at the Chicago Jazz Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Hyde Park Jazz Festival, and the Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl, among many others. As CEO of JMarq Records, he maintains full artistic control of his work, and he is also an Emmy Award recipient for his contributions to Invisible History: Middle Florida’s Hidden Roots.
An esteemed educator, Carroll has served as Musical Director at Chicago Jesuit Academy since 2007, is a Professor of Jazz Trumpet at UIC, and is the author of the Holistic Trumpet method series. Grounded in tradition and driven by curiosity, Carroll’s work affirms jazz as a living, evolving art form.
marquescarrollmusic.com/
From his emergence in Chicago’s vibrant jazz scene to his standing as an internationally respected trumpeter, composer, bandleader, and educator, Marques Carroll has built a career devoted to expanding jazz’s expressive reach while honoring its deep-rooted traditions. His music moves fluidly across modern and straight-ahead jazz, soul, blues, and contemporary rhythms, reflecting a holistic view of African American musical heritage. For Carroll, these sounds are not separate genres, but interconnected expressions drawn from a shared cultural lineage.
That inclusive vision is paired with a commanding trumpet voice shaped by decades of performance. It is evident on The Ancestors’ Call (2021)—a GRAMMY®-considered release for Best Jazz Album—which offers a soulful exploration of culture and consciousness within the African Diaspora. His follow-up, Foundations (2022), honors mentors, family, and community, with selections featured in the FX series The Bear. His most recent release, Marques Carroll Quintet: Live at Winter’s Jazz Club and Andy’s Jazz Club (2025), captures the spontaneity and collective dialogue that define his live performances.
A former member of the legendary Count Basie Orchestra, Carroll has appeared at the Chicago Jazz Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Hyde Park Jazz Festival, and the Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl, among many others. As CEO of JMarq Records, he maintains full artistic control of his work, and he is also an Emmy Award recipient for his contributions to Invisible History: Middle Florida’s Hidden Roots.
An esteemed educator, Carroll has served as Musical Director at Chicago Jesuit Academy since 2007, is a Professor of Jazz Trumpet at UIC, and is the author of the Holistic Trumpet method series. Grounded in tradition and driven by curiosity, Carroll’s work affirms jazz as a living, evolving art form.
marquescarrollmusic.com/
Emma Taylor
Emma Taylor is a bassist, vocalist, and educator based in Chicago. She has taught at Millikin University, Purdue University, and Wheaton College. Emma received her Masters Degree and Doctorate of Musical Arts in Jazz Performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, studying under the direction of Larry Gray.
Emma is an in-demand sidewoman and has played with renowned musicians such as Brian Lynch, Carl Allen, Jim Snidero, Derrick Gardner, Gary Smulyan, Tito Carrillo, Troy Roberts, Joel Spencer, and Ben Markley. Aside from playing in the US, Emma has also toured in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, and Mexico—most recently completing a two week-long residency performing and teaching classes in Brazil at the Federal University of Uberlândia.
Emma regularly teaches and presents masterclasses at universities and conferences. She has performed at national conferences including Jazz Education Network, Midwest Band and Orchestra Association, North American Saxophone Alliance, and the International Society of Bassists Convention.
emmamtaylor.com/
Emma Taylor is a bassist, vocalist, and educator based in Chicago. She has taught at Millikin University, Purdue University, and Wheaton College. Emma received her Masters Degree and Doctorate of Musical Arts in Jazz Performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, studying under the direction of Larry Gray.
Emma is an in-demand sidewoman and has played with renowned musicians such as Brian Lynch, Carl Allen, Jim Snidero, Derrick Gardner, Gary Smulyan, Tito Carrillo, Troy Roberts, Joel Spencer, and Ben Markley. Aside from playing in the US, Emma has also toured in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, and Mexico—most recently completing a two week-long residency performing and teaching classes in Brazil at the Federal University of Uberlândia.
Emma regularly teaches and presents masterclasses at universities and conferences. She has performed at national conferences including Jazz Education Network, Midwest Band and Orchestra Association, North American Saxophone Alliance, and the International Society of Bassists Convention.
emmamtaylor.com/
Phil Beale
Phillip Beale is a multifaceted musician from Chicago, Illinois, whose musical journey began at the tender age of 2. His early years were immersed in a musical environment, thanks to several professional musicians in his family. One being his Grandfather, a classical pianist, encouraged him to study Suzuki piano and violin at the young age of 4. Later in life, he thrived in high school jazz and marching bands, as well as Drum Corps, including the Madison Scouts and Pioneer Drum & Bugle Corps. In 2001, his exceptional solo performance earned him a near-perfect score and a feature in Modern Drummer Magazine.
