Albuquerque Jazz Festival

The Albuquerque Jazz Festival, a two-day event for High School

musicians from all over New Mexico culminates in a concert presented by New Mexico

Jazz Workshop in cooperation with Eldorado High School - The Albuquerque Jazz

Orchestra, under the direction of Glenn Kostur, features jazz saxophonist Dick Oatts.

Albuquerque Jazz Festival: The AJO
w/ special guest:
Saxophonist, DICK OATTS
FEBRUARY 16th @ 7pm
@ Eldorado High School Performing Arts Center 
11300 Montgomery Boulevard Northeast, Albuquerque, NM 87111
$15 General $10 NMJW Members/Students/Seniors

Buy your tickets ONLINE: 

http://albuquerquejazzfestival.eventbrite.com/

A Carnival for All Seasons

Hello Jazz Friends!

We're getting ready for Club Rio our gala event. The Carnival of Brazil is known for it scantily clad revellers, however there are other ways to celebrate the spirit and energy of Carnival. As we explore the idea of carnival, we're considering the many ways cultures celebrate. Today, we'd like to consider the Carnevale di Venezia. The Carnival of Venice was first recorded in 13th Century.  Masks, cloaks, gloves are trademarks of the Venetian Carnival. Though the participants are fully-clothed, they are no less intriguing. You might consider wearing a Venetian-style mask and costume, when you come to Club Rio! Happy costume-hunting!

CARNEVALE di VENEZIA

Venice Carnival 2012 - Venetian Masks

                                                                                                                       
CLUB RIO -- 
CLICK HERE to buy your tickets for CLUB RIO!

Pinterest is a pinboard-style social photo sharing website that allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections such as events, interests, hobbies, and more. Users can browse other pinboards for inspiration, 're-pin' images to their own collections or 'like' photos. Pinterest's mission is to "connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting.'

We're using Pinterest to help YOU come up with great costume ideas for CLUB RIO!

Enjoy! 

Welcome to Club Rio!

New Mexico Jazz Workshop presents

CLUB RIO: An Evening in the Spirit of Carnival

Saturday, November 10th @ 7pm – 11pm

SandiaResort and Casino

Silent Auction, Mask-making, Dancing, Card Reading, Brazilian Cuisine,

Music by PANdemonium, the Odara Dance Ensemble,  Costume Contest,

Chocolate Tasting with Choco Canyon Artisan Chocolate and more!

  

Albuquerque—New Mexico Jazz Workshop is pleased to present an evening in the spirit and excitement of Rio de Janeiro during Carnival. Welcome to Club Rio: An Evening in the Spirit of Carnival, a gala benefitting the New Mexico Jazz Workshop’s youth education programs.  CLUB RIO: An Evening in the Spirit of Carnival, Saturday, November 10th @ 7pm – 11pm, Sandia Resort and Casino. Tickets are $75 per guest. 10-top tables and sponsorship tables may be purchased at a reduced rate. Visit our website www.nmjazz.org for more information. Tickets are also available online at www.eventbrite.com or by calling NMJW at 505-255-9798.

Not quite ready for Winter? Neither is New Mexico Jazz Workshop! You won’t want to miss a night charged with the same energy and spice of NMJW’s Salsa Under the Stars as the music, food and dance transports you to the balmy climes of Rio de Janeiro. Get ready for a journey to Rio at the most festive time of the year- -Carnival.

Adopted from the pagan festival of Saturnalia by the Roman Catholic faith, the word carnival comes from carmelevare meaning to literally, “remove” or “raise” meat as a form of abstaining, from selected earthly pleasures in observation of Lent. Every year since 1753, forty-six days before Easter, observers of Lent have prepared for lavish celebrations, and none greater than Carnival in Brazil.

“Last year we journeyed to Havana,” said Maud Beenhouwer, Executive Director of New Mexico Jazz Workshop. “You can expect even bigger thrills at Club Rio. We’ll have everything Carnival has to offer except the floats!”

