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October 2007: Featured Photo - Downbeat Magazine
Roxy most recently appeared in this month's issue of Downbeat Magazine.
She is shown on the cover of the Student Music Handbook of "Where to Study Jazz 2008".
Roxy most recently appeared in this month's issue of Downbeat Magazine.
She is shown on the cover of the Student Music Handbook of "Where to Study Jazz 2008".
May 2007: Featured Article/Interview - Earshot
Roxy was featured in the May edition of Earshot Magazine, Seattle's monthly Jazz publication.
The article is part of the series "Catching up With..." and discusses Roxy's endeavors and plans
since leaving the Seattle area to pursue her career in New York City. To view the article online,
visit: http://earshot.org/Publication/pub/07may.pdf
Roxy was featured in the May edition of Earshot Magazine, Seattle's monthly Jazz publication.
The article is part of the series "Catching up With..." and discusses Roxy's endeavors and plans
since leaving the Seattle area to pursue her career in New York City. To view the article online,
visit: http://earshot.org/Publication/pub/07may.pdf
September 2007: Press Release - Freestyle Jazz
Dee Pop presents: THE Freestyle CrEAtiVe MUSIC SERIES Every SUNDAY at Jimmy's 43
Restaurant
43 East 7th Street NYC
(between 2nd and 3rd Ave)
212-982-3006
September • Curated by Kevin Norton
Text by Kevin Norton
Sept 2 - The Roxy Coss Trio and Josh Lopes' Tell the Audient Void - I met both these young
composer-players during my work at William Paterson University (in the Jazz Studies program)
... Roxy has a great tone on both tenor and soprano and her trio features the great, emerging
Shawn Baltazor on drums (who also contributes compositions to the group). Josh Lopes is a
consistently strong and interesting composer that has put a real band together - more than a
group of ad-hoc, free-lancing musicians, these guys have been working diligently on their
collective sound for a few years now.
Dee Pop presents: THE Freestyle CrEAtiVe MUSIC SERIES Every SUNDAY at Jimmy's 43
Restaurant
43 East 7th Street NYC
(between 2nd and 3rd Ave)
212-982-3006
September • Curated by Kevin Norton
Text by Kevin Norton
Sept 2 - The Roxy Coss Trio and Josh Lopes' Tell the Audient Void - I met both these young
composer-players during my work at William Paterson University (in the Jazz Studies program)
... Roxy has a great tone on both tenor and soprano and her trio features the great, emerging
Shawn Baltazor on drums (who also contributes compositions to the group). Josh Lopes is a
consistently strong and interesting composer that has put a real band together - more than a
group of ad-hoc, free-lancing musicians, these guys have been working diligently on their
collective sound for a few years now.
June 2004: News Release - Seattle Public Schools
******** HONORS********
Garfield High School Jazz Band Wins
Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition
At a Glance : For the second time in two years, the Garfield High School Jazz Band won the
Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition in New York City. Music director
Clarence Acox accepted the first place trophy and the award of $2,000, which will go toward
funding the school jazz program. More than 100 schools from across the country submitted
recordings of three Duke Ellington compositions for consideration. These recordings were
evaluated in a blind screening by a panel of jazz education experts who selected the 15
finalists based on the criteria of soulfulness, improvisation, interpretation, technique, and
tone/intonation. The final 15 also included the Roosevelt High School Jazz Band, which won
the competition in 2002 and has been in the finals for the past five years.
The following students were recognized for their solo performances:
OUTSTANDING SOLOISTS
Student Instrument School
Kendall Becker bass Garfield
Michael Chapman trumpet Roosevelt
Roxy Coss tenor saxophone Garfield
Andrew McGovern trumpet Roosevelt
Anne Moxon piano Roosevelt
Samuel Schlosser trombone Garfield
Will Squires piano Garfield
Logan Strosahl tenor saxophone Roosevelt
Benjamin White clarinet Garfield
Jacob Zimmerman alto saxophone Garfield
******** HONORS********
Garfield High School Jazz Band Wins
Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition
At a Glance : For the second time in two years, the Garfield High School Jazz Band won the
Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition in New York City. Music director
Clarence Acox accepted the first place trophy and the award of $2,000, which will go toward
funding the school jazz program. More than 100 schools from across the country submitted
recordings of three Duke Ellington compositions for consideration. These recordings were
evaluated in a blind screening by a panel of jazz education experts who selected the 15
finalists based on the criteria of soulfulness, improvisation, interpretation, technique, and
tone/intonation. The final 15 also included the Roosevelt High School Jazz Band, which won
the competition in 2002 and has been in the finals for the past five years.
