Comment

Comment by Diva JC on November 23, 2008 at 6:22pm

I'm asking all of you to call your library and request that they purchase my book and CDs for circulation. They can buy the book at this link:
www.fyicomminc.com/inpursuit.htm

Comment by Phat Man Dee on October 2, 2008 at 8:48pm

This is a fascinating discussion, I really dig what Sean J and Tony D and George H have had to say, I for one, will sing anywhere someone wont stop me. That has included storm sewers in Los Angeles to salt flats beneath flaming lotus sculptures 15 feet high and on 3 story high traveling Victorian houses. Quality of music is def key, and an honest approach to a new audience who may actually have no idea that what they are listening to is called jazz, be it cloaked in fire or clown makeup.

Example: I have a gig at Pegasus, tonight. I am singing to backing tracks. I am doing this as a concession to the venue, they are not set up for live musicians on their dance floor, but I know from experience that if I take the music (new compositions, new arrangements, played by local young Pgh jazz superstars, you can hear a new track right now on my profile, recorded at local studios) into unlikely venues, someone will book me on a party or a gig where I can and will call live musicians to play with me. (And I am still waiting for a musician to call me, but that is another discussion for another time...... ;) .. )

I have spoken to my sidemen and friends about this, though we don't like it, we do prefer to be with each other live and not memorex, but if the venue can't afford it, I mean if I were playing for like a $500 guarantee and still went with tracks that would be another issue entirely, but I am not doing that, I am playing a gig and people love the music and it is a taste for them to come and hear it done in person. I consider me singing to tracks in unlikely venues to be a kind of "gateway" experience which I hope will lead to a booking for the band.

So, anyhow, I think there are alot of issues and we do need to be creative in how we get the music to the people and where and when that might be. And we need to school ourselves and make sure our stuff is real and valid and not just rehashed standards that sound like we microwaved them. ( I am as guilty as anyone.....)

I look forward to continuing this journey with everybody here and in the world at large.

Comment by James R. Meny on October 2, 2008 at 10:04am

I agree with Tony DePaolis on this one. I'm new to the area and as a live music producer I couldn't have said it better. You're either moving forward or backward, there is no such thing as standing still. As a 20 year resident of Austin, TX I can verify that there is more "live music" in Pittsburgh than in the self-proclaimed "live music capital of the world." The problem is that there is no unifying philosophy to guide this city's musicians in a direction that will advance and court new listeners to make Pittsburgh a world-recognized leader in LIVE Music. Someone has to lead!

Comment by Anne Annie Friedland on September 23, 2008 at 10:43pm

WHY IS THIS STILl HAPPENIN????

Comment by CWR (Fan of Culture) on September 23, 2008 at 7:19am

What a great start, I wish I could attend. I will be involved I'm here in spirit however.

"To Change with Change you must first know what your getting into. To be ignorant of Change leaves you behind. “

“Knowledge is Power and Power comes from Education."

Peace
CWR

Comment by Debi Sciranka on September 23, 2008 at 4:57am

New Hazlett Theater Exploring Jazz Programming

Please RSVP dsciranka@aol.com

WHAT: NEW HAZLETT THEATER’S LAST DAYS CAFÉ

WHEN: SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2008
5:30pm to 8:30 pm
The monthly series is held during the last week
of every month on varying days

WHERE: New Hazlett Theater – 6 Allegheny Sq. E. – Pittsburgh, PA 15212

On the heals of the recent successful City of Asylum Jazz/Poetry Concert, the New Hazlett Theater is presenting an evening of networking and discussions on Pittsburgh’s jazz scene.

On Sunday, September 28, 2008 their FREE monthly happy hour, Last Days Café, will offer Pittsburgh’s creatives a chance to join in discussions on a new networking tool on the internet aimed at connecting jazz musicians and fans, opportunities and collaborations, and availability of music venues. The evening will round out with a live jazz performance.

Last Days Café is a casual “salon” open to everyone, where spontaneous creative conversations are accompanied by complementary appetizers and drinks. Artists, musicians, writers, dancers, poets, performers, and arts administrators are invited to stop in and talk about projects, plans, ideas, and interests. Often the key to unique opportunities is discovering who is doing what and interacting regularly with a circle of colleagues who are working creatively. The Last Days Café also provides a forum through which Pittsburgh’s creative community can become more familiar with the resources available to them as they create new work, consider forming a new organization, or think about how, when and where to show their work.

The special guest this month to help lead the discussion will be Nelson Harrison, the founder of the online Pittsburgh Jazz Network (http://jazzburgher.ning.com/). The site has become a fertile location for musicians to network and make connections with other musicians and fans.

Harrison has been a player in the Pittsburgh jazz scene since the late 50’s, when he began doing gigs at the renowned jazz club, Crawford Grill No. 2 in the Hill District. Since then, this multi-tasking composer, arranger and soloist has played with Kenny Clarke, Billy Eckstine and Earl “Fatha” Hines, Jay McShann, Slide Hampton, and with the Count Basie Orchestra (1978-81). He has recorded with Walt Harper, Nathan Davis and Count Basie, and was co-leader of jazz groups featuring singer Andy Bey and drummer Joe Harris. He is currently active in Pittsburgh with Gary Racan and the Studio-E Band, The Blues Orphans, Roger Humphries Big Band, Bill Dell and Wee Jams, and his own jazz bands The World According to Bop, Jazz ‘N Jive, Dr. Jazz and the Salty Dawgs, Blue to the Bone, and Nelson Harrison and Associates.

