The 30th annual Conference of the International Association of Jazz Educators (IAJE), was held January 8–11 at the Metro Convention Center in Toronto, Canada amid snow and cold temperatures. Fortunately, most of the conference venues were accessible via an underground tunnel. The event marked the first time that IAJE has ever met outside the United States as indicated by the conference theme, Jazz-Crossing All Borders.

Each year this event attracts an ever larger group of educators, musicians, industry participants, schools, and aficionados, with a greater number and variety of performances, clinics, seminars, panels, and demonstrations. At any given time there are usually 2-4 items going on all in different places. Trekking around the venues to maximize what you can absorb is a bit of an art and exhausting. Everywhere you go there is music...in the hotel lobbies, in large concert halls and smaller rooms. Everyone shares a common love for this music. Upon arrival, this participant studies and highlights the 4-day program outline and develops a "plan of attack" prioritizing and attempting to cover as much as  possible. In the past 5 IAJE conferences this reviewer has attended, the attention to detail and quality of organization that makes up these conferences is impressive.

When the jazz community comes together for IAJE it exempifies a collegial, inclusive, dedicated spirit. Young students are given a chance to "hang out" with their idols, teachers encourage their students to shine, former bandmates reconnect, networking is facilitated, and performers pull out all the stops for the knowledgeable and enthusiastic audiences. The sense of kinship, history, and mentoring permeates the halls. The thrill of hearing the audience pick up on a subtle nuance of humor or appreciate an especially tricky passage in a musician's performance is a treat.

So much of our jazz heritage has been passed down through stories. It is at some of the panels that one is able to hear a jazz legend describe how they got started, who they worked with, where their influences came from, and all manner of interesting tidbits about their lives as practicing jazz musicians. These might really be the true gems of these conferences and one hopes that these get recorded for posterity.

The 2003 IAJE President's Award was given to legendary pianist Dr. Oscar Peterson, who is also a Canadian. Singer Nancy Wilson hosted the Gala Dinner at which this award was presented. Another of the highlights that night was a performance from pianist Benny Green and guitarist Russell Malone.

Friday night's concert included the presentation of the NEA American Jazz Masters Awards to saxophonist Jimmy Heath, drummer Elvin Jones, and vocalist Abbey Lincoln.  Performances from Nnenna Freelon, Slide Hampton and the World of Trombones with Bill Watrous, and the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni All-Star Big Band with special guest Nancy Wilson provided the musical emphasisfor the evening.

Also Friday night, was an especially enjoyable performance given by the Marian McPartland Trio. Earlier in the day she had charmed an audience with stories of her earlier experiences in the jazz world, meeting her husband, Jimmy McPartland, her bands, her Piano Jazz series on NPR.

Seattle's Garfield High School Jazz Band under the direction of Clarence Acox played a swinging set Saturday afternoon. Saturday evening's performances were highlighted by Rob McConnell and the Boss Brass, Hugh Fraser's Vancouver Ensemble of Jazz Improvisation, and Vic Vogel's Le Jazz Big Band.

As participants headed for taxis and flights, many eyes were drooping. Catching up on lost sleep was the main event on Sunday.

The 2004 IAJE Conference will be held in New York City.