Excitement and a nervous energy filled The Ark, as it has many times for hundreds of different artists and performers since the 1960s. On May 11, 2026, The Ark hosted a tribute to a year of CHS jazz.
For the Community High Jazz Program, this was the result of a year of practice and teamwork. The show is one of the last that the CHS Jazz program performs. The Ark, located on Main Street, is one of the most prestigious venues in Ann Arbor.
The Community High Jazz Year-End Blowout had two shows, each featuring a different set of performing students at all levels of CHS’s jazz program. The first show went from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. and featured the Jazz Studio, playing “The Blues Walk”, “Mack the Knife” and “Cantaloupe Island.” For CHS freshman Tristan Taylor, the night showed off how far his group had come since the last time they played the venue.
“Last time, we weren’t as together, we knew what we were doing, but we weren’t all there,” Taylor said. “Then today, we were just really locked in with each other, and especially the last song with James doing his solo at the beginning, it was super smooth, and it all worked out very well.”
After them came the Swingin’ Amiss Bebop Ensemble, playing “Miles,” “My Funny Valentine” and “Ugetsu.” Then it was Trane Wreck’s turn to take the stage. They played “On the Streets of Philadelphia,” “Dear Old Stockholm” and “‘Resolution from A Love Supreme.” Trane Wreck’s drummer Max Valdez discovered “Dear Old Stockholm” while he was on winter break. That discovery led to its inclusion in the final performance on May 11.
“Jack thought it was a lot of arguments, but it was really just a lot of not knowing what we could play and trying to find things that we liked,” Valdez said. “I was searching records over winter break, just looking for stuff to listen to. And eventually I sent them to Stockholm. And it got good reactions.”
For Valdez, the night was a success, there were no major mistakes that might have impeded the night. Valdez loved the music that he was playing.
“I love them. I got to pick a lot of them, I got to pick Stockholm because nobody else could think of a thing,” Valdez said. “Then Esh got to pick ‘Love Supreme,’ which was really fun for us to learn because we got to hear new sides of each other and stuff and ‘Streets of Philadelphia.’”
When the last notes of “Resolution from A Love Supreme” had died from the stage, O Negative took the stage, named after a gig when their fingers started bleeding on stage. They played “Caldo’s Revenge,” “Lisa” and “Spain.” While they are always playing specific songs, there is always room for creativity and improvisation on stage.
“Usually the melody is people play the melody, and then everyone takes turns taking solos which are completely improvised,” said Will Militzer, a CHS senior and piano for O Negative. “It’s very fun. It’s a great way to express, and have a creative outlet.”
The next show started at 8 p.m. and lasted until 10 p.m. The first to go was the Jazz Improvisation ‘A’ Ensemble, who played “Summertime” and “Oleo.” Next came Bing Bong who played “Ju Ju,” “In a Sentimental Mood” and Mosaic.
Helio Fong, who played piano for the group Bing Bong, also helped as the Assistant Teacher for Jazz Improvisation ‘A’ Ensemble. As a senior and in an advanced group, he tried his best to teach lessons he’d learned but understood that he could only do so much.
“I loved getting to help them and pass down important lessons I’ve learned. It’s also scary because you can only do so much,” Fong said. “You can’t force them to practice what you say or anything like that. When I heard them last night, it was huge because I could tell that they worked hard.”
For many seniors in the jazz program, the performance was bittersweet. A great performance marking a broad conclusion to what for some has sometimes been four years of work and performing. For some they can see differences in how they performed as a mark of how far they’ve come.
“I think I kept a cooler head this time,” said Militzer. “I’m leaving the community, but I also know it’s time to move on to college, and I’ll be in the area.”
But as they packed up their instruments at 10 p.m., for most this would not be the end of their careers in music. For many it’s the start of the next chapter.
“I’m gonna keep playing, which is exciting,” Valdez said. “I’m gonna play a lot this summer. And so this feels like a final thing, but it also feels like starting a new chapter.”
