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New Editor for JazzBoston Newsletter
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JazzBoston has the pleasure of introducing Claire Dickson, our new Newsletter Editor! Claire is a Boston born and raised vocalist and writer. Since January, she has been a contributor to WBUR's arts blog, The Artery, and has covered acts like Branford Marsalis, the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra, and Bobby McFerrin. As a musician who performs regularly in the Boston area, Claire also knows her way around the local jazz scene. She is the recipient of numerous Jazz Voice awards from Downbeat and the National YoungArts Foundation. Visit Claire's website. |
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JazzBoston @ Newport - Leave the driving to us!
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Have you ever wanted to go to the Newport Jazz Festival and wished there were an inexpensive way for someone else to plan all the ticketing, food, and transportation for you? And to get your jazz-loving friends to come with you for a day of music you know you'll never forget?
Well, you're in luck. JazzBoston has teamed up with NPR jazz champion WBGO to offer a specially priced day-trip package to the 2013 Newport Jazz Festival on Saturday, August 3, and Sunday, August 4. The package includes round-trip transportation on a private bus with reclining bucket seats and wi-fi, a festival ticket for the day, and a food and beverage voucher, all for the reasonable price of $195 per person. JazzBoston members and friends are eligible for a special discount that brings the price down to $175.
The trip starts at Wally's Jazz Cafe, where the doors will open at 7:30 am so you can catch a continental breakfast (well, not exactly - coffee and donuts) compliments of JazzBoston before the bus leaves at 8:00. During the ride, you can watch a Newport Jazz Festival themed movie from WBGO's archives. You'll be dropped off at the Newport Festival Front Gate with hours of extraordinary performances ahead of you and nothing to worry about except choosing which ones to hear.
The Newport Jazz Festival, now in its 59th year, is famous for consistently presenting the biggest names in jazz. This year is no different. Wayne Shorter's 80th Birthday Celebration, Esperanza Spalding with the Radio Music Society, and the Roy Haynes Fountain of Youth Band are just a few of the scheduled acts.
JazzBoston wants to help you witness this convening of musical greatness. Visit the JazzBoston website for more information, or go directly to the WBGO site to reserve your place online now! To get the special $175 package price, be sure to use the discount code JAZZBOSTON.
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JazzBoston jazzes up the Boston Public Library's popular Concerts in the Courtyard series
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| Clockwise from left: Charlie Kohlhase, Arni Cheatham, Ken Field. |
This summer, JazzBoston will again partner with the Boston Public Library to bring jazz to one of the city's most beautiful public spaces, the courtyard of the Central Library in Copley Square.
At 12:30 pm on June 7th, saxophonist Charlie Kohlhase and members of the Explorers Club will open both the Concerts in the Courtyard free summer lunchtime series and the Library's month-long Pride celebration with a program that intertwines the storyline of gay composers with their music. As a gay man who has been active on the Boston jazz scene for over 30 years, Kohlhase has seen attitudes toward homosexuality in the musicians' community evolve. His selections will provide a chronological view extending from Cole Porter and Edward C. Redding, through Billy Strayhorn and Leonard Bernstein, to contemporary composers like Fred Hersch and himself.
Anyone who's seen Ken Field's Revolutionary Snake Ensemble perform knows what it's like to dance in their seat. The award-winning second-line brass band will bring their exciting energy and Mardi Gras-style costumes and masks to the Library at 6:00 pm on July 25, the first day of the Boston Globe/WGBH Summer Arts Weekend.
On August 30 at 12:30 pm, saxophonist and 2013 Boston Jazz Hero Arni Cheatham and his quintet Synergy will close the concert series with what Cheatham calls "Jazz - the real thing, the full spectrum from mild to wild."
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JazzBird from JazzBoston - the radio app designed to boost local stations and build jazz audiences
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JazzBird, the only music radio app just for jazz, is getting visibility. In April, Downbeat Magazine posted a long article on its website about the new app and its importance to the Boston jazz scene, declaring that the app's arrival "signals a major step forward in the Boston jazz community's Campaign for Local Jazz Radio, launched last July in response to NPR affiliate WGBH-FM's drastic slash of its weekly jazz programming...."
JazzBird is only a couple months old, but its distinctive features are already being appreciated by local and international jazz aficionados:
- JazzBird makes quality jazz radio programming covering the entire range of jazz styles available anytime to anyone with an Apple mobile device anywhere in the world.
- Each of the hundreds of shows on the JazzBird schedule is hand-picked by a panel of Boston curators made up of musicians and others who are very knowledgeable about the music. The panel also monitors the shows for consistent technical quality and reliable schedules.
- The app gives prominence to shows created by stations in the Greater Boston area, placing them at the top of the list for each time slot and marking them with a "B" icon that signifies a "Boston, USA, show."
