Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner of the American Jazz Museum, vocalist Deborah Brown and the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra are featured in a Polish publication.

*Kansas City drummer Jerry Pollock was interviewed by Joe Dimino.

*Joe Klopus surveys the week in jazz for The Kansas City Star.

*A television reporter informs viewers of today’s legislative meeting regarding the direction of the beleaguered American Jazz Museum.

*Tweet o’ the Week: American Jazz Museum- OTD in 1953, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, Charles Mingus, and Max Roach made history by recording the live jazz album, The Quintet-Jazz at Massey Hall, in Toronto. Stop by AJM to pay tribute to Charlie Parker’s Grafton saxophone played on this historic day!

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Gale Tallis announced the lineup of the 2018-19 Folly Jazz Series before the SFJazz Collective concert on Friday.  It consists of appearances by Ramsey Lewis, Kandace Springs, Kurt Elling, Joshua Redman, the Yellowjackets and Arturo Sandoval. 

*Laura Spencer documents a Kansas City Council committee meeting in which it was determined that Executive Director Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner and all but three board members would resign.  She also solicited the opinions of Kansas City jazz musicians.

*A public television panel considers the departure of Kositany-Buckner at the 5:00-minute mark of a recent program.

*Toriano Porter opines that “Kansas City is so closely associated with jazz that it would be shameful if apathy imperiled the future of (the American Jazz Museum)” for The Kansas City Star.

*Harold O’Neal created an EPK for his forthcoming Piano Cinema album.

*Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis will perform a world premiere at the Lied Center on October 11.  The commissioned piece honors 15 people associated with the University of Kansas' basketball program.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Tony- It Was International Jazz Day In Kansas City And Nobody Cared . . . (link)

*Comment o’ the Week: BGO- Sure is great news to see Logan on the fabulous Tiny Desk Series.

*The Kansas City Jazz Calendar has been updated with a thorough listing of May’s gigs.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Laura Spencer’s examination of the American Jazz Museum’s recent woes for KCUR has instigated hand-wringing throughout the global jazz community.  The Kansas City Star’s Lynn Horsley reported on details of the budgetary shortfall.  Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner of the American Jazz Museum addressed the glitches related to the Kansas City Jazz & Heritage Festival in an informal video interview with The Kansas City Star.  A television report on the kerfuffle offers a different perspective.

*Bobby Watson discussed his latest album with Steve Kraske.

*Blair Bryant was featured on KCUR’s Band of the Week segment.

*Jazz Artistry Now is Chris Burnett’s latest internet endeavor.  He was recently interviewed by Joe Dimino.

*Tweet o’ the Week: The Independent- Formerly known as Hope & All That Jazz, join @hopehouse at the inaugural Believe gala on August 5th.

*Comment o’ the Week: Anonymous- "... somewhat stodgy format?" Ah man - I was enjoying your otherwise positive review until you slipped that one in. Why?

*From a press release: The long-planned Bix Beiderbecke Museum and Archive opens to the public on Monday, July 24, 2017, in its new home at the River Music Experience in Bix’s hometown of Davenport, Iowa… Visitors can see original instruments played by Bix, including the only piano Bix owned.  The museum takes the visitor chronologically through the life of Bix Beiderbecke.  His music is featured throughout the museum, along with videos, interactive displays, and photos, many shown for the first time.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Joe Klopus highlights forthcoming concerts by bands led by Karrin Allyson and Bobby Watson in his latest column.

*Chepttoo Kositany-Buckner and Bobby Watson pitch the forthcoming concert at the Gem Theater featuring Watson, Ernie Andrews and American Jazz Orchestra.  The Pitch also touted the show.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Sinbad- Kansas City where is the jazz and live music in Kansas City on a Friday night

*From the American Jazz Museum: We've added more dates to our (Riffing on the Repertoire author talks) series: Dec. 1 Rashod Ollison - Soul Serenade; Dec. 15 Brian Seibert - What the Eye Hears; Jan. 12 Michael Jarrett - Pressed for All Time; Jan. 26 Sherrie Tucker - Dance Floor Democracy; March 9 Stephen Rush - Free Jazz, Harmolodics and Ornette Coleman; March 23 Dr. Richard Turner - Jazz Religon, the Second Line and Black New Orleans; April 6 - Lanston Hughes Project with Dr. Ron McCurdy; April 20 - Charles Hersch Jews and Jazz: Improvising Ethnicity.  Ted Gioia speaks at the Museum on Thursday, Nov. 17.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Joe Klopus scrutinized the week in jazz for The Kansas City Star.

