Jazz Outdoors

Madrone Lane | Thursday, June 5th, 2025

Welcome

Thank you for attending tonight's season concluding Jazz Outdoors concert here in beautiful downtown Winslow. Our students have been hard at work all year developing their skills and progressing through literature in preperation for tonight's performances, and I think you'll like what you hear!

We are excited to share, for the first time at this event, our scramble combos, which are small groups of students formed on the spot, performing a variety of standard jazz repertoire in an authentic jazz setting - play the head, improvize and react to each other, and wrap it up. This is an advanced form of performance, and I am fortunate to work with students willing to put in so much hard work to get to a level sufficient enough to perform these tunes for an audience. Please join me in cheering them on.

Chris Thomas

Director of BandsBainbridge High School

This Year's Jazz Awards

We hosted Naomi Moon Siegel for our annual Puget Sounds Jazz Festival back in March, and had a great time learning from her, her band, and the great turnout of other school ensembles from all around the Sound. At that festival, our ensembles participate in exhibition, but we still receive outstanding soloist awards. This year's Puget Sounds Outstanding Soloists from BHS were:

Finnegan Armstrong, Clarinet
Isaiah Beyer, Alto Sax
Miles Wieland, Piano
Ben Becket, Vibraphone

At this year's Bellevue High School Jazz Festival, Bainbridge Jazz One won firts place in the A/AA Division, and we were also fortunate enough to earn a few outstanding soloist awards:

Finnegan Armstrong, Clarinet
Isaiah Beyer, Alto Sax
Sebastian Ford, Tenor Sax

Tonight's Music

Jazz9

Scrapple From The Apple - Charlie Parker

Body & Soul - Johnny Green

Boogie Stop Shuffle - Charles Mingus

Roy Allen - Roy Hargrove

Scramble Combos

An hour of mixed level student ensembles playing a variety of well known jazz standards.

Jazz Two

It's, Oh So Nice - Sammy Nestico

At First Light - Ellen Rowe

Afro Blue - Santamaria, arr. Mossman

Jazz One

Walk, Don't Run - Smith, arr. Quincy Jones

When Sunny Gets Blue - Fischer, arr. Barduhn

Miss Fine - Oliver Nelson

In a Mellow Tone - Ellington, arr. Nelson

Tonight's Musicians

Jazz9

Horns

Isaiah Beyer (as)

Sebastian Ford (ts)

Stella Saleh (tpt)

Rhythm

Jack Zyskowski (g)

Miles Wieland (p)

Andrew Domansky (b)

Cole Moomaw (d)

Jazz One

Reeds

Claire Bremer (c)

Isaiah Beyer (a1)

Chloee Collier (a2)

Sebastian Ford (t1)

Finn Armstrong (t2)

Cascade Kaseler (b)

Trumpets

Stella Saleh

Dane Bowman

Giada DiMarco

Collin Fehrenbacher

`Elijah Treder

Trombones

Lillian Jackson

Atlas Montgomery

Stone Dewey

Sambela Aziz (b)

Rhythm

Henry Burruss (g)

Jack Zyskowski (g)

Miles Wieland (p)

Andrew Domansky (b)

Cole Moomaw (d)

Benjamin Beckett (v)

Jazz Two

Reeds

Jamie Moerchen (a)

Lauren Blakemore (a)

William Hughes (a)

Gray Judge (t)

Morgan Herten (t)

Ava Olinger (b)

Trumpets

Austin Williams

Jake Pentzer

Jason Arul

Paxton DeJong

Simon Bremer

Trombones

Hallam Baesman

Thomas Bearden

Mahalie Stackpole (b)

Rhythm

Coral Marsh (vio)

Julian Marsh (p)

Bailey Kleiven (b)

Gavin Dekker (d)

Band Director

Mr T with Dr Drak & ETD

Chris Thomas has been the band director at Bainbridge High School since the 2012-2013 school year. Since then, every area of the program has won multiple awards for excellence.

Mr Thomas prides himself in being a well rounded musician who enjoys the time he gets to spend with his bandmates. As an educator, he works to show each of his students the joys of inspired performances and deep band friendships. He loves this program, and wants it to inspire generations of kind and ambitious young people from Bainbridge Island.

While at BHS, he founded our Community Swing Dance, State Honors Recital, and the Puget Sounds Jazz Festival, the only festival dedicated to improvization and the joyful, spontanious interactions between young jazz musicians. Mr Thomas has also served on multiple schedule and hiring committees while at BHS, and has served on the Board of Directors for our regional music teachers' association in multiple roles, including president and webmaster.

Off campus, he plays trumpet with Backstreet Jellyroll (an 11 piece professional Van Morrison cover band), TMB Brass Band (Seattle's first call for second line), and Bud's Brass Quintet (a casual classical ensemble of mostly retired musicians and educators). He served as principal trumpet in the Bainbridge Symphony for five years before retiring from that ensemble in 2018, and previously performed with the Missoula Symphony. While finishing his Masters Degree, Chris was a featured soloist with the Missoula City Band during their televised July 4th performances. Mr Thomas played lead trumpet with the Kitsap Jazz Orchestra, and in the top jazz ensembles at Central Washington University and the University of Montana. Chris was a lead trumpet and soloist with the Seattle Cascades Drum and Bugle Corps in 2001 and 2002, and with The Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps in 2003 and 2004.

Before coming to BHS, Mr Thomas taught music classes for the Bellingham School District, Sedro-Woolley High School, the West Valley School District in Yakima, and The University of Montana. Mr Thomas also was on the instructional staff of The Seattle Cascades Drum and Bugle Corps from 2009 to 2012.

Mr Thomas holds a Masters Degree in Music from The University of Montana (2010), a Bachelors Degree in Music Education from Central Washington University (2007, with endorsements in instrumental music, vocal music, and general music), and an Associates of Arts and Sciences Degree from Shoreline Community College. Chris was inspired to continue studying music as a potential career path while taking a few elective classes as a freshman at Whatcom Community College.

Mr Thomas is married to Dr. Lauren Drakopulos, and together they are renovating a 1901 schoolhouse and trying their best to explore the great NW and beyond whenever they have a rare spare minute. This August, they welcomed their first child, Nora, to the world, and adopted a dear friend's 7 year old havanese-poodle mix, Gaia! Life is crazy all of a sudden...!

Mr T has a soft spot in his heart for the Seattle Mariners, frisbees in parks, bouldering gyms, and the bands at BHS. Go Spartans! <3 <3

Thank You!

We have a great jazz program, and we have many people to thank for helping make it possible.

Linda Brandt, for graciously agreeing to let band take over her beautiuful patio here on Madrone Lane each year.
Sakai and Woodward Band Directors past and present for giving all our high school musicians a great start on their instruments over the years!
Our BISD and BHS custodians, support staff, other educators, and administrators for organizing a safe and consistent learning environment for all of our student musicians to thrive in throughout their K-12 education.
Our BHS Band Booster Association, who without, we would be lost. We need our parent supporters now as much as ever, and we so appreciate the time, effort, and money each of you has contributed to the program this year, and in years past.

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