Senior D.J. Stanfill sings song of success at Grammys, NFAA

By Lisa Duckers
Staff Writer

For Mira Costa senior D.J. Stanfill, singing at the Post-Awards Grammy Celebration last year was the chance of a lifetime.

In 2009, Stanfill, along with 600 high school students, auditioned to be a part of the 2010 Grammy Foundation Jazz Ensemble. From those students, he and 27 other musicians were selected to take part in the program. This January, he will repeat that experience for a second time.

“D.J. is an extremely passionate and curious musician gifted with great talent and has the smarts to back it all up,” choir director Michael Hayden said.“There is no doubt D.J. will be extremely successful in the Grammy Jazz Choir and with the NFAA YoungArts Program. His love for jazz and performance and his skills will serve him well and will inspire those around him.”

Surprisingly, Stanfill, who was a natural at playing the piano and trombone when he was younger, never really focused on singing until he started `high school. Once he started singing all the time, it became hard for him to stop.

“I took up vocal jazz at the end of sophomore year. Since then, I’ve been singing a lot more,” Stanfill said. “I never really decided to take up singing, but I have been doing it for as long as I can remember, in small vocal groups, in the car, in the shower, wherever.”

Throughout the week leading up to the Grammys in February, Stanfill and his fellow musicians will perform at events including the Person of the Year Awards for Barbara Streisand. They will also perform at the official post-awards Grammy celebration.

The group will also have the opportunity to record an album at Capitol Records during the week members are there.

“We don’t know all of the guest artists yet for this year, but we’ll be performing with some of the most well-known names in jazz,” Stanfill said.

In addition to the Grammys performance, Stanfill was one of three jazz vocalists chosen to participate in the 2011 NFAA YoungArts program in Miami this January.

There, he and 150 other young talented artists from around the country will perform and receive training from artists in different areas of artistic expression.

Additionally, all the young artists that were selected by YoungArts will have the chance to be nominated for an award given at the White House with the opportunity to perform at the Kennedy Center and exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.

“I’m very excited but also a little nervous,” Stanfill said. “It’s a small chance, but I’m going to try for it as hard as I can nonetheless. To sing at the Kennedy Center and to receive a presidential scholarship would be incredible.”

Even though he has been granted these unique experiences, Stanfill says he still has a long way to go in terms of improving his singing. He hopes that these upcoming experiences will help him learn more.

“At the next upcoming events, I really hope to learn as much as I can about music and myself,” Stanfill said. “I look forward to all of the exciting new things that I will get to learn when I go to both programs.”