*The Pitch previewed Tony Tixier’s return to the Blue Room.

*Marilyn Maye opens a four-day residency tonight at Quality Hill Playhouse.

*Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner of the American Jazz Museum is featured in a 435 Magazine article titled #LadyBoss.

*An early review of Echoes of Europe, the forthcoming album by Dino Massa's Kansas City Quintet, suggests that it’s “smoking contemporary jazz.”

*Tweet o’ the Week: Union Station- THIS FRIDAY! Join us for a spectacular evening of music and dance with The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra (link)

*Comment o’ the Week: Jeremy- Topeka is lucky to have someone as generous as Liz Stratton supporting jazz performances. Thanks to her generosity I've been able to see two of the most amazing musicians (Sean Jones and Eldar Djangirov) that I've ever seen.

*The Kansas City Jazz Calendar has been updated for November.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*The Kansas City Star reports that the $27 million funding initiative for the Jazz District has stalled.

*The 2016 edition of the Parkville River Jam, an annual festival that has traditionally featured jazz and blues artists, has been cancelled.   The Parkville Rock & Roll festival has sprung up in its place. 

*A critic for The Kansas City Star reviewed last night’s concert by Béla Fleck & the Flecktones at Muriel Kauffman Theatre.

*The Pitch’s jazz columnist highlights Tim Whitmer’s longstanding association with the Phoenix.

*KC Jazz Lark promotes the 30th anniversary issue of Jam magazine.

*Chris Burnett continues his "real time album project release clinic" for the forthcoming album by the Dino Massa Kansas City Quartet.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Jay Farrar- Spending the weekend in the old Jazz District of KC and the hospitality of the locals is the antithesis of staying for Grand Prix in MTL.

*Comment o’ the Week: BGO- I hope you're right about Cheptoo. I met her in the summer of 1996 when I got my first part-time job at KCPL.

*From a press release: I am pleased to announce the forthcoming new CD by multi-talented contemporary jazz vocalist/pianist/composer/producer Carol Duboc, Open the Curtains, with an all star girl power cast of musicians celebrating the enduring power of women, scheduled for release August 19th, 2016.  Duboc, who has been first call for such heavyweights Maurice White, Teddy Riley and George Duke, has assembled a star-studded line-up of musicians, who not only happen to be women but who are also some of the baddest musicians to grace this planet --  including percussionist Sheila E., pianist/ vocalist Patrice Rushen, saxophonist Mindi Abair, guitarists Bibi McGill and Jennifer Batten, drummer Queen Cora Coleman, bassist Rhonda Smith and trombonist and singer Aubrey Logan.

*From the site of the Mutual Musicians Foundation: The Mutual Musicians Foundation International is excited to present the Legacy 627 Music Awards. This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment of the Arts, ART WORKS. Enjoy the night as we we gather together surviving musicians who once belonged to segregated musicians unions in America. As we honor  their presence, remember their journeys and their contributions to art and culture globally; we enshrine them in this ceremony to remember Local 627, now known as  the Mutual Musicians Foundation, 1823 Highland Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri, a National Historic Landmark.  Our night begins with heavy hors d'oeuvres and drinks from 6PM - 7PM; with the awards ceremony immediately following from  7PM - 9PM.  Friday, June 17, 2016. $30.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Super Chief

At the break between Roy Ayers’ two sold-out concerts at the 150-capacity Blue Room on Friday, I told Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner that I believed that her primary job as the new Executive Director of the American Jazz Museum was to rebuild the audience for jazz in Kansas City.

I didn’t mention that Plastic Sax has failed in this mission.  There are less jazz venues and fewer fans of the music in Kansas City than when Plastic Sax was founded ten years ago. 

While cheerleading has never been the guiding principle of Plastic Sax, I once hoped that this site could serve as a helpful entry point for potential supporters of jazz.  Instead, Plastic Sax has acted as a reference guide for members the media and as a bulletin board for people who are already inoculated components of the insular scene.

I don’t need to look beyond Friday’s concerts for evidence of the stunning array of locally based talent- Kansas City’s DeAndre Manning, Everett Freeman and Kevin “Church Boy” Johnson sounded as if they’d been playing with Ayers for years- but attendance at most ticketed jazz events is deeply discouraging.

