2019 Festival Winners
The Berklee High School Jazz Festival competition is comprised of three competitive categories: Large Ensembles, Combo Ensembles, and Vocal Jazz ensembles. Within each category, classes are determined by school size based upon the enrollments of grades, 10, 11, and 12 (with the lowest number class having the largest school enrollment).
Watch the 2019 Winner Videos
Download the full festival ranking as a PDF
Large Ensemble
Class L1
1st Place:
Downey High School
Directed by Cory Olariu
Play2nd Place:
Princeton High School
Directed by Joe Bongiovi
Play3rd Place:
Centennial High School
Directed by David Matchim
Play4th Place:
Newtown High School
Directed by Kurt Eckhardt
PlayClass L2
1st Place:
William H. Hall High School
Directed by James Antonucci
Play2nd Place:
Woodstock Academy
Directed by Lauren Churchill
Play3rd Place:
Herricks High School
Directed by Geoffrey Taylor
Play4th Place:
Fayetteville-Manlius High School
Directed by John Patrick Jeanneret
PlayClass L3
1st Place:
Stratford High School
Directed by Mark Ryan
Play2nd Place:
South Kingstown High School
Directed by Fritz Benz
Play3rd Place:
South Portland High School
Directed by Craig Skeffington
Play4th Place:
Deptford High School
Directed by Carl Cox
PlayClass L4
1st Place:
Bacon Academy
Directed by Thomas Kessler
Play2nd Place:
Bordentown Regional High School
Directed by Michael Montalto
Play3rd Place:
Overbrook High School
Directed by Brian Height
Play4th Place:
Westbrook High School
Directed by Kyle Smith
PlayClass L5
1st Place:
Creative Arts Morgan Village Academy
Directed by Jamal P. Dickerson
Play2nd Place:
Cape Elizabeth High School
Directed by Tom Lizotte
Play3rd Place:
Mount Desert Island High School
Directed by Michael Remy
Play4th Place:
North Smithfield High School
Directed by Kevin Plouffe
PlayClass L6
1st Place:
Escuela Libre de Musica Ernesto Ramos Antonini
Directed by Manuel Garcia
Play2nd Place:
Rockport High School
Directed by Anthony Covelli
Play3rd Place:
ACES Educational Center for the Arts
Directed by Will Cleary
Play4th Place:
Berkeley Carroll School
Directed by Peter Holsberg
PlaySmall Ensemble/Combo
Class S1
1st Place:
Lexington High School
Directed by Pat Donaher
Play2nd Place:
Newton North High School
Directed by Richard Labedz
Play3rd Place:
Downey High School
Directed by Cory Olariu
Play4th Place:
Newton South High School
Directed by Ed Harlow
PlayClass S2
1st Place:
Pentucket Regional High School
Directed by David Schumacher
Play2nd Place:
Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts
Directed by Grant Beale
Play3rd Place:
St. John’s Preparatory School
Directed by Seelan Manickam
Play4th Place:
Bacon Academy
Directed by Thomas Kessler
PlayClass S3
1st Place:
Creative Arts Morgan Village Academy
Directed by Jamal Dickerson and Jojo Streater
Play2nd Place:
Ransom Everglades
Directed by Jon Hamm
Play3rd Place:
Trinity School
Directed by Jim Cifelli
Play4th Place:
Northfield Mount Hermon
Directed by Ronald Smith
PlayClass S4
1st Place:
ACES Educational Center for the Arts
Directed by Jim Martin
Play2nd Place:
Escuela Libre de Musica Ernesto Ramos Antonini
Directed by David Rivera
Play3rd Place:
George Stevens Academy
Directed by Steven Orlofsky
Play4th Place:
Beaver Country Day School
Directed by Yaure Muniz
PlayVocal Jazz Ensemble
Class V1
1st Place:
John Jay High School
Directed by Steven Morse