Phillip’s influence expanded as he taught the Blue Stars Drum & Bugle Corps and collaborated with the Northern Illinois University Marching Band, as well as several high school marching and jazz bands throughout the state. He’s also performed at the PAS conventions, NAMM, and participated in the IMEA Honors Jazz Combo, as well as interning with the Yamaha Corporation of America.
At Northern Illinois University, Phillip majored in Percussion Performance and Jazz Studies, guided by renowned professors. He’s had the honor of touring and recording with an array of artists, including Ray J., Wayne Brady, Euge Groove, Bobby Brown, Malcolm Jamal-Warner, Etienne Charles, Jonathan Butler, Gerald Albright, Kirk Whalum, Rick Braun, Peter White, Eric Marienthal, Lyndsey Webster, Panoramic, Liam Teague, Eddie Henderson, Mindi Abair, Donald Harrison, Bobby Broom, Willie Pickens, George Duke, Arturo Sandoval, Victor Mendoza, Fareed Haque and many more. His performances have taken him to places like Taiwan, Italy, Japan, Trinidad & Tobago, St. Lucia, and Peru. His music is also featured in the film With or Without You.
Beyond his musical endeavors, Phillip is also a dedicated local DJ, bringing his eclectic sound to Chicago’s vibrant nightlife. He’s actively involved in political initiatives, blending his artistic vision with community engagement. Phillip also maintains an active private lesson studio and proudly endorses SABIAN cymbals, Yamaha drums, Evans drumheads, Pro Mark drumsticks, and Phat-Phoot drum harness.
Phillip Beale is a multifaceted musician from Chicago, Illinois, whose musical journey began at the tender age of 2. His early years were immersed in a musical environment, thanks to several professional musicians in his family. One being his Grandfather, a classical pianist, encouraged him to study Suzuki piano and violin at the young age of 4. Later in life, he thrived in high school jazz and marching bands, as well as Drum Corps, including the Madison Scouts and Pioneer Drum & Bugle Corps. In 2001, his exceptional solo performance earned him a near-perfect score and a feature in Modern Drummer Magazine.
Phillip’s influence expanded as he taught the Blue Stars Drum & Bugle Corps and collaborated with the Northern Illinois University Marching Band, as well as several high school marching and jazz bands throughout the state. He’s also performed at the PAS conventions, NAMM, and participated in the IMEA Honors Jazz Combo, as well as interning with the Yamaha Corporation of America.
At Northern Illinois University, Phillip majored in Percussion Performance and Jazz Studies, guided by renowned professors. He’s had the honor of touring and recording with an array of artists, including Ray J., Wayne Brady, Euge Groove, Bobby Brown, Malcolm Jamal-Warner, Etienne Charles, Jonathan Butler, Gerald Albright, Kirk Whalum, Rick Braun, Peter White, Eric Marienthal, Lyndsey Webster, Panoramic, Liam Teague, Eddie Henderson, Mindi Abair, Donald Harrison, Bobby Broom, Willie Pickens, George Duke, Arturo Sandoval, Victor Mendoza, Fareed Haque and many more. His performances have taken him to places like Taiwan, Italy, Japan, Trinidad & Tobago, St. Lucia, and Peru. His music is also featured in the film With or Without You.
Beyond his musical endeavors, Phillip is also a dedicated local DJ, bringing his eclectic sound to Chicago’s vibrant nightlife. He’s actively involved in political initiatives, blending his artistic vision with community engagement. Phillip also maintains an active private lesson studio and proudly endorses SABIAN cymbals, Yamaha drums, Evans drumheads, Pro Mark drumsticks, and Phat-Phoot drum harness.
2026 Festival
Participating Bands
Batavia High School Jazz Band
Joliet West High School Jazz Band
Lake Central High School Jazz Band
Lincoln Way Central High School Jazz Band 1
Lincoln Way Central High School Jazz Band 2
Lincoln Way East High School Jazz Ensemble
Lincon Way East High School Jazz Orchestra
Lincoln Way West High School Jazz Band
Minooka Community High School Jazz Band
Oak Prairie Junior High School Jazz Band
Westview Hills Middle School Jazz Band
Clinicians
Janelle Finton
Roosevelt Griffin
Nils Higdon
Shawn Maxwell
Chuck Morgan
Participating Bands
Batavia High School Jazz Band
Joliet West High School Jazz Band
Lake Central High School Jazz Band
Lincoln Way Central High School Jazz Band 1
Lincoln Way Central High School Jazz Band 2
Lincoln Way East High School Jazz Ensemble
Lincon Way East High School Jazz Orchestra
Lincoln Way West High School Jazz Band
Minooka Community High School Jazz Band
Oak Prairie Junior High School Jazz Band
Westview Hills Middle School Jazz Band
Clinicians
Janelle Finton
Roosevelt Griffin
Nils Higdon
Shawn Maxwell
Chuck Morgan
Contact: [email protected]