REMEMBERING - New Jersey Jazz Society

More documents

Recommendations

Info

New JerseyJazzSocietyNotes from the Music CommitteeBy Laura Hull NJJS Music Committee Chair“Words make you think a thought.Music makes you feel a feeling.A song makes you feel a thought.” —E. Y. “Yip” Harburg, LyricistWe’re pleased to tell you thatplanning is underway for our2010 Education ScholarshipFundraiser. We are teaming up withthe Folk Project to present TernSwings— a Swing Concert for Listenersand a Swing Dance forDancers! for the benefit of the NJJSEducational Scholarship Fund. Thisfundraiser will increase the grantmonies we award annually to NewJersey jazz studies students. Theevent features the 18-piece jazzswingband, Reeds, Rhythm & AllThat Brass, led by former NJJS VicePresident Dr. Lou Iozzi. The show isscheduled for Saturday, January 30,A Swing Sensation…dance to the music ofTerry “A” and theBIG BAND SOUNDSunday October 25, 2009 4–7PMAt The Flemington Jewish Community Center5 Sergeantsville Road, Flemington, NJ 08822908 788 7704Tickets: $18 in advance/$20 at the door2010 at First Presbyterian Church,Parish Hall, 14 Hanover Road inEast Hanover. Tickets are $15 inadvance and $20 at the door, andcan be purchased online athttp://dance.folkproject.org or bycalling 908-591-6491.■ If you are unable to attend theTern Swings event, we invite you topurchase tickets anyway, to supportthe scholarship fund. In addition,we welcome your direct donationsand invite you to visit the NJJSwebsite: www.NJJS.org/scholarshipsand simply click on the Donationsbutton. Donations of $1,000 ormore entitle the donor to lifetimemembership in the NJJS!■ Planning is underway forthe Pee Wee RussellMemorial Stomp and we’llbe announcing the musiclineup in the next issue.We’ll be back at theBirchwood Manor onSunday, March 7 — so besure to mark your calendarfor this annual afternoon ofswinging music.■ Our monthly Jazz Social isscheduled for Sunday, October 18from 3–6 PM and will feature anIntimate Portrait with ChampianFulton. Now taking place atShanghai Jazz in Madison, theSocials are an opportunity to meetlike-minded people and listen tosome great programming.Admission is free for members andjust $10 for non-members — goodtoward a new annual membership!There is a $5 minimum food andbeverage charge.■ Our jazz film series will featureThelonious Monk: Straight No Chaseron Thursday, November 19. This isa change of date, so please markyour calendars accordingly. Theseries takes place at Library of theChathams in Chatham and beginsat 7PM. Joe Lang is host of the jazzfilm series and he’ll be on hand foran after-film discussion.Admission is free.JJSee calendar page 3 andstay tuned to www.njjs.orgfor updates and details.and November 22under the auspices ofThe Big Apple Pops,at Lorenzo’s Restaurant,Hilton Garden Inn, Staten Isl.NY. 718 477 2400Got E-mail? Friends got E-mail?News and special offers are often late-breaking —so please make sure we have your E-mail address,and tell your friends! Contact publicity@njjs.org.8__________________________________ October 2009
JerseyArticlesJazzClassic StineBy Jack StineNJJS President Emeritus…mulling over Teachout’s question,one has to wonder if it’s the rightone. Shouldn’t he be asking ifmusic itself can be saved?Terry Teachout’s BrouhahaIimagine a lot of NJJS members read Terry Teachout’s recentarticle in the Wall Street Journal asking if jazz can be saved.The article is replete with statistics showing that the jazz audience isshrinking at an alarming rate. Figures supplied by the latest NEASurvey of public participation in the arts seem to warrant Teachout’squestion. In 1982, for instance, the median age of those attendingjazz events was 29. In 2008, it was 46. College-educated adultsattending live jazz events declined from 19.4% in 1982 to 14.9%.Stats like that inspired Mr. Teachout to fire up his word processorand take his case to the people.He goes on. “What I find no less revealing, though, is that the medianage of the jazz audience is now comparable to the ages of those whowent to live performances of classical music (49 in 2008 vs. 40 in1982), opera (48 in 2008 vs. 43 in 1982), nonmusical plays (47 in2008 vs. 39 in 1982) and ballet (46 in 2008 vs. 37 in 1982).” And soon and on.We’ve all learned, often the hard way, that statistics can be twisted inmany ways to make a point, but Mr Teachout’s contentions wouldreally seem to serve as a wake up call for action. But what action?Shed a few years to reduce the age difference in the audience? Attendmore programs, even if we doubt the stuff being played doesn’tsquare with music we’ve always revered as