Beenhouwer added that Club Rio will feature some of the most celebrated aspects of a trip to Carnival. “Frank Leto and his band, PANdemonium will play authentic Brazilian music all evening long.” Said Beenhouwer. To complement the traditional sambas, the Odara Dance Ensemble, in full sparkling regalia, will perform choreographed dance numbers, and encourage the audience to join in the fun. A silent auction, Craft-a-mask table, colorful beads a-la Mardis Gras, and a Chocolate tasting provided by Choco Canyon Artisan Chocolate are all part of the fun at Club Rio.

Fun is definitely the main purpose of the night, but its aim is two-fold. “We’re not only presenting authentic music and dance at Club Rio, we are also featuring the young musicians of our Youth Honor Band Program,” Beenhouwer said. “This event helps raise much-needed funds for all of our education programs.” Beenhouwer added that money raised from the Club Rio silent auction goes directly to the NMJW’s South Valley Band Project, and Empowerment Through Music, a program that helps incarcerated youth discover their potential through electronic music.

“We’re very proud of our community programming,” Beenhouwer said. “We’d like to see them continue for many years to come, and our annual gala event helps make this possible.”

For information about Club Rio, including the dinner menu, please visit nmjazz.org. CLUB RIO: An Evening in the Spirit of Carnival, Saturday, November 10th @ 7pm – 11pm, Sandia Resort and Casino. Tickets are $75 per guest. 10-top tables and sponsorship tables may be purchased at a reduced rate. Visit our website www.nmjazz.org for more information. Tickets are also available online at www.eventbrite.com or by calling NMJW at 505-255-9798.

Salsa, Jazz & Blues Under the Stars 2011

Hello JAZZ FRIENDS!

SUMMER'S ALMOST HERE! Are you ready for Salsa/Jazz & Blues Under the Stars?

We're kicking off our Summer Music Festival Under the Stars in just a few short weeks!! Friday, June 3^rd with island-style salsa from the Arizona-based Jaleo, along with the latest Cuban salsa group on the Albuquerque scene, En-Joy. Throughout the summer, Friday night salsa will include hot and steamy evenings with, Ivon Ulibarri y Café Mocha, Nosotros, Son Como Son, Calle 66, Cuban salsa from Team Havana, Quemozo and Charanga del Valle. Opening weekend continues with jazz on Saturday, June 4^th with the Big Band Extravaganza featuring theAlbuquerque Jazz Orchestra under the direction saxophonist, Glenn Kostur. The concert also features the NMJW Mid High and High School Honor Jazz Bands and the High School Honor Jazz Combo.

Following on the heels of opening weekend, young lions John Maestas and Asher Barreras bring their jazz ensemble, Humoso to the stage. Veteran sax man Doug Lawrence will also perform a set that evening, in an Under the Stars event that won’t soon be forgotten.

No one can forget the great evening of jazz that featured some of our favorite artists of the male persuasion. Men’s Voices returns with the New Mexico Gay Men’s Chorus Le Chat Lunatique, Clay Benard, Deian McBryde, and more, as well as Women’s Voices: Ladies Sing the Blues, curated by Joan Cere featuring Hillary Smith, Busy McCarroll, The Rhinestones, Lydia Clark and newcomer Ali Rae. A second evening of Women’s Voices happens later in the season, and offers a tribute to Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, and Carmen McCrae, curated by local Diva, Patty Stephens. The night also features Zenobia and Susan Abod. The Summer Music Festival continues through August 20^th with Mystic Vic, Ben Martinez Project, Red Hot & Red, Ryan McGarvey, Tribute Trio: Acoustic and Electric, Soul Kitchen, Memphis P’Tails, a special night with the former Tonight Show music director, Kevin Eubanks and Grammy-winning artist Larry Mitchell and so much more, Under the Stars.

Here's the full schedule of concerts!!!!

