No Sheet-Music Dependency
Students learn melodies, basslines, riffs, breaks, and cues by ear, building the confidence to carry a tune from memory to the bandstand.
DEPARTMENT 06
Jazz
A future pathway for improvisation, groove, harmony, ensemble language, listening, and personal sound.
Jazz Heritage & Performance Guild
The Crescent City Syndicate
Jazz Director : Dr. Pathorn Srikaranonda
An immersive performance-driven jazz collective for students age 8-18, inspired by New Orleans groove, oral tradition, street pulse, collective improvisation, and the codes of the bandstand.
Collective Improvisation
Every player learns to answer, support, interrupt, lead, and leave space inside a living New Orleans-inspired ensemble conversation.
Bandstand Culture
Rehearsal becomes a working stage: count-ins, eye contact, dynamics, trading fours, endings, solos, and real-time musical trust.
Real Performance Outcome
The journey points toward a live showcase where students perform as a collective, not as a classroom exercise.
12-Week Program
A 12-Week Bandstand Journey
Students move from pulse to conversation to public stagecraft, learning jazz as something carried, played, and shared.
Month 1 / Weeks 1-4
The Second Line
Pulse, street beat, blues language, body feel, call-and-response, and groove as the shared engine of the group.
Month 2 / Weeks 5-8
The First Line
Polyphonic conversation, collective improvisation, cue awareness, listening across the ensemble, and taking a musical risk.
Month 3 / Weeks 9-12
The Grand Marshal
Stage presence, showmanship, set flow, audience connection, final showcase preparation, and leading from inside the band.
Director
Meet the Director
Associate Professor Dr. Pathorn Srikaranonda
Associate Professor Dr. Pathorn Srikaranonda is an internationally acclaimed saxophonist, composer, and jazz artist who has performed in more than 30 countries. A long-standing member of King Bhumibol Adulyadej's Au-Sau Friday Band, he has shared stages with leading jazz and orchestral artists worldwide, including performances in New Orleans, Paris, Amsterdam, Rome, Tokyo, and beyond.
Performance Outcomes
From Classroom to Real Stage
The Syndicate ends in public-facing work: a set, a sound, a shared identity, and the lived confidence of having led music in front of people.
Live Performance
Showcase Concert
Ensemble Experience
Public Performance
Creative Portfolio
Media Exposure
Leadership Development
Networking
Younger Cohorts
Pop-Up Second Line Parade
Older Cohorts
Speakeasy Showcase
Jazz at Muse [X] is not only studied. It is played, shared, led, and lived.
Jazz Faculty
Guided by Artists Who Live on Stage
Jazz at Muse [X] is shaped by performers, improvisers, composers, and educators who understand groove, listening, ensemble language, and live bandstand culture. Selected faculty members guide students through improvisation, musical identity, rehearsal culture, and real-world performance.
