Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics to Celebrate 40th Anniversary in July 2025

Berklee and the Umbria Jazz Festival will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics program in July 2025. The Berklee on the Road program will be held from July 8 to 20 at the Monastero S. Anna in Perugia, Italy.

With 12 days of intensive classes and performances, Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics provides aspiring musicians with hands-on educational experiences that foster musical growth and development. The program is open to all aspiring high school and college-level musicians. Participants must be at least 15 years of age by its start, with a minimum of six months of experience in their primary instrument or voice. 

Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics, combined with the 10-day Umbria Jazz Festival, offers a unique opportunity to learn by day and experience live music by night. All students will receive free passes to the main stage at the Umbria Jazz Festival concerts, which are ongoing throughout the program.

“Summer 2025 marks the 40th anniversary of the Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics, which has become the premier summer jazz program in the world,” says Dave Limina, chair of the college’s Piano Department and academic director of the Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics. “Our program will again be taught by an elite group of Berklee professors, all of whom are world-class performers and educators with a passion to inspire. We are looking for students who demonstrate a strong desire to learn more about jazz and other contemporary pan-African diasporic improvisational musical styles. The alumni who will be present this summer are prime examples of how successful careers and lifelong musical friendships can be created.”

The programming will take place daily from 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and will conclude with final concert activities, which are open to the public, beginning Friday, July 18, and running through Sunday, July 20, on the Berklee and Umbria Jazz Festival stage. There will also be daily after-hours jam sessions open to all students on the Berklee stage.

In its 40-year history, the program has welcomed more than 7,000 students, providing a comprehensive learning environment with group lessons, vocal programs, ensembles, and classes in theory and improvisation. Instruction will be provided this summer by a team of esteemed Berklee faculty, including Yoron Israel, chair of the Percussion Department; Gregory Groover, Jr., assistant chair of ensembles; Fernando Huergo, professor of bass; Nichelle Mungo, associate professor of voice; Jim Kelly, professor of guitar; Zahili Gonzalez Zamora, assistant professor of piano; Phil Grenadier, assistant professor of ensembles; and Nick Grondin, assistant professor of ear training. Master classes on performing, improvisation, and composition will also be offered by special guest artists from the Umbria Jazz Festival.

Students will have the opportunity to audition for admission and scholarships to attend the college in Boston. Berklee’s admissions team will hold auditions for 50 selected students who will be eligible to receive scholarships to the college’s full-time undergraduate program in Boston, full-tuition scholarships to attend Berklee’s Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive summer program, and two full-tuition scholarships to Berklee Online classes. Selected students will be notified via email of their 15-minute live audition and 15-minute interview appointment one week prior to the start of the program. Berklee faculty will observe students during the first week of the program and nominate 10 additional students whom they feel should be scheduled for an audition.

In 2024, $5.2 million was awarded in scholarships, with 10 full-tuition scholarships to the full-time undergraduate program, 33 partial and full awarded in total for the undergraduate program, and 11 awards to the summer program.

Tuition is €650 ($682 US dollars) for the 2025 program and interested students are advised to apply here.