New Mexico Jazz Workshop’s 35th Anniversary Season

2011 Summer Music Festival Performance Schedule

June 3 – August 20

6/3 Jaleo/En-Joy $13/$11/$10

6/4 Big Band Extravaganza $13/$11/$10

6/10 Nosotros $13/$11/$10

6/11 Humoso/Doug Lawrence $13/$11/$10

6/17 Havana Son $13/$11/$10

6/18 Women’s Voices: Ladies Sing the Blues $15/$13/$12

6/24 Son Como Son $13/$11/$10

6/25 Tribute Trio: Acoustic and Electric $13/$11/$10

7/8 Charanga del Valle $13/$11/$10

7/9 Mystic Vic/Ryan McGarvey $13/$11/$10

7/15 Ivon Ulibarri y Cafe Mocha $13/$11/$10

7/16 Kevin Eubanks/Larry Mitchell $30/$25$20

7/22 Calle 66 $13/$11/$10

7/23 NO PERFORMANCE

7/29 Team Havana $15/$13/$12

7/30 Soul Kitchen/Memphis P’Tails $13/$11/$10

8/5 Quemozo $13/$11/$10

8/6 Women’s Voices: Tribute to Carmen McCrae,

Abbey Lincoln & Nina Simone $15/$13/$12

8/12 Son Como Son $13/$11/$10

8/13 Ben Martinez Project/Red Hot & Red $13/$11/$10

8/20 Men’s Voices $15/$13/$12

Experimental, electric, ALIVE, Jazz, Deconstructed Volume 2

Nu Jazz, Japanese Jazz, Punk Jazz. . . there are as many styles of jazz as there are rivers on earth; each rivulet, creek and brook leads back to the original aquifer that never seems to run dry. Jazz, Deconstructed Volume 2, celebrates the diverse world of experimental jazz from four very different perspectives and tributaries.

Volume 2 of the series explores everything from ancient sounds on analog instruments to electronic playback and streaming audio/visuals. Using atonality, dissonance, improvisation and traditional song structure, the artists in the series add a verse to the new vanguard of the movement, changing the way we experience jazz.

Here's the line-up:

April 6: Mark Weaver's UFO Ensemble

April 13: Sama Duo

April 20: John Rangel and the Improv Comp

April 27: The Things That Are Heard

Bring your cash money-- Tractor Brewery will be serving up the beer and wine and the Kosmos Cafe will be open for all of you coffee and tea drinkers. Hurray!

Deconstructed: Wednesdays, April 6-27, 7pm at The Kosmos, 1715 5^th Street, downtown Albuquerque. Tickets are $10 general, $8 students, seniors and NMJW members. Tickets are available online at www.eventbrite.com.

Give the Gift of Jazz!

It's the second week of December already.

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? We're not

quite ready to settle in for Winter just yet! One more concert for the year, Adult Education classes are shaping up, and we're gearing up for a a busy 2011!

12/12 Middle School and High School Youth Honor Bands RECITAL: Sunday, December 12th 1PM -3PM at the Cooperage, 7220 Lomas NE. Don't miss an afternoon of music with the future of jazz in New Mexico (and beyond!) Middle-High and High School Honor Band kids go on to great things. Get in on the ground floor of their assent to amazing heights!

Mid-High School Honor Jazz Band

Under the Direction of Sam Nesbitt

High School Honor Jazz Band

Under the Direction of Christian Pincock

*********************************

ONE-STOP SHOPPING @ NEW MEXICO JAZZ WORKSHOP

Give the Gift of JAZZ!

Consider an alternative to the hustle and bustle of holiday gift shopping by purchasing a gift card from New Mexico Jazz Workshop. Give the gift of Jazz -- buy NMJW Jazz Bucks.

A gift card of $50, $100, $150 or $200 is a wonderful way to offer the artist in your life the opportunity to take a class, attend a concert, present dollars towards a Jazz Camp session, or even join NMJW as a Member! Call us for more information: 505-255-9798.

We'll see you in the New Year! Can't wait.

NMJW

The New Mexico Jazz Workshop Summer Concert Series BEGINS!

Hello Jazz Friends!

It's that time again, folks! Time to stretch our legs, get outside, and get sweaty! No, we're not talking about mowing the lawn. It's time for the NMJW Summer Concert Series UNDER THE STARS! Starting THIS FRIDAY, June 4th we're kicking off a summer of great concerts, all summer long and the Albuquerque Museum Amphitheater!

On FRIDAY, JUNE 4th-- Felipe Ruibal y Quemozo breaks the seal on the salsa, it's ripe, delicious and ready to go! On SATURDAY, JUNE 5th, we welcome the Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra, under the direction of Bobby Shew and none other than our NMJW Youth Honor Bands, led by Christian Pincock (High School) and Sam Nesbitt (Middle School).

