14487: Hermantin: Student, 17, thrilled to be Grammy material (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Miami Herald


Posted on Thu, Jan. 16, 2003

Student, 17, thrilled to be Grammy material
BY DANIEL CHANG
dchang@herald.com


'Music throbs in my veins,' says Jennifer Sanon.


Jennifer Sanon expresses herself best through music.

So forgive her if she's at a loss for words after being selected to sing in
the Gibson/Baldwin Grammy High School Jazz Ensemble, an elite group of 24
student musicians nationwide chosen to perform in a series of concerts
leading up to the 2003 Grammy Awards on Feb. 24 in New York.

''Music throbs in my veins,'' said Jennifer, 17, a high-school junior at
Miami's New World School of the Arts. ``I don't relate to anything like I do
to music. That's my escape. That's my everything.''

Indeed, music has been handed down like a family heirloom to Jennifer.

>From father Jean Robert and mother Marie Nicole's live performances on
Haitian radio during the 1980s, to the jam sessions each weekend at Uncle
Daniel Pyton's home, to the Caribbean gospel music they sing at Fraternity
Baptist Church each Sunday near their new home in North Miami Beach, music
is the common thread of the Sanon family.

WILL GO ANYWHERE

''Everyone in the family sings or plays an instrument,'' Marie Nicole said.
``Anywhere they invite us, we'll go together and perform.''

Like the proverbial family that plays together, the Sanons are tightly knit.
Their two-bedroom, two-bathroom home is shared by 11 relatives, including
one of Jennifer's aunts, an uncle and several cousins.

For New World, Jennifer's selection sets a record. At least one student from
the school has been chosen for the Grammy ensemble during each of the past
eight years.

Last year, pianist Fabian Almazan, who graduated in 2002, was chosen for the
group, and drummer Obed Calvaire, class of 2000, also has received the
honor.

ONLY FLORIDIAN

Jennifer is the only musician in Florida to receive the Grammy recognition
this year and the first New World vocalist selected.

As one of six singers chosen nationally, she will receive an
all-expenses-paid, eight-day trip to Manhattan, where she will meet and
perform for Grammy nominees, sing at renowned halls such as the Apollo
Theater, record a CD and attend the Grammy Awards. Jennifer and the other 23
members of the ensemble also will become eligible for college scholarships.

To qualify, Jennifer, an alto, submitted a written application, a video of a
performance and a tape recording of three songs.

She was selected from more than 250 applicants, said David Sears, education
program director for the Grammy Foundation.

TEACHER'S PRAISE

Jim Gasior, New World's high school jazz ensemble director, has taught at
the school for four years and says Jennifer's vocal talent is exceptional
for such a young singer.

''We're not talking about potential anymore,'' Gasior said. ``We're talking
about a remarkable level of musical achievement.''

Perhaps more remarkable is that she excels at jazz after having been
introduced to the genre only one year ago by alumnus Almazan, who is on a
full scholarship at the Dave Brubeck Institute at University of the Pacific
in California.

Despite the family's musicality, Jennifer does not own a piano, which she
began to learn to play last year.

The teenager's rehearsals often begin after school and run late into the
night at New World's downtown Miami campus.

Sitting at the piano Wednesday, Jennifer reflected on her accomplishment and
the complex emotions that she feels she can communicate only through jazz.

''I definitely want to find out who I am through this music,'' she said.
``It's like I'm expressing a language that words are insufficient to do.''







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