The Pittsburgh Jazz Ensemble are not just entertaining the Pittsburgh area – they are using… The Pittsburgh Jazz Ensemble are not just entertaining the Pittsburgh area – they are using their music to give back in a big way.

During a recent service trip to Jamaica, the band did more than just perform for one special elementary school. The Pitt Jazz Band is in the process of donating a large drum set to the Whitehall Elementary and Basic Preparatory School in Negril, Jamaica, in order to improve its music program.

Under the leadership of Nathan Davis, a professor in Pitt’s music department, the internationally recognized band has spent the majority of the last 20 years performing and traveling all over the country and the islands along the Caribbean spreading the importance of music in schools.

Since 1990, the Pittsburgh Jazz Ensemble has been actively involved in a Jamaican Outreach Program. The annual trip includes a one-week stay in Jamaica and several big band performances for rural schools.

“Our purpose is to go to these third-world countries and share with them a piece of American jazz culture,” Mike Freedman, president of the Pitt Jazz Band, said. “School is usually the only time the children can all come together. We know music is sometimes a low priority, so we want to help their music program.”

Freedman hopes the Pittsburgh Jazz Ensemble’s philanthropic gesture sparks an interest in community service on a local and international scale.

“You don’t have to be involved in music to gain a perspective of your position in the world and helping other people,” Freedman said. “Music, especially jazz, is an effective way to spread the message.”