Play2nd Place:
Downey High School
Directed by Cory Olariu
Play3rd Place:
Foxborough High School
Directed by Brian Raymond
Play4th Place:
Princeton High School
Directed by Joe Bongiovi
PlayClass V2
1st Place:
Edgemont Jr./Sr. High School
Directed by Kelley Morse
Play2nd Place:
Griswold High School
Directed by Raymond Churchill
Play3rd Place:
Celia Cruz Bronx High School of Music
Directed by Jacqueline Bergland
Play4th Place:
Fryeburg Academy
Directed by Mimi Rohlfing
PlaySolo Singer
Class SS
1st Place:
Ransom Everglades School
Isabella Pena
Play2nd Place:
Rockport High School
Rhiannon Hurst
Play3rd Place:
Fayetteville-Manlius High School
Sadie Fridley
PlaySuperior and Outstanding Musicianship Awards
Class L1
Superior Musicianship
Simon Hwang, Princeton High School
Outstanding Musicianship
Jackson Rowles, Centennial High School
Tony Kim, Lexington High School
Juan Carballo, Downey High School
Class L2
Superior Musicianship
Matthew Cosola, Herricks High School
Outstanding Musicianship
Darren Yang, Herricks High School
Jason Hoopes, William H. Hall High School
Anthony Defeo-Gelman, Oliver Ames High School
Class L3
Superior Musicianship
Aaron Ouellette, RHAM High School
Outstanding Musicianship
Luca Simeone, South Kingstown High School
Max Saffer, South Portland High School
Emile Hamwey, Windham High School (NH)
Class L4
Superior Musicianship
Michael Celentano, Xavier High School (CT)
Outstanding Musicianship
Nik Romano, Bordentown Regional High School
Samantha MacFarlane, Bordentown Regional High School
Sander Schuchat, Edgemont Jr./Sr. High School
Class L5
Superior Musicianship
Alex Hansen, Cape Elizabeth High School
Outstanding Musicianship
Zhane Brown, Creative Arts Morgan Village Academy
Deshawn Casraiss, Creative Arts Morgan Village Academy
Ryan Oberholtzer, Cape Elizabeth High School
Class L6
Superior Musicianship
Kenijah Georges, ACES Educational Center for the Arts
Outstanding Musicianship
Anton Kot, ACES Educational Center for the Arts
Dillon Kendall, Rockport High School
Julio Gaston, Escuela Libre de Musica Ernesto Ramos Antonini
Class S1
Superior Musicianship
Hyunwoo Shin, Lexington High School
Outstanding Musicianship
Juan Carballo, Downey High School
Dejan Brown, Newton North High School
Alex Tung, Lexington High School
Class S2
Superior Musicianship
Jake Baynes, Pentucket Regional High School
Outstanding Musicianship
John Davis, Pentucket Regional High School
Mac Mansfield-Parisi, Pentucket Regional High School
Nicko Malinowski, St. John’s Preparatory School
Class S3
Superior Musicianship
Amelia Chalfant, Northfield Mount Hermon
Outstanding Musicianship
Jacob Smith, Northfield Mount Hermon
Will Buckser-Schulz, Edgemont Jr./Sr. High School
Connor Munroe, Ransom Everglades
Class S4
Superior Musicianship
Anton Kot, ACES Educational Center for the Arts
Outstanding Musicianship
Kenijah Georges, ACES Educational Center for the Arts
Fabiola Muñoz, Escuela Libre de Musica Ernesto Ramos Antonini
Mark Beebe, Idyllwild Arts Academy
Class V1
Superior Musicianship
Connor Hoyt, Foxborough High School
Outstanding Musicianship
Alex Ledin, Foxborough High School
Tessa Udden, Foxborough High School
Laylu Sandusky, Downey High School
Class V2
Superior Musicianship
Sam Blakely, Edgemont Jr./Sr. High School
Outstanding Musicianship
Georgia Stafford, Fryeburg Academy
Naia Wolfenzon, Trinity School
Rory O’Neill, Portsmouth Abbey School