The New Hazlett Theater is a performing arts venue located on Pittsburgh’s Northside.
As a charitable 501c nonprofit, the organization supports and nurtures the creative performing arts, and serves as a community resource for arts access and arts education.

Comment by Kira Gray on September 10, 2008 at 4:50pm

Looking for love in all the wrong places...
Creating a fan base:
1. About a half hour from where I currently live(although I will be moving to Pittsburgh permanently in 2009) is a town called Prunedale. Each Friday night at 5 p.m. a band sets up at the local liquor store and plays for an hour or two. The press gave them excellent coverage. Everyone in the area knows them. I will let you know how well they are doing with gigs. How about a jazz trio playing wherever people are? A musical SWAT team--the first day of school at the high school, the opening of Whole Foods or every time they find a brand new vegetable. At the Motor Vehicle Agency(which I have heard is one of the first rings of Hell).
With detailed flyers that say a little about the tunes as well as contact info. How much music was played at the summer farmers' markets?
2. Press coverage. If every time Paris Hilton changed her navel ring was newsworthy, then everything that happens in jazz music needs to find its way into the media.
3. The Internet. Ask the experts.
4. How about a contest online for the most creative way to promote jazz music?

Comment by CWR (Fan of Culture) on September 8, 2008 at 5:08am

You got-a bump up the game change with the change, you know?

From my eyes, I love live music, however my wife and friends love Dj's ,they can dance all night to all the top tunes. That gets me to the next thing, weres your chart toppers? I mean its all good by me, I love it all, but your steppping into 2009 with thoughts of 1975. How about your fee's ,needs flex room?
Someone said join together...so...Come on you guys are really thinking, you can do it......

Comment by Tony DePaolis on September 7, 2008 at 8:00pm

I've thought for years that all musicians of my generation, especially those of us who are composers, need to get into the recording and distribution of our music--- the overwhelming majority of my social peers receive all their musical interaction from technological means. However, I don't think that live music is a lost cause (in fact, I am hoping that people will eventually be so hungry for that connection again that things will change)-- we need to adapt to this era, one where live music is an endangered species.
There are many things that we as musicians need to keep in mind. We need to remember that the clubs exhibiting us are businesses, and we can't expect to be treated like kings-- at the same time, we all need to stand up for a certain degree of treatment (a degree that might never have existed until now anyway). Also, we need to investigate other varieties of venues. The concept of nightlife that supported live music 40 years ago is gone. There are many reasons for this, but listing them doesn't do much good. What's important is to go into the field and see what is happening, to see where there are new avenues to reach people.
Because this is our duty: to reach people-- in an honest way. While some might look at "playing for the people" as selling out or neglecting the music's integrity (the "I-don't-care-if-anyone's-listening bit), I don't think it has to be that way. No matter what the material, I think if it is played with true honesty with the utmost investment of the performer, any audience should be able to follow.... at the very least, you'll reach someone.
We also need to be careful not to alienate those people innocently checking the music out for the first time. I've become aware of this by dating what I term as "civilians": young ladies with virtually no exposure to this music we care so much about (maybe they have an Ella or Billie cd, but that's about it). They've told me in no uncertain terms that when they've come to see me play, they been off-put by the scene of us constantly name-dropping albums and artists, pontificating on the relative merits of various styles, and basically being judgemental. In the simplest terms, it makes us look like elitist snobs. If we want to build new audiences, we have to combat that image.
At the end of the day, though, we are musicians, and our first obligation is to stand up for our art, whatever form it may take. We have to stand for the highest level of quality possible in our work. We must keep our music fresh, and avoid falling into repetition. And remember that this has never been easy-- it has always been a struggle one way or another.... and this is healthy. The creative process is a violent one.
There's always more to say about this, but I've done too much already. What do you think?

Comment by Kevin Hurst, Sr. on September 7, 2008 at 5:08am

In the 80s I played in a jazz group named Fusion for 20 yrs, there were a lot of venues in the black community and region. Also I freelanced with 3 or 4 other keyboard or drummers whom led other groups. At some venues the management wanted jazz but customers responded to blues or funk. At others the customers loved the music and management didn't. I recall when I gigged regularly me and our keyboard player sat in everywhere on other gigs. they had more jams, all mattinees before gigs. In the 90s when our band got good steady gigs some the other guys trying to increase their stature stop using freelancers, given a renegade status. The drug culture ran all the black venues out of business in Harrisburg and that is when a handful of musicians controlled the good gigs. Considering we are near HersheyPark etc. our band was relegated to playing the same black circuit -York,Lancaster, Reading, Johnstown, Altoona elks,legions etc. that I played as a high school funk musician. Low overhead, little travel, low pay but one-nighters get old when approaching 50 yrs old working full time or having a full time business as our leader did. When one looks at equipment and instrument maintenance people think you should play for free and it is not work. Music is work!

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