AFRO-AMERICAN MUSIC INSTITUTE CELEBRATES 36 YEARS
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/building-today-for-tomorrow/x/267428
Pain Relief Beyond Belief
http://www.komehsaessentials.com/
From Blakey to Brown, Como to Costa, Eckstine to Eldridge, Galbraith to Garner, Harris to Hines, Horne to Hyman, Jamal to Jefferson, Kelly to Klook; Mancini to Marmarosa, May to Mitchell, Negri to Nestico, Parlan to Ponder, Reed to Ruther, Strayhorn to Sullivan, Turk to Turrentine, Wade to Williams… the forthcoming publication Treasury of Pittsburgh Jazz Connections by Dr. Nelson Harrison and Dr. Ralph Proctor, Jr. will document the legacy of one of the world’s greatest jazz capitals.
Do you want to know who Dizzy Gillespie idolized? Did you ever wonder who inspired Kenny Clarke and Art Blakey? Who was the pianist that mentored Monk, Bud Powell, Tad Dameron, Elmo Hope, Sarah Vaughan and Mel Torme? Who was Art Tatum’s idol and Nat Cole’s mentor? What musical quartet pioneered the concept adopted later by the Modern Jazz Quartet? Were you ever curious to know who taught saxophone to Stanley Turrentine or who taught piano to Ahmad Jamal? What community music school trained Robert McFerrin, Sr. for his history-making debut with the Metropolitan Opera? What virtually unknown pianist was a significant influence on young John Coltrane, Shirley Scott, McCoy Tyner, Bobby Timmons and Ray Bryant when he moved to Philadelphia from Pittsburgh in the 1940s? Would you be surprised to know that Erroll Garner attended classes at the Julliard School of Music in New York and was at the top of his class in writing and arranging proficiency?
Some answers can be gleaned from the postings on the Pittsburgh Jazz Network.
For almost 100 years the Pittsburgh region has been a metacenter of jazz originality that is second to no other in the history of jazz. One of the best kept secrets in jazz folklore, the Pittsburgh Jazz Legacy has heretofore remained mythical. We have dubbed it “the greatest story never told” since it has not been represented in writing before now in such a way as to be accessible to anyone seeking to know more about it. When it was happening, little did we know how priceless the memories would become when the times were gone.
Today jazz is still king in Pittsburgh, with events, performances and activities happening all the time. The Pittsburgh Jazz Network is dedicated to celebrating and showcasing the places, artists and fans that carry on the legacy of Pittsburgh's jazz heritage.
WELCOME!
MARY LOU WILLIAMS
BEE-JAY
Dedicated to Bob Johnson, world reknowned choreographer and founder of the
Black Theatre Dance Ensemble of Pittsburgh, PA
Music & Lyrics by Nelson E. Harrison, Timeslice Music - ASCAP
Composed in Pittsburgh, PA September 4, 1983
Authored in Pittsburgh, PA at 8:00 PM, October 9, 1986
[412-441-4545] / hipbopper@yahoo.com
Did you see Bee Jay… dancin' free his way…
Barely touch the ground… turnin' 'round and 'round…?
Ever reaching and purging and teaching and urging his people…
If they would dance, they would be free…
Dancin' would show you the way…
Dancin' is how he would pray…
Watching Bee Jay dance… put you in a trance…
You could find romance… if you took the chance…
Once you answered the call you could dance at his ball with precision…
Then you share in his vision…
'Cause you would see what he saw…
Dancin' was his only law…
When the wind is high… Can you see him fly…?
Rhythm in the breeze… rustling through the trees…
Now he's dancing on Mars; he's upstage with the stars in the heavens…
Choreographing the moonbeams…
Paving the way in advance…
Breath of the spirit of dance…
Can you see Bee Jay… prancin' free all day…?
Catch his furtive glance… see his noble stance…
If you listen more often to things than to beings, you'll hear him…
Voice of the ancestor's new chants…
Waking the soul from its trance…
Freeing the spirit with dance… Bee Jay.
Copyright 1983-2010 by Nelson E. Harrison, ASCAP
All rights Reserved without Prejudice
Article 1 Constitution of the United States and 1-207 U.C.C.
Last updated by Dr. Nelson Harrison Oct 24, 2010.
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