The Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition helped launch the careers of some of the genre's most acclaimed and enduring artists. Now, in its 31st year-its first as the renamed Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Competition-the event returns to Washington, D.C., December 2-3.
The contest spotlights a different instrument each year, with this years event focusing on the guitar. Israeli pianist and Berklee student Tom Oren took home first prize in 2018, becoming the sixth Berklee musician to win the competition. Next month, four Berklee alumni semifinalists-Cecil Alexander, Fran ois Chanvallon, Lucian Gray, and Matt Sewell-will compete for the chance to attach their names to this legacy.
Find Your Style
The Guitar Department helps you forge your artistic path, providing expert instruction in countless styles such as jazz, rock, metal, funk, classical, and microtonal music, among others.
The semifinals take place on Monday, December 2, at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. Each musician will have 15 minutes to perform in front of an all-star judging panel that includes Pat Metheny '96H, John Scofield '73, Lionel Loueke '00, Russell Malone, and Stanley Jordan. The judges will select three guitarists from this group to advance to the finals on Tuesday, December 3, at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
The first-prize winner will earn $30,000 in scholarship funds, and will be offered a recording contract with Concord Music Group. Beyond the financial reward, winning the title brings the awards substantial cultural cachet-crucial for a young artist seeking to carve out a career in the competitive world of jazz.
Since the first competition was held in 1987, nearly half the participants have come from Berklee. The institute has only held two previous guitar competitions: Lage Lund B.M. '00 won first prize in 2005, and Sheryl Bailey, assistant chair of Berklee's Guitar Department, placed third in 1995.
About the Semifinalists: Cecil Alexander Cecil Alexander B.M. '16, of Muskegon, Michigan, is a graduate of the Berklee and William Paterson University. He cofounded the group Visen in 2016 with fellow Berklee graduate Ari Jaye Alexander, and in 2017 the group released its first EP, Shoulder Deep. A winner of the 2017 Wilson Center Jazz Guitar Competition and the 2018 Lee Ritenour Six String Theory Competition in the jazz category, Alexander counts Peter Bernstein, Kurt Rosenwinkel, and Jesse van Ruller among his key influences. He has performed or recorded with artists such as Nathan East, Luis Perdomo, James Weidman, and Pat Bianchi, to name a few.
Fran ois Chanvallon Fran ois Chanvallon B.M. '18, of Paris, France, began his musical training at age 10. After attending the IMEP Paris College of Music, he earned a Bachelor of Music with honors from Berklee. He has studied privately with Darren Barrett, Mick Goodrick, Rick Peckham, Jaleel Shaw, and Miguel Zen n, among others. Currently a masters degree candidate at the Manhattan School of Music, Chanvallon has worked with artists including Chris Cheek, Gary Burton, and Kurt Elling, and was a 2019 finalist in the 7 Virtual Jazz Club Competition. He appears on Darren Barrett's recent release The EVI Sessions: Mr. Steiner.
Lucian Gray Lucian Gray B.M. '12, of Toronto, Canada, attended Berklee on the prestigious Slaight Family Scholarship, studying with George Garzone, Mick Goodrick, Dave Santoro, and Mark Whitfield. He has appeared alongside notable artists such as Guido Basso, Il Divo, Molly Johnson, and Neil Swainson, among others, and has performed at prominent festivals throughout Canada, including the TD Toronto Jazz Festival, the Beaches Jazz Festival, and the Calgary Jazz Festival. Gray is currently head of jazz studies at Discovery through the Arts, a nonprofit music school in Toronto, and also plays the piano and upright and electric bass.
Matt Sewell Matt Sewell B.M. '19 is a native of St. Louis, Missouri, who began formal musical training on piano at age 7, ultimately settling on guitar at age 9. He recently graduated from Berklee, where he worked with artists including Terence Blanchard, Emanuel Harrold, Adam Larson, Quiana Lynell, and Noah Preminger. Sewell has appeared on major stages in the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, and Poland, including venues such as the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City, the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival, the Montreal Jazz Festival, the Ottawa Jazz Festival, and the Spoleto Festival USA.
Related categories:
News
Most Popular
Maleficent Composer: Every Note Points to the Story Geoff Zanelli B.M. 96 talks about his creative process, his deep love for fantasy films, and the importance of making mistakes.
Latest
Berklee Alumni Win Four Latin Grammys Nella picked up Best New Artist in a big night for Berklee at the 20th annual Latin Grammy Awards.
Berklee Announces First Gospel Summer Program The five-day performance program brings together gospels traditions with its contemporary cultural relevance, and will take place August 17-21, 2020.
Four Berklee Guitarists Vie for Preeminent Jazz Prize Berklee alumni make up a quarter of the semifinalists at the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Competition.