jazz? Might it not be thatthe cure will have to be made not by us in the audience but by themusicians themselves?Many times during the past years I’ve referred to Dick Wellstood’sclassic statement that there is no jazz; only music exists. It’s a sentimentthat was firmly supported by Dick’s on and offstage compadreKenny Davern, certainly one of the greatest clarinetists any jazz loverwill ever hear. Kenny would drop anything any time to discuss eitherBruckner and Dvorak or Teschemachus and Clayton. It made nodifference to him. It was all music. With this in mind, and mullingover Teachout’s question, one has to wonder if it’s the right one.Shouldn’t he be asking if music itself can be saved? And if so, where’sthe audience to do it?Let’s repair to a scene that took place a couple of years ago on a verycold day in a Metro Station in the District of Columbia. The exactlocation is unimportant — you’ve seen its like any time you took asubway or train any place.A nondescript-looking guy wearing a baseball cap and clad in whatstreet people might call basic black sweatshirt and jeans stood in apassage, sawing away on a fiddle. On the deck before him was abattered can that begged for donations. He played for about an hourand it was estimated that about 2000 commuters passed, either goingto or returning from their trains.After the first four minutes, a lady dropped a dollar in the canwithout breaking her pace. A young man leaned against the wall andlistened for a few minutes. After a bit, he looked at his watch and left,leaving nothing. A toddler pulled his mother to a stop to listen butthe mother dragged the child away. For three quarters of an hour theman played non-stop. Twenty people made donations; six peopleinterrupted their walk to listen briefly. The final take was $32, whichany itinerant musician in similar circumstances might have thoughtpretty good.After an hour, the musician packed up his instrument and walkedoff. Nobody noticed. Nobody applauded. Nobody looked after him.Of course it had all been an experiment. The violinist had not beenwearing his customary concert attire. He was Joshua Bell, one of theera’s greatest violinists, playing part of a program that had sold out aconcert in Boston a few evenings before where the seats averaged ahundred bucks a pop. His instrument that day in the DC Metrostation was one valued at $3.5 million.The above is a true accounting of a test organized by the WashingtonPost to determine how we perceive beauty, do we stop to appreciateit, and do we recognize talent wherever or whenever we experience itin an unexpected context? In conclusion, the Post asked, “If we donot have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians inthe world, playing some of the finest music every written, with oneof the most beautiful instruments ever made…How many otherthings are we missing?”I happened on this little item the same day as the Teachout article.Statistics and narrative don’t always go together, but in this case Isee a complement, and it is this. Can an audience that does notsave itself be expected to save anything at all?JJOctober 2009__________________________________ 9
Page 4: 4__________________________________
Page 7: Restaurantand bar24 Main St. (Rt. 1
Page 11 and 12: October 2009_______________________
Page 13 and 14: October 2009_______________________
Page 15 and 16: Corea, Clarke & White TrioChick Cor
Page 17 and 18: Help NJJS increase the size of scho
Page 19 and 20: October 2009_______________________
Page 21 and 22: “Through His Life”A Memorial Co
Page 23 and 24: October 2009_______________________
Page 25 and 26: Jazz at the Berrie Centerat Ramapo
Page 27 and 28: Shelly Productions presents LIVE JA
Page 29 and 30: October 2009_______________________
Page 31 and 32: JerseyArticlesJazzcome down theree
Page 33 and 34: The new spot for Live Jazzin Morris
Page 35 and 36: ARBORS RECORDSPIZZArelli Party with
Page 37 and 38: October 2009_______________________
Page 39 and 40: OCTOBER 23,2009: BICKFORD THEATRE A
Page 41 and 42: JerseyReviewsJazzHurricane Bill Fai
Page 44 and 45: JerseyReviewsJazzCompactViewsBy Joe
Page 46 and 47: JerseyReviewsJazzCOMPACT VIEWSconti
Page 48 and 49: JerseyReviewsJazze have three stage
Page 50 and 51: JerseyReviewsJazzSatchmo Summerfest
Page 52 and 53: JerseyReviewsJazzCaught inthe ActBy
Page 54 and 55: New JerseyJazzSocietyWhat’s New?
Page 56 and 57: ’RoundJerseyMorris JazzThe Bickfo
Page 58 and 59:
Somewhere There’s MusicJerseyEven
Page 60:
c/o New Jersey Jazz SocietyPO Box 4
show all

REMEMBERING - New Jersey Jazz Society

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?