Where ya goin'? You know there's MORE in store. Week two of the Salsa Under the Stars we welcome Charanga del Valle, June 11th. You'll soon be over your Los Van Van heart break, just get on that dance floor. On June 12th come out for the Saxophone Summit featuring Glenn Kostur, Lee Taylor and Kanoa Kaluhiwa, and Aaron Lovato. Just buy a Summer Pass, please! You're not going to want to miss a single weekend. Because week three we have the lovely Ivon Ulibarri y Cafe Mocha! And, the first night of Women's Voices!

On Saturday, June 19^th NMJW presents the first night of Women’s Voices with Ladies Sing the Blues, hosted by KUNM radio personality, Mary Oishi. Join some of Albuquerque’s finest blues singers and musicians for a night of blistering blues born from the African-American A.M.E. Churches, to the field hollers and streets of Memphis, Chicago, New Orleans; to the dusty, back roads, train tracks, cross roads, and juke joints of the American landscape—making “a way out of no way.“ Are you ready for some hollerin’, honkin’, shoutin’, and getting’ down?” Joan Cere says (formally Joan Griffin). Cere, lead singer of Combo Special, is a performer and the curator of Ladies Sing the Blues. Cere pledges a diva-packed evening of blues featuring Hillary Smith, Wendy Beach, and Cathryn McGill. “So many soulful, talented people coming together to make the music that makes us who we are,” Cere says. Cere cites singers such as Big Momma Thornton, Bessie Smith, Janice Joplin and Ma Rainey as inspiration for Ladies Sing the Blues. Cere calls Ladies Sing the Blues, “a rootsy, rocking, feelin’ kind of music-- the kind that makes your skin tingle and brings a tear to your eye-- makes you wanna shake your stuff and join the party.”

Women's Voices 2010 continues with a tribute to the mothers of jazz: Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Sarah Vaughan. Women’s Voices: Tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Sarah Vaughan Saturday, July 10^th.

They sang to express the secrets of their hearts, for sheer joy, to pay the rent, to stay afloat, to keep going. Women's Voices 2010 pays tribute to the mothers of jazz: Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Sarah Vaughan. This trinity of vocalists left mighty big shoes to fill. On Saturday, July 10^th, Patty Stephens, Patti Littlefield, Chava, Kathy Gutierrez, and Ashley (aka SayWut!?) Moyer pay a soulful, moving homage to the music, the women, and the lives and times that made Sarah, Billie and Ella trine stars that never lose their luster, and never fade from our collective memory.

“This tribute isn’t to the jazz song, it is to the lives of three women who sang those jazz songs,” says Patty Stephens, performer and curator of the tribute. “This tribute is from the New Mexican women of song to our ancestors, our elders.” Stephens, a favorite on the local jazz scene, says this concert is a deep exploration of the work and the world of Dames Fitzgerald, Vaughan and Holiday, not an evening of greatest hits. “I’m not talking about a contemporary singer sticking a big flower behind her ear, and bending notes,” Stephens says. “I’m talking about the women who stay up late, drag home in the middle of the night and work on new tunes and go sing at church on Sunday.”

This year’s Women’s Voices features a new, exciting element to the performance. Ashley (aka SayWut?!) Moyer, a local hip-hop beat boxer of note will, take the stage. (Beatboxing is a rediscovered art of producing drum beats, rhythm, and musical sounds using one's mouth, lips, tongue and voice. The art form dates back to the ancient tradition of bhol, found in the music of India.) Stephens, who will be performing a few duets with Moyer, says that beat boxing expresses the “jazz element of scat—the percussive use of the voice, and the power of improvisation.” According to Stephens, there are all components that relate back to Fitzgerald, Holiday and Vaughan. “Ashley brings to the evening a true, raw element of vocal expression inherent in jazz, and the music of the divas we honor.”

Women’s Voices 2010 Saturday, June 19^th and Saturday, July 10^th are sure to be two evenings of Jazz & Blues Under the Stars audiences won’t soon forget.

MUCH MORE to come as the summer rolls on!

We'll see you, Under the Stars . . .