Read All
Subscribe The latest sounds, stories, and ideas, sent to your inbox weekly.
Berklee Blogs
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Instagram
Snapchat
Soundcloud
Spotify
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
27/01/2026
Click for Japanese version
Tokyo, Japan - January 27, 2026 - Akamai Technolo...
27/01/2026
L-R: Jonathan Cuchacovich, Sonia Kennebeck, Alan Fischer, Daeil Kim, Andrew Sta...
27/01/2026
Today, Spotify is proud to support our partner Backline, an industry-leading men...
27/01/2026
With nearly 29 million monthly listeners and clear momentum on Spotify, Net n Ve...
27/01/2026
January 14, 2026
We are proud to share that 25 Ontario, First Gulf's commercial project located just two minutes from our head office, has been recognized ...
27/01/2026
January 22, 2026
First Gulf is excited to share that a full-building lease has been secured at 625 Bronte Rd in Oakville, part of Bronte Station Business Park,...
27/01/2026
January 23, 2026
First Gulf continues to demonstrate its commitment to high-performance, sustainable real estate with 351 King Street East achieving BOMA BEST ...
27/01/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
27/01/2026
Nielsen will continue to drive growth and provide local audience measurement
in...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Amagi Media Labs Limited, the only cloud-native SaaS provider offering end-to-end solutions across live production, content preparation, distribution, and monet...
27/01/2026
Miri Technologies Inc. today unveiled its V410 live 4K video encoder/decoder for streaming, IP-based production workflows and AV-over-IP distribution. Designed ...
27/01/2026
The Paul E. Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell in Massachusetts has chosen Ikegami cameras for incorporation into its broadcast-quality television production facili...
27/01/2026
SipRadius, specialists in secure, low latency media transport, will show the pro AV community its end-to-end solution for high quality content distribution and ...
27/01/2026
Hiltron will highlight the fruits of its 45-plus years of experience in satellite communications system integration and product development at the annual GovSat...
27/01/2026
Klvr will demonstrate how its Charger Pro solution is delivering cost reduction and performance benefits for live entertainment and pro AV markets at ISE 2026 (...
27/01/2026
Amino, a global media technology leader in enterprise video and digital signage, today announced that its Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) 2026 booth (4N700) wil...
27/01/2026
ANI, India's leading news agency and a major content provider across the Asia Pacific region, today announced a significant expansion of its long standing p...
27/01/2026
Independent analysis confirms faster encoding, lower CPU usage, and improved perceptual quality compared to CBR and CRF
VisualOn, a leader in multimedia playba...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
New agreement for uninterrupted UHF connectivity for Australian Defence Force through 2033, With Options Extending to 2041
Luxembourg, January 13, 2026 - Satel...
27/01/2026
Tuesday 27 January 2026
SNL UK creative team expands as Pauli Lovejoy, Annie Ha...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
When It Feels Real, Is It Still a Lie? The Art of Sarah' ...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
That Night premiering on Netflix March 13
Entertainment
27 January 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
DOWNLOAD THE KEY ART
DOWNLO...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Revealed the Future of Mexican Stories Coming in 2026
Entertainment
27 January 2026
GlobalMexico
Link copied to clipboard
Among t...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
Four New Japan Titles Announced for 2026: Viral Hit', On...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
What's Next on Netflix from Japan: Expanding the Possibili...
27/01/2026
AI, graphics and virtual software power new production capabilities...
27/01/2026
RT Supporting the Arts is delighted to support a dynamic programme of cultural events taking place across Ireland this February. From visual art, film, music, ...
26/01/2026
Music videos play a huge part in how fans connect with their favorite songs, but...
26/01/2026
NAIDOC launches 2026 theme 50 Years of Deadly , marks major milestone
25 January, 2026
Media releases
The National NAIDOC Committee has today unveiled its...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Advanced Systems Group (ASG) today announced an exclusive partnership with Nu Studio, the company behind the first modular, portable studio designed for immersi...
26/01/2026
OpenDrives, the leader in high-end video data management and workflow solutions, today announced an add-on investment to its previous funding rounds, led by IAG...
26/01/2026
SmallHD today announced a major update to its award-winning PageOS software, introducing Fleet Control, Portrait Mode, expanded Camera Control features, and Dow...
26/01/2026
Whether rigging a PTZ on a truss, sliding a Blackmagic camera across a mezzanine railing, or capturing the mayhem from inside a drum, Filipic delivers visuals t...
26/01/2026
Wuppertal January 26, 2026
Riedel and Media Tailor Deliver Unified Broadcast a...
The Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition helped launch the careers of some of the genre's most acclaimed and enduring artists. Now, in its 31st year-its first as the renamed Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Competition-the event returns to Washington, D.C., December 2-3.