The following students were recognized for their solo performances:
OUTSTANDING SOLOISTS
Student Instrument School
Kendall Becker bass Garfield
Michael Chapman trumpet Roosevelt
Roxy Coss tenor saxophone Garfield
Andrew McGovern trumpet Roosevelt
Anne Moxon piano Roosevelt
Samuel Schlosser trombone Garfield
Will Squires piano Garfield
Logan Strosahl tenor saxophone Roosevelt
Benjamin White clarinet Garfield
Jacob Zimmerman alto saxophone Garfield
May 2004: Seattle Times Article
Garfield jazz band swings into 1st place at New York event
By Paul de Barros Special to the Seattle Times
NEW YORK — Hitting a solid groove that would have made Duke Ellington himself smile, the
Garfield High School Jazz Band clinched its second consecutive triumph at the Essentially
Ellington Competition and Festival last night.
Garfield also picked up six outstanding soloist awards.
"This far exceeds my wildest dreams and expectations," said Garfield Jazz Band director
Clarence Acox. "To win this festival two years in a row is amazing. The fact that no one has
ever won it two years in a row is even more amazing."
Will Squires, Garfield's piano player, said, "You can't thank Acox enough for giving (us) these
opportunities."
The school was awarded a $2,000 prize last night after a concert at Avery Fisher Hall by the
top three bands and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.
Region's jazz success
Puget Sound-area high schools have made the finals of the Essentially Ellington competition
every year since it was opened to schools west of the Mississippi in 1999. Here's a list of area
schools that have made the finals:
2004: Garfield (1st place), Roosevelt
2003: Garfield (1st place), Edmonds-Woodway
2002: Roosevelt (1st place), Garfield (2nd place), Mountlake Terrace (honorable mention)
2001: Roosevelt (2nd place), Shorewood, Newport, Kentlake
2000: Roosevelt (3rd place), Garfield (honorable mention), Shorewood, Mountlake Terrace
1999: Garfield (honorable mention), Roosevelt, Kentridge
"It's amazing to see so many kids at one school that have a feel for jazz," said Ted Nash, a
saxophonist with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and the mentor for the Garfield band in
New York.
Second and third places went to high schools from Foxboro, Mass., and Sun Prairie, Wis.
Sponsored by Jazz at Lincoln Center, a nonprofit arts organization led by trumpeter Wynton
Marsalis, Essentially Ellington started in 1997. Named for and featuring the music of the
great jazz composer and performer Duke Ellington, it's widely recognized as the country's
most prestigious high-school jazz competition.
This year's contest began last fall, when Jazz at Lincoln Center sent six compositions by Duke
Ellington to 1,140 high-school bands. Of those, 102 schools submitted a recording of three
tunes. Jazz at Lincoln Center then chose 15 finalists — including Seattle's Garfield and
Roosevelt high schools, as well as Spokane's Mead High School — to compete on stage in New
York.
The three-day event began with workshops with professional jazz musicians Saturday, and
competitive performances Sunday and yesterday. It all came to a head in last night's
ebullient, sold-out concert by the three top bands and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.
Event a jazz boot camp
For the audience at Avery Fisher Hall, Essentially Ellington is an exciting run of 20-minute
performances of Ellington favorites such as "Jack the Bear," "Diminuendo and Crescendo in
Blue" and "Stompy Jones." But for the young musicians backstage, the experience is more like
jazz boot camp. From the moment they arrive, they are thrust into rehearsals, workshops, pep
talks and jam sessions. At night, many fan out to New York's jazz clubs.
Two Seattle students — Anne Moxon from Roosevelt and Jacob Zimmerman from Garfield —
had rich but very different experiences. Both are outstanding musicians who won soloist
awards in the competition. Pianist Moxon, a tall, fresh-faced senior who plans to do a double
major in jazz and classical music next year at Oberlin College, had never been to New York.