Week two of Jazz, Deconstructed at The Kosmos

Evolutionary Sounds featuring Luis Guerra and Amani Malaika kicked off our BRAND NEW, month-long series, Jazz, Deconstructed. Every Wednesday in April, we're presenting jazz, not as a set-in-stone art form, but as music that is in flux, constantly transforming, regenerating . . .

This Wednesday, April 14th, NMJW welcomes Resonance. Mark Weaver on tuba and digeridoo and Patti Littlefield on vocals present their own brand of deconstructed jazz. Expect tunes by Thelonius Monk, Kurt Weill, and several original tunes that reflect their eclectic collaboration and collective wit.

See you there!

NMJW

New Mexico Jazz Workshop

Jazz, Deconstructed w/

((((RESONANCE))))

Wednesday, April 14th @ 7pm

The Kosmos 1715 5th Street NW

Albuquerque

Tickets $10 General $8 Students/Seniors/NMJW Members

Tickets available online @ Brownpapertickets.

PS-- Wanna buy your tickets online? Just click here.

PS II- We know some of you are kicking yourselves for waiting until the final hours to get your taxes done. No problem! Just get them ready by Wednesday, drop them off at the main branch post office, and high-tail it to the Kosmos for your Resonance reward!

(photo of Evolutionary Sounds by Christina Gavino Gray)

Evening jazz class is the new HAPPY HOUR!

Looking for a fun way to ward off the winter blues? Drag that instrument out of the closet, or grab the sheet music to a song you've always craved the confidence to sing and take a class at New Mexico Jazz Workshop. This winter NMJW introduces Cabaret! with Deian McBryde, a recent Manhattan transplant, cabaret artist and director of Nob Hill Yoga. “We're very excited about Deian,” Amani Malaika, NMJW Education Coordinator says. “Deian was also the only singer listed as one of America's "MEN WE LOVE" by Girlfriends Magazine, along with Antonio Banderas, Malaika adds. As the instructor of a course that draws out one's natural charisma, Malaika says, “Deian's the right diva for the job!”

From divas to digital music-- NMJW offers two down-and-dirty workshops in audio recording with Luis Guerra, and Larry Mitchell, two award-winning producers who take the mystery out of digital technology, offering you great tools of the trade in real time. Veteran Jazz and Blues guitarist Dan Dowling teaches a course in blues guitar, Christian Pincock leads the Community Big Band and Lewis Winn offers the standard Modern Jazz Ensemble class, with a few new twists.

Also new to NMJW is Beginning Music Theory & Ear Training with Cora Harms. This course offers a solid foundation in music theory for instrumentalists and singers alike. You may want to put that listening to work in Rodolfo Gonzalez's Latin Jazz & Improvisation class, or try singing a new tune in the Vocal Jazz class with Patty Stephens. And, don't forget Real Book Jam, where you can practice all that you've learned in class, play some sentimental favorites, and learn a few new songs, in a relaxed atmosphere. NMJW is the place to be on a cold winter's week night (Saturdays, too!)

For more information visit the website: www.nmjazz.org.

NMJW in 2010!

Hello Jazz Workshop friends!

We've been moving straight ahead with a bullet! New Mexico Jazz Stories was a GREAT success. So much so that we had a hard time keeping with with blogging about it! Tommy Gearhart, Micheal Anthony and Bobby Shew had well-attended performances at the Cooperage! We look forward to bringing you the next volume of New Mexico Jazz Stories next fall!

This fall's Yule Stuttin' was great fun, as usual! On December 5th we met at the Albuquerque Art Museum and had quite the shindig. The proceeds for the event go to our education programs, like our latest program housed at the Juvenile Detention Center was devised by the NMJW education director, Amani Malaika. Channel 13 did a little story on it last week. Here's link to the spot:

http://www.krqe.com/dpp/news/education/jazz-workshop-helps-at-jail

***

Can you believe it's already mid-December?? We're already in the throws of planning events and classes for 2010! Just visit our website for the latest in classes for adult and teens, as well as the music events we have planned for the coming year. Youth Orchestra begins January 17th, Adult Education classes start in mid-February. Also in February we're proud to present the Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra under the Direction of Bobby Shew, featuring jazz trumpeter Scott Wendholt.

Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra

under the direction of Bobby Shew

Featuring trumpeter Scott Wendholt

February 20, 2010

El Dorado High School Performing Arts Center

8pm Tickets $15 General,

$10 Members/Students/Seniors

Here's a little something on Scott:

Trumpeter Scott Wendholt has recorded and/or worked with artists including Vincent Herring, Kenny Garrett, Cyrus Chestnut, Christian McBride, Don Braden and Bruce Barth. To his credit, Scott has been recorded on more than sixty CD's. He has received critical acclaim as a leader and 5 recordings as a leader. Much in demand on the big band scene as well, his list of credits include: The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra (formerly Thad Jones/Mel Lewis), Manhattan Jazz Orchestra, The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band (led by Jon Faddis), John Fedchock NY Big Band, Gotham Jazz Orachestra (Mike Holober), Toshiko Akiyoshi Big Band and the Bob Mintzer Big Band.

Mr. Wendholt continues to be in demand on the playing scene as well as in the educational arena. Scott is currently on the faculty at the Manhattan School of Music as well as the Jamey Aebersold summer jazz camps. He is also in demand as a player/clinician in many colleges and various other learning institutions around the world.

You can buy your tickets online!

Buy tickets for Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra with Special Guest Scott Wendholt

See you at the AJO/Wendholt gig, and have a happy, SAFE Holiday!

That's all for now, folks. More to come!

New Mexico Jazz Stories Week Two!

Hello New Mexico Jazz Workshop friends,

We're moving STRAIGHT AHEAD with our programming this Fall! Check out our Fall/Winter brochure, The Season of Sound for a full list of events coming up for NMJW. Last week, we launched New Mexico Jazz Stories at the Cooperage. Week one featured saxophonist Glenn Kostur-- he took us back to his childhood and the first song that he learned. Along with his band for the evening (Stu MacAskie on piano, Milo Jaramillo on bass and John Bartlit on drums) Glenn performed music he loves, and several original tunes from his discography. The night was just what we wanted out of a Jazz Stories evening: memories and melodies. Here's a little snippet from the show:

On Wednesday, October 28th, we welcome Larry Mitchell to the Cooperage and New Mexico Jazz Stories.

(Photo by Karen Kuehn)

Larry Mitchell is an international solo artist, sideman, songwriter and Grammy-Winning music producer. As a solo artist, Larry has released six guitar instrumental records which met with significant critical acclaim. The albums range from mellow acoustic to scorching rock arrangements. In 1999 Larry was awarded the much coveted The San Diego Music Awards Best Pop Jazz artist and in 1986 and 1987 won the New Your City Limelight Guitar solo contest.

As a sideman, Mitchell toured as guitarist for a wide range of musical artists including: Tracy Chapman, Billy Squier, Ric Ocasek as well as being a band member of "the Crunch" (T.M Stevens Bernie Worrell, Crystal Talefero and Tony Smith) Currently Larry has been performing live with two-time Grammy-Winner Taos Pueblo Native American artist Robert Mirabal as well as the much celebrated Muskogee Creek Native American artist Joy Harjo. Larry shares song-writing credits with Steve Vai and Thomas McRocklin on the "Bad for Good" Album and with Brian Hard Groove (Public Enemy) and Bootsy Collins on the song "It Is What It Is" on Bootsy's upcoming release. .As a producer, Larry has won many production and engineering awards in various categories such as Adult contemporary, Pop, R&B, and Rap. Most recently Larry Mitchell, won a 2008 Grammy for Co-producing the album "Totemic Flute Chants" Johnny Whitehorse in the Native American category.

Larry performs at New Mexico Jazz Stories with a handful of world-class musicians. On drums is Erik Hargrove. Erik played drums for JAMES BROWN, hello. Erik drums for Bootsy Collins as well. Maud Beenhouwer, Executive Director of NMJW is wicked on bass, and though she's not one to toot her own . . . bass, Maud is an incredible performer and collaborator. Larry welcomes a few special guests to the stage to showcase his collaborations including one of the leading musicians in Native American Contemporary music today, Shelley Morningsong and folk favorite Eileen Meyer.

New Mexico Jazz Stories

an evening with some of New Mexico's finest musicians

Wednesday, October 28th @ 7pm

The Cooperage, 7220 Lomas BLVD.