"JazzBird helps make up for the stations cutting back jazz programming," says Eric Jackson, widely known as the dean of New England jazz radio, "because you can listen to the music 24 hours a day, and even though it's coming over the Internet, the human element is still there." He adds, "To be able to access the music any time of day from anywhere in the world - it's a great thing!"
Download JazzBird now to try out the free version, JazzBird LITE. If you're a multitasker, you may want to buy the full app ($2.99), which lets you listen while using other features on your mobile device. The full version also has a sleep timer for listening in bed and a switch to turn off ads. After you've tried JazzBird out, please write to jazzbird@jazzboston.org and tell us what you think.
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Members Connection: Win free tickets to Scullers and the Regattabar
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Terri Lyne Carrington
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If you're a JazzBoston member, write to newsletter@jazzboston.org now to enter a drawing to win free tickets to any of the events listed below, and please note which shows and dates you're interested in. You must be a JazzBoston member to be eligible to win.
- Become a JazzBoston member now. Annual memberships begin as low as $20.
Scullers is offering tickets to the following shows:
June 6, 10 pm - Poncho Sanchez, 2 pair of tickets
June 12, 8 pm - Marissa Licata, 2 pair of tickets
June 13, 10 pm - Terri Lyne Carrington, 2 pair of tickets
June 14, 10 pm - Cyrus Chestnut, 2 pair of tickets
June 19, 8 pm - Eric Alexander & Harold Mabern Qt., 1 pair of tickets
June 20, 10 pm - Ravi Coltrane, 2 pair of tickets
June 21, 10 pm - James Carter Organ Trio, 2 pair of tickets.
The Regattabar is offering one pair of tickets to each of the following shows:
June 14, 7:30 pm - Kenny Werner Quartet
June 15, 7:30 pm - Carmen Souza
June 18, 7:30 pm - Matt Savage
June 19, 7:30 pm - Albare CD Release
June 21, 7:30 pm - Harold Lopez-Nussa Duo
June 22, 10 pm - Django Reinhardt Festival
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Jazz Week '13 a success - Thank you!
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A packed Jazz Week House Concert by Charlie Kohlhase's Explorers Club (left), and the Boston Latin School Big Band performing during the High School Jazz Band Showcase at the BPL (right).
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Jazz Week '13 was a week to remember! Running from April 26 to May 5 and proclaimed again by the mayors of Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville, the 10-day annual celebration of the music and our unique local jazz scene was played out in more than 200 events at 110 venues all over the Greater Boston area.
- Noontime Kickoff Concerts in public spaces performed by NEC student ensembles, Jazz Week @ the Boston Public Library, and Jazz Week @ South Station brought free concerts to where the people were. (And to China - a group of Chinese tourists waiting for their train couldn't stop taking pictures.)
- A series of House Concerts, a new program this year and the inspiration for the Jazz Week '13 theme, Jazz is in the house, brought musicians and fans into private homes, an intimate and friendly way to hear the music.
- Another addition, the High School Jazz Band Showcase, gave young musicians a chance to star on the big stage, and wonderfully demonstrated JazzBoston's slogan, The future of jazz is here and now.
Both of the new programs were very successful and will be returning next year.
To all the musicians, listeners, hosts, and venues who participated this year: Thank you and see you at Jazz Week '14!
A special thank you to our Jazz Week sponsors: Berklee College of Music, New England Conservatory, Scullers Jazz Club, Berklee Global Jazz Institute, the Guitar Center, the Bay State Banner, and WICN 90.5FM.
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Freebie Sampler: Free events in and around the city
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The summer months bring us many free outdoor concerts! Mark these in your calendar.
Caili O'Doherty at Concerts in the Park and Kendall Square Courtyard Series - Berklee student and award-winning pianist Caili O'Doherty will be performing a week of afternoon solo piano in the Boston Common, Brewer Plaza, as part of the Concerts in the Park Series from June 3 - 7, 12 - 2 pm. On June 6 from 5 - 7 pm, Caili will be at the Kendall Square Cambridge Center Plaza with her trio.
Joe's Jazz and Blues Festival - The brainchild of Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone, who played trumpet in the Somerville High School Jazz Band, Joe's Jazz and Blues Festival is back this year. Here are some of the free performances:
June 20, 9:30 pm at PJ Ryan's - John Aruda Trio
June 22, 12 - 5 pm at Powderhouse Park - Somerville High School Jazz Ensemble, Darrell Nulisch, Brett Walberg Group, Geoff Bartley & Howie Turnower, Willie Laws, and The Fringe.
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Write us, join us, please pass this on...
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Don't hesitate to email us at newsletter@jazzboston.org with your comments about our newsletter. If you'd like to know more about JazzBoston and the benefits of becoming a member, go to www.jazzboston.org. And please help us spread the word by passing this newsletter along to all the jazz lovers you know!
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