"I love it here," she exclaimed Saturday, sitting in jeans and sneakers at a dark table in B.B.
King's large, posh nightclub on 42nd Street, after a noon rehearsal in a professional studio
around the corner. "I want to live here."
Though Zimmerman, a saxophonist, and Moxon have healthy perspectives on competition,
they came, like everyone else, to win. The Roosevelt band's rehearsal before its show was like
a locker-room bonding session before a football game, with hugs and high-fives and
handclasps. After Roosevelt performed a swinging set Sunday, Moxon beamed.
"It was the best we've ever played," she said. "The rush just went on for 15 minutes."
After Garfield's performance yesterday, Zimmerman was more circumspect.
"I think we did great," he said quietly. "I feel good. But you never can tell."
Area has good track record
Seattle-area bands have done well at Essentially Ellington since the event expanded in 1999
to include schools west of the Mississippi. Garfield and Roosevelt each has made the finals
five of the past six years. Roosevelt won in 2002. Garfield has now won twice. This area has
sent as many as four bands to the finals in the same year.
As in past years, this year's competition was very close, but stricter enforcement of a 20-
minute performance limit may have affected the outcome. New World School of the Arts,
from Miami, Fla., turned in a spectacular performance that had many handicapping it as the
winner.
But yesterday afternoon, just before he read the names of the top three bands, Marsalis
intimated that the results might upset those thinking anyone was a shoo-in. "Cheer now," he
said ominously to a whooping crowd, "because when I get finished with these
announcements, y'all aren't going to be cheering."
When Moxon heard the news that Roosevelt had been eliminated, she stood outside in the
sun in the grand plaza on Lincoln Center.
"That was hard," she said. "But you have to trust what they say. We played our best."
Washington schools won 11 soloist and three sectional awards. Garfield soloist awards went
to Zimmerman, alto saxophone; Roxy Coss, tenor saxophone; Samuel Schlosser, trombone;
Benjamin White, clarinet; Kendall Becker, bass; and Will Squires, piano. Roosevelt soloist
awards went to Logan Strosahl, tenor saxophone; Michael Chapman, trumpet; Andrew
McGovern, trumpet; and Moxon, piano.
Garfield also won awards for reeds and rhythm section. Roosevelt won for its trombone
section.
Matt Walsh of Spokane's Mead High School, which made the finals for the first time, took a
solo award for baritone saxophone.
Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company
Garfield jazz band swings into 1st place at New York event
By Paul de Barros Special to the Seattle Times
NEW YORK — Hitting a solid groove that would have made Duke Ellington himself smile, the
Garfield High School Jazz Band clinched its second consecutive triumph at the Essentially
Ellington Competition and Festival last night.
Garfield also picked up six outstanding soloist awards.
"This far exceeds my wildest dreams and expectations," said Garfield Jazz Band director
Clarence Acox. "To win this festival two years in a row is amazing. The fact that no one has
ever won it two years in a row is even more amazing."
Will Squires, Garfield's piano player, said, "You can't thank Acox enough for giving (us) these
opportunities."
The school was awarded a $2,000 prize last night after a concert at Avery Fisher Hall by the
top three bands and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.
Region's jazz success
Puget Sound-area high schools have made the finals of the Essentially Ellington competition
every year since it was opened to schools west of the Mississippi in 1999. Here's a list of area
schools that have made the finals:
2004: Garfield (1st place), Roosevelt
2003: Garfield (1st place), Edmonds-Woodway
2002: Roosevelt (1st place), Garfield (2nd place), Mountlake Terrace (honorable mention)
2001: Roosevelt (2nd place), Shorewood, Newport, Kentlake
2000: Roosevelt (3rd place), Garfield (honorable mention), Shorewood, Mountlake Terrace
1999: Garfield (honorable mention), Roosevelt, Kentridge
"It's amazing to see so many kids at one school that have a feel for jazz," said Ted Nash, a
saxophonist with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and the mentor for the Garfield band in
New York.
Second and third places went to high schools from Foxboro, Mass., and Sun Prairie, Wis.
