Second SchoolJam Texas Teen Battle of the Bands Competition Draws More than 500 to The Parish in Austin

NAMM, the trade association of the international music products industry, and the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) hosted the second SchoolJam Texas teen battle of the bands competition in front of a full-capacity crowd of more than 500 at The Parish in Austin. The six finalist bands from all over Texas battled it out Feb. 28 and represented an array of styles from alternative to mariachi.

The first-place winner was The Carson Brock Group of Austin, Texas. The band received a variety of prizes including a gift certificate for $750 to use toward music products at their local NAMM Member retail store, and an all-expense-paid trip to perform at the Musikmesse conference in Frankfurt, Germany in March. The band’s represented schools, Lake Travis High School and Bowie High School, will receive a $3,000 gift certificate to use at a local NAMM Member music product retailer to buy music products for their school music programs.

The second-place winner was Edison Chair of Austin, Texas (to benefit Dripping Springs High School and James Bowie High School), and the third-place winner was Blankberry of Nederland, Texas (to benefit Nederland High School).

The finalists were:

-El Mariachi Tejano de Sam Houston of Arlington, Texas (to benefit Sam Houston High School)
-The Standing of Vidor, Texas (to benefit Vidor High School)
-While the World Sleeps of Plano, Texas (to benefit Shepton High School and Plano West Senior High School).

The second- and third-place winners, finalists and their represented schools won cash prizes good for musical equipment at their local NAMM Member music product retailer of choice.

“Best of” Categories included:

Best Drummer: Victor Ziolkowsky of The Carson Brock Group
Best Guitar: Jordan Wright of Blankberry
Best Vocals: Gregorio Chavez of El Mariachi Tejano de Sam Houston
Best Bass: Martin Aker of Edison Chair
Judges Prize: Marissa Ocampo of El Mariachi Tejano de Sam Houston.

The competition is a one-of-a-kind contest currently designed to encourage teens from around the state of Texas to express themselves through music and to support the teen musicians’ local school music education programs. The event is based on a special initiative put on in Germany by MM-Musik-Media Germany. Next year, NAMM plans to extend the contest to schools nationwide.

“For the second time, NAMM was so happy to see the sheer number of people who supported the event,” said Morgan Ringwald, director of Market Development at NAMM. “The goal was to encourage teens from all over Texas to share their musical talent and creativity in front of their peers and educators and we definitely accomplished this. We’re looking forward to continuing this event in the future, encouraging teens to explore their musical creativity and supporting schools that are in dire need of financial help to keep their school music programs intact.”

The panel of judges were Margaret Moser of The Austin Chronicle; Dominic Pohlman of the SchoolJam Germany program; Steve Dobo of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; J.D. Janda of TMEA; and Davey Schacherl of South by Southwest.

For more information about learning to play music, visit www.wannaplaymusic.com.

About TMEA
Begun in 1920 as the Texas Band Teachers Association, the Texas Music Educators Association is an organization of over 10,000 school music educators dedicated to promoting excellence in music education. TMEA is committed fostering public support for music in schools, offering quality musical experiences for students, and providing professional growth opportunities for members.