Tickets are $10 general, $8 NMJW Members, Students, Seniors

For more information, call us! 505-255-9798

NMJW presents new jazz series

Hello New Mexico Jazz Workshop friends!

Hard to believe the summer is coming to an end! Kids are back in school, the weather is changing. Just when you thought Monday Night Football would become the highlight of your week, we've come up with a NEW JAZZ SERIES to get you out of the house!

Life is an improvisation, a mixed tape, an unfinished work-- and no one knows that better than the five professional musicians NMJW has lined up for New Mexico Jazz Stories. They've played everywhere, from juke joints to concert halls, for sophisticated, international audiences, to salty bar flies in dives. Not only have Glenn Kostur, Larry Mitchell, Tommy Gearhart, Michael Anthony and Bobby Shew collected frequent flyer miles, they've collected stories throughout their colorful journeys, and they plan to share them with the New Mexico Jazz Stories audience for the first time.

Glenn Kostur is the first artist in the series on October 21st. Kostur is Director of Jazz Studies at the University of New Mexico. Glenn has performed with such jazz artists as Dizzy Gillespie, Billy Eckstine, the Woody Herman Orchestra, among others. On October 28th, Larry Mitchell, the jet-setting guitar virtuoso performs. A Grammy Award-winning producer, Larry has played with the likes of Tracey Chapman, Joy Harjo, Robert Mirabal. He's a world traveling musician, clinician, and a spokesman for Ibanez Guitars. Tommy Gearhart on vox, will perform on November 4th. Gearhart is a classic crooner with a modern sensibility. You'll enjoy the stories of this Ohio native who has established deep, New Mexican roots.

Guitarist Michael Anthony is a musician's musician. On November 11th, Michael shares his trials and tribulations as studio artist for some of the biggest names in the business. Anthony has played guitar professionally since 1960, and can be heard on the albums of Tony Bennett, Nelson Riddle, The Beach Boys, Diana Ross, and many, many more. World-class trumpeter Bobby Shew brings a type of magic to the stage on November 18th. Winner of the Grammy for Jazz Album of the Year in 1983 (Heavy Company), Bobby played with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Woody Herman's band, and spent several years as a lead musician in Las Vegas. Perhaps he will tell you his Wayne Newton story. You'll have to be there to find out.

NMJW presents

New Mexico Jazz Stories

October 21th- November 18th @ 7pm

The Cooperage

7220 Lomas NE

Tickets $10 general $8 nmjw members/seniors/students

Series pass available!

Felipe Ruibal y Quemozo TOMORROW NIGHT at Salsa Under the Stars

Hello friends!

We're gearing up for another weekend of great music, Under the Stars! We thought we'd whet your appetite for Salsa Under the Stars with a little number from Felipe Ruibal y Quemozo.

And don't forget- tomorrow marks a milestone for the band-- a NEW EP RELEASE! Support local music,

snag a CD before there're all gone!!!

Interview with Tommy Gearhart, PART I

Tommy Gearhart. TOMMY GEARHART. Even the rhythm of his name has an air of sophistication. It's easy to imagine the statuesque Mr. Gearhart in the background of every black and white photo of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr. swirling a martini, tie undone after a long night of giving the Bellagio all he's got.

If you've heard Tommy's velvety tunes, at Vernon's for instance, then you know this guy means business. Old school business. He's a man about town, a go-getter, a hep cat and that's a fact. What you may not know about Tommy is that he's the guy next door. He's a Mid-Western fellow from Toledo, Ohio-- he's married with kids. He works hard. He's dedicated to the things that matter to him. Tommy is so dedicated to the eradication of Mulitiple Sclerosis that Tommy is nearly single-handedly presenting HEALING, HARMONY, & HEART a benefit concert in September featuring his mentor and 7-time Grammy award winning jazz legend, Jon Hendricks, along with his good friend, concert pianist, Awadagin Pratt because someone had to do it.

When Tommy says he's going to do something, he does it, and he does it big, even if that means dragging a hulking Hammond organ to your house. When we sat down to talk to Tommy about his upcoming gig at Jazz Under the Stars, he made us promise to get it straight and tell it all-- it's gonna take two blog entries, but Tommy, we won't let you down. Here, Tommy talks about the band, the Hammond B3 and his life-time love of the instrument.