Then again, I’m just a jazz advocate who has never accepted a dime from an outside source on behalf of Plastic Sax.  Representatives of the publicly funded American Jazz Museum regularly cite the institution’s extensive outreach initiatives and music programming.  Those efforts haven’t resulted in a groundswell of private citizens eager to spend money on tickets to jazz concerts.

Kositany-Buckner was one of the less than 100 people who attended the highly promoted homecoming concert of Logan Richardson, the saxophonist who is one of the most exciting new voices in jazz.  She has her work cut out for her.  Savvy and charming, Kositany-Buckner might just be the Kansas City jazz catalyst that Plastic Sax never was.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*A recent KCUR report about an announcement by the American Jazz Museum’s new leader Cheptoo Kositani-Buckner reveals a classic good-news/bad-news scenario.  Kositani-Buckner recognizes that Kansas City lacks a proper jazz festival featuring international artists.  The disappointing aspect of her disclosure is that the museum presumably won’t present a proper festival in 2016.

*The Pitch offers a helpful survey of the summer jazz slate.

*Jessie Riggins reviewed the Dee Dee Bridgewater and Irvin Mayfield concert at the Folly Theater.

*Joe Klopus previewed Logan Richardson’s appearance at the Blue Room.  The saxophonist promoted his show on a morning television program.

*Calvin Wilson interviewed Bobby Watson.

*Chris Burnett provided an update about his forthcoming album with Dino Massa.

*Tweet o’ the Week: westportcoffeehouse- The Visceral Trio-classic organ, guitar, drum from Denton TX #westportcoffee1 #kcjazz

*Originally issued on Mercury and Clef, but ultimately housed on Verve, the (Charlie) Parker/(Norman) Granz studio collaborations were well-designed and thoughtfully conceived to display Bird's unparalleled talents in a variety of contexts. These included Parker's four to six piece ensembles (both working and pick-up groups); Latin Jazz efforts, some of which were labeled "South of the Border;" the orchestral Charlie Parker including his masterpieces with strings; standard Big Band; and Parker's prescient view of the Third Stream. Unheard Bird: The Unissued Takes touches on all of these, including a couple of brief false starts on "If I Should Lose You" that were not included in the remarkable 2015 companion set, Charlie Parker With Strings: Deluxe Edition… Spanning the years 1949-1952, Unheard Bird: The Unissued Takes displays the immortal master of the alto saxophone Charlie Parker at the peak maturity of his prodigious talents.

*From a press release: 22nd Spirituality & All That Jazz Anniversary Celebration featuring 1994’s very first Special Guest Diane "Mama" Ray performing with Tim Whitmer & The Consort Band…  In 1962 Diane came to Kansas City from New York City, and was immediately caught up in the great Jazz and Blues scene here. 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 1. $7 at the door.

*From a press release: Johnson County Community College’s Winterlude is back!  It looks a bit different for 2016-17, but the intention is the same: to bring some of the best of Kansas City’s jazz and world music community to an audience in the comfortable performance spaces in the Carlsen Center. Winterlude 2016-17 will feature bands on a series of Sunday evenings from 7 to 8:30 p.m. from October to March. The Winterlude series will include a finale in Yardley Hall, Jazz 100. It will be a celebration of the anniversaries of a number of jazz greats: Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald and Mongo Santamaria.  Jazz 100 will feature Dizzy Gillespie’s long-time pianist, Danillo Perez, joined by Chris Potter (tenor sax), Avishai Cohen (trumpet), Wycliffe Gordon (trombone), Ben Street (bass), Adam Cruz (drums), Roman Diaz (percussion) and Lizz Wright (vocals). Sunday, October 16: Will Matthews B-3 Organ Trio featuring Bobby Floyd and Marty Morrison, Polsky Theatre; Sunday, December 18: David Basse/Joe Cartwright Septet, Polsky Theatre; Sunday, January 22: Sons of Brasil, Polsky Theatre; Sunday, February 26: Alaturka, Polsky Theatre; Sunday, March 19: Jazz 100, Yardley Hall. Tickets can be purchased as the Winterlude Series, as individual concerts, or as part of a Performing Arts Series package.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Jazz in the Woods is no more.  The annual event founded by the jazz musician Vince Bilardo in the 1980s has been rebranded as the SoJo Summerfest.  The headliners at the two-day event in June are a country-rock band and a celtic-rock band.  A press release includes a spokesman's explanation of one of the factors behind the name change: “It also gives us the flexibility to adjust talent booking and event amenities over time to ensure the festival remains relevant for a wide variety of audiences in years to come.”

