2022 Scholarship Award Winners
EVAN TAYLOR
guitar
The Cincinnati Jazz Hall of Fame: Elsa Heisel Sule Jazz Studies Scholarship
Evan Taylor graduated from Walnut Hills High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. Evan has been playing guitar since he was two years old, and he has been taking private guitar lessons since the age of six. In the seventh grade, Evan joined the jazz band at Walnut Hills High School, and quickly fell in love with jazz.
For the past six years, he has been playing jazz guitar at school and in several youth ensembles, including the Greater Cincinnati Youth Jazz Collaborative, and the Cincinnati Jazz Hall of Fame’s “Jazz at Dusk” youth ensemble. During the summers, Evan has also participated in a variety of workshops with Cincinnati Public Schools and the University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music, as well as summer jazz programs through the Eastman School of Music, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and the Manhattan School of Music. In addition, Evan has been playing professional gigs throughout the greater Cincinnati area over the course of the past 5 years.
Evan was selected to perform with the OMEA All-State Jazz Band and was awarded the Louis Armstrong award and the Frank Foster scholarship through Walnut Hills High School. He will be pursuing a degree in Jazz Performance at Manhattan School of Music, and hopes to make music his lifelong career. He is deeply grateful for all of the opportunities he has been provided through the Jazz at Dusk program and is honored to be selected as a scholarship recipient.
TEDDY MECHLEY
bass
The Cincinnati Jazz Hall of Fame: John Von Ohlen Jazz Studies Scholarship
Teddy began playing music at the age of 6 years when he began taking piano lessons. In middle school, he joined the concert band and began playing drums, and eventually in high school picked up the bass guitar, which began his interest in jazz music plus the acoustic bass. Teddy played in the jazz band at St. Xavier high school and after hours he joined the "Jazz at Dusk" series continuing his endeavors in jazz. In addition, he was in the St. Xavier marching band for 4 years.
Teddy will be attending the University of Cincinnati's College-Conservatory of Music this Fall and majoring in Jazz Studies, while continuing his jazz endeavors and performing on the side.
Teddy would like to thank his family for all their support plus all his teachers and last but not least, the Cincinnati Jazz Hall of Fame's Jazz Educational program especially for the "Jazz at Dusk"(JAD) series and for the outstanding John Von Ohlen Scholarship award to go towards his college tuition!