Amy Jo Sawyer

March 1
10 a.m. — Noon
Steinway

The American Art Form called Jazz

Amy Jo Sawyer

Considering the current interest in American contemporary music, Amy Jo Sawyer offers a triple-dip of perspectives: teacher, performer and composer of both jazz and classical music. This presentation will begin with a brief history of jazz and then offer some specific tips for techniques that can be shared with students to ease their jazz performance skills. Amy Jo will also demonstrate the performance of jazz — including some of her own compositions — and provide a list of suggested music.

Amy Jo received the “Foundation Fellow” award at the ISMTA Conference held in Charleston, Illinois, Nov. 4, 2022. She received recognition for this award at the Music Teachers National Association Conference held in Reno, Nevada, on March 27, 2023. The award is presented to one who has “made significant and substantial impact on the lives of others through music and service.”

She became an MTNA Nationally Certified Piano teacher in 1989. She earned a master’s degree in Jazz Performance and bachelor’s degree in Piano Performance and Composition from Southern Illinois University. She served on the Illinois State Teachers Association board as Composition Chair for five years. She was president of the local ISMTA chapter, Gateway Arch East. In 2014, she was chosen as ISMTA Composer of the Year. In 2019 she was chosen ISMTA Teacher of the Year. She has performed many times on the accordion with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. She received the Accordion Hall of Fame Award in 2019 from the Accordionists & Teachers Guild International.

Amy Jo has written many compositions for accordion and piano. Many accordion orchestra pieces have been performed internationally by the University of Missouri Kansas City Accordion Orchestra. In 2018, her orchestral piece, “Recuerdos” (Memories), was performed at the World Accordion Festival in Lithuania. Eighteen original piano compositions have been approved for students to play in the “Achievement in Music” program sponsored by ISMTA.