Recipient Information
Location
Louisville, Kentucky
Year of Award
2023
Grant or Fellowship
Jazz Road Creative Residencies Grant
Grant Amount
$40,000
In April 2024, Diane and The Louisville Leopard Percussionists will present a series of performances in and around Atlanta, GA, consisting of new works and arrangements of traditional repertoire for percussion ensemble. The creation of these works, their rehearsal, and presentation will promote the field of jazz to a wider audience, instill an appreciation for jazz to the next generation of musicians, uplift local talents, and create a body of printed materials available to educators.
About the Artist
Diane Downs is the founder of The Louisville Leopard Percussionists. She is from Louisville, KY and began playing music at home at a very early age. She participated in band throughout school and entered Morehead State University in Morehead, KY with a music scholarship. After taking a year off of college to teach music in Montego Bay, Jamaica, she returned to Morehead to pursue her degree in elementary education. Diane earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in elementary education from Morehead State University in Morehead, KY and a Rank 1 status from the University of Louisville in the areas of gifted education and jazz pedagogy.
Diane founded The Fabulous Leopard Percussionists in 1993, directed that group for ten years and then created The Louisville Leopard Percussionists. She also supports the “We Got The Beat” percussion ensemble in Fresno, CA and serves as a consultant to numerous elementary percussion ensemble programs around the United States. Diane was a teacher in the Jefferson County Public School System for 28 years. From 1989-2003 she taught 2nd & 3rd grade at ML King Elementary and from 2003-2018 she taught music at Norton Elementary. To learn more about Diane, click here: http://wfpl.org/five-things-teacher-diane-downs-on-music-confidence-and-mowing-the-lawn/
In recognition for her work, Diane received the 1996 WHAS TV/PNC Bank ExCel Award, the 2001 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Arts Education, the 2004 Louisville Arts Council Community Arts Award in Music, the 2005 Today’s Woman Magazine Most Admired Woman in Louisville in Education Award, the 2008 National Cable Leaders in Learning Award, the 2015 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Living the Vision Award, the 2018 John LaPorta Jazz Educator of the Year Award through The Jazz Education Network and Berklee College of Music, and the 2019 Percussive Arts Society Outstanding Supporter Award. Diane is a member of The Percussive Arts Society, The Jazz Education Network, National Association for Music Education, and is active with Hit Like A Girl.