[TG]

Please emphasize the importance and my great appreciation and collaboration with the musicians on this project, along with giving a shout-out to my longtime bassist, Dan Spanogle and drummer David Edwards, who are outstanding local jazz musicians and friends.

[MJ]

Sure thing. Tell us about the band.

[TG]

The band is Tony Cesarano on guitar, Steve Figueora on Hammond Organ, Chase Ellison on drums. "It's a pretty diverse band-- age, experience, approach-- it makes it unique. Tony is my primary collaborator. He grew up in the Bronx jazz scene. He just has an infinite sense of harmony. And, Bobby Shew just signed on to play with us-- we just had a smokin' rehearsal the other night!

[MJ]

Why the Hammond Organ for this project?

[TG]

I was a jazz drummer, sitting in and listening to some great organ players. It's the instrument that most articulates the sound of the blues within the context of jazz and how complicated it gets--that's the Hammond B3 organ.

[MJ]

So let me ask you this-- what has to go into the organ? What gets drawn from the fingers and the mind into that sound? Because when you hear that organ it conjures up an idea, you know, and you know exactly where to go to have that experience, that memory. How do you put that into the instrument?

[TG]

Well, Steve Figeruoa is the most soulful guy living here, and he's an amazingly competent jazz musician.

You listen to him. He was saying once that he was playing at the Telluride Jazz Festival when Clark Terry the famous jazz trumpeter sat in with the band. And, in the middle of his solo he looks back at Steve and says, "Maaaan, you sound like you been eatin' chitlin's!" And so that'll let you know about Steve. Steve said, "Well, I've been eating some menudo." He [Steve ] said that was one of the greatest compliments he's ever had as a player, because he does sound like he understands this music at the highest level.

[MJ]

Tell us more.

[TG]

When I started this project, I told Steve, "Be at my house tomorrow with your pick-up truck." He said oh what are you talkin about, Tommy. I said, I WANT YOU TO MEET ME AT MY HOUSE WITH YOUR PICK-UP TRUCK TOMORROW, you can ask Steve about this. He shows up with the pick-up truck, he doesn't know what the hell's going on. . . oh no, here goes Tommy, again. You know what we did? We loaded my A100 which is mostly the same as the Hammond B3, into his truck, drove it to his house and put it at the end of his bed. He's been playing it for about four, five, six hours a day. Not that he's not a great pianist. But being a pianist just doesn't translate to the organ. It's a whole 'nother level.

[MJ]

It's different than playing the piano.

[TG] I mean, we're listening to John Patten right now [in his studo]. [Hammond B3] is one of the first synthesized instruments made to recreate the sound of an enormous, monstrous pip organ. I've listened to Steve talk about his hardships in learning to play this instrument. I mean, with a piano you can barely hit it, you can control that dynamic, press it down and let up-- [the sound] decays. With the organ, when your finger comes up it's over, it's DONE. There's no sustain on it. Then there's all these settings, designed to recreate the sound of the pipe organ-- you'll recognize a lot of these settings within jazz, from the church. You know, like this is where the preacher gets up, he's asking for money-- there's a setting for that. All those guys like Jimmy Smith talk about the settings.

Also, and this is what's beautiful, I had a conversation with Steve once-- he said if I could do it all over man, I would play the bass, and I said, "Why would you play the bass?" He said, I would just walk like Ray Brown, just BE THERE-- it's the most thankless instrument. Steve's father, was a great bassist. His name was Conrad Figueroa, you know, very famous guy in the genres that he played. Steve said, I would just be there for the band, and just do it. People don't do that anymore. So that was feeding into me-- I thought, yeah, I've got the instrument for you. You want to be a bassist? You have to be a bassist and learn to become a bassist with your left hand, when you were just used to playing chords. Steve has had to learn to be that bassist he always wanted to be, on top of all the other stuff he has to deal with, playing the Hammond. You're playing with your hands, your foot . . . it's like a marriage between being a drummer, a pianist and a trumpeter-- that's what the organ was intended to create. An orchestra. It's an incredibly soulful instrument when it's played right.

Look for PART II of this interview on Friday. And don't miss the concert on Saturday evening.

[Marya Errin Jones]