Sponsored by Jazz at Lincoln Center, a nonprofit arts organization led by trumpeter Wynton
Marsalis, Essentially Ellington started in 1997. Named for and featuring the music of the
great jazz composer and performer Duke Ellington, it's widely recognized as the country's
most prestigious high-school jazz competition.
This year's contest began last fall, when Jazz at Lincoln Center sent six compositions by Duke
Ellington to 1,140 high-school bands. Of those, 102 schools submitted a recording of three
tunes. Jazz at Lincoln Center then chose 15 finalists — including Seattle's Garfield and
Roosevelt high schools, as well as Spokane's Mead High School — to compete on stage in New
York.
The three-day event began with workshops with professional jazz musicians Saturday, and
competitive performances Sunday and yesterday. It all came to a head in last night's
ebullient, sold-out concert by the three top bands and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.
Event a jazz boot camp
For the audience at Avery Fisher Hall, Essentially Ellington is an exciting run of 20-minute
performances of Ellington favorites such as "Jack the Bear," "Diminuendo and Crescendo in
Blue" and "Stompy Jones." But for the young musicians backstage, the experience is more like
jazz boot camp. From the moment they arrive, they are thrust into rehearsals, workshops, pep
talks and jam sessions. At night, many fan out to New York's jazz clubs.
Two Seattle students — Anne Moxon from Roosevelt and Jacob Zimmerman from Garfield —
had rich but very different experiences. Both are outstanding musicians who won soloist
awards in the competition. Pianist Moxon, a tall, fresh-faced senior who plans to do a double
major in jazz and classical music next year at Oberlin College, had never been to New York.
"I love it here," she exclaimed Saturday, sitting in jeans and sneakers at a dark table in B.B.
King's large, posh nightclub on 42nd Street, after a noon rehearsal in a professional studio
around the corner. "I want to live here."
Though Zimmerman, a saxophonist, and Moxon have healthy perspectives on competition,
they came, like everyone else, to win. The Roosevelt band's rehearsal before its show was like
a locker-room bonding session before a football game, with hugs and high-fives and
handclasps. After Roosevelt performed a swinging set Sunday, Moxon beamed.
"It was the best we've ever played," she said. "The rush just went on for 15 minutes."
After Garfield's performance yesterday, Zimmerman was more circumspect.
"I think we did great," he said quietly. "I feel good. But you never can tell."
Area has good track record
Seattle-area bands have done well at Essentially Ellington since the event expanded in 1999
to include schools west of the Mississippi. Garfield and Roosevelt each has made the finals
five of the past six years. Roosevelt won in 2002. Garfield has now won twice. This area has
sent as many as four bands to the finals in the same year.
As in past years, this year's competition was very close, but stricter enforcement of a 20-
minute performance limit may have affected the outcome. New World School of the Arts,
from Miami, Fla., turned in a spectacular performance that had many handicapping it as the
winner.
But yesterday afternoon, just before he read the names of the top three bands, Marsalis
intimated that the results might upset those thinking anyone was a shoo-in. "Cheer now," he
said ominously to a whooping crowd, "because when I get finished with these
announcements, y'all aren't going to be cheering."
When Moxon heard the news that Roosevelt had been eliminated, she stood outside in the
sun in the grand plaza on Lincoln Center.
"That was hard," she said. "But you have to trust what they say. We played our best."
Washington schools won 11 soloist and three sectional awards. Garfield soloist awards went
to Zimmerman, alto saxophone; Roxy Coss, tenor saxophone; Samuel Schlosser, trombone;
Benjamin White, clarinet; Kendall Becker, bass; and Will Squires, piano. Roosevelt soloist
awards went to Logan Strosahl, tenor saxophone; Michael Chapman, trumpet; Andrew
McGovern, trumpet; and Moxon, piano.
Garfield also won awards for reeds and rhythm section. Roosevelt won for its trombone
section.
Matt Walsh of Spokane's Mead High School, which made the finals for the first time, took a
solo award for baritone saxophone.
Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company
May 2008: Review - All About Jazz by David A. Orthmann
Click Here to view the full article: http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=29289
Review of Roxy's Senior Recital (4/7/08)
Click Here to view the full article: http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=29289
Review of Roxy's Senior Recital (4/7/08)
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