*Monique Gabrielle Salazar reviewed the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra’s Rhapsody for KCUR.

*Nonesuch Records will release two Pat Metheny albums on May 6.

*The Pitch touts Stan Kessler’s Force Five.

*Charlie Parker will be inducted into the Apollo Walk of Fame on March 30.

*Robert Trussell interviewed the American Jazz Museum's Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner.

*Patti Austin’s concert at the Gem Theater was reviewed by The Kansas City Star.

*The documentary "Vince Giordano- There's a Future in the Past" will be shown at 7:25 p.m. Thursday, April 14, at the Cinemark Palace at the Country Club Plaza as part of the Kansas City FilmFest.  The New York based bandleader and the film’s co-director Amber Edwards will participate in a question-and-answer session after the screening.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Jack- @SoJo_Summerfest Not sure why you felt the need to mess with something that worked. Always looked forward to the national jazz acts.

*From Brandon Draper: Brandon Draper returns to the Blue Room in Kansas City with an all-star lineup featuring his father a renowned Hammond B3 blues artist.  April 9, 2016  7pm doors / sets 8:30pm – 12:30am. Brandon Draper: drums, percussion, guitar; Paul Draper: Hammond B3, vocals; Hermon Mehari: trumpet; Brian Scarborough: trombone; Rich Wheeler: tenor saxophone; John Kizilarmut: vibraphone, drums, percussion; Ben Leifer: bass. Set 1- Brandon Draper original jazz, Set 2- Paul Draper original blues/funk/jazz, Set 3- Jazz/Funk/Blues/Boogaloo Traditions.

*From Stan Kessler: The Sons of Brasil 25 Year Anniversary Celebration!  It's our silver anniversary. We've been playing regularly For a quarter of a century. Unbelievable. The celebration begins the following dates and will continue throughout the summer until we're sick of it. April 2, The Art Factory, 7-9:30. April 15, The Blue Room, 8:30-12:30. There will be SOB trivia contests with prizes for the winners. Personnel: Stanton Kessler-Trp./Flugel, Danny Embrey-Gtr., Roger Wilder-Piano, Greg Whitfield-Bass, Doug Auwarter-Drums, Gary Helm-Perc.

*From Blue Note Records: Following the February 26 release of Shift, Logan Richardson’s assured Blue Note debut, the alto saxophonist has announced May U.S. tour dates in New York, Los Angeles, Boston, and his hometown of Kansas City  (May 23 at the Blue Room)… Richardson’s touring band will feature Mike Moreno on guitar and Sam Harris on piano.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Eddie Moore was awarded an unrestricted $10,000 cash grant from the Charlotte Street Foundation.

*Soliloquy, a new album by a group led by Matt Otto, was released this week.

*Representatives of the American Jazz Museum were interviewed by a television reporter.

*Marcus Lewis was interviewed by Joe Dimino.

*The Pitch recommends Bram Wijnands’ weekend residency at the Majestic.

*Chris Burnett made a presentation at the Self-Employment in the Arts Lecture Series at Drury University.

*Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner of the American Jazz Museum shared her vision for the institution with KMBZ.

*Peter Schlamb's Electric Tinks was featured on KCUR’s Local Listen segment last week.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Ryan Heinlein- So you don't get pinched next week. (photo)

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner, the new CEO of the American Jazz Museum, was interviewed by The Pitch.

*Live at Pilgrim Chapel, the new album by David Basse and Joe Cartwright, was reviewed by KCUR.

*Dominique Sanders was interviewed by Fountain City Frequency.

*Zach Albetta chatted with John Kizilarmut in a podcast for Working Drummer.

*The Kansas City Star and The Pitch highlight Ambrose Akinmusire’s return to Kansas City.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Amanda Graor- @KCCauldron I want to capo and do the occasional tap dance solo on the bar ala Lonnie McFadden thx

*Comment o’ the Week: Mike Metheny- Thank you, Mike Warren, for taking the time to review my sonic experiments, confounding as they admittedly are. Your words were thoughtful and honest, and that works for me. (Note: “Twelve” is the number of albums produced since 1982, as opposed to ten tracks on the CD. That's what I get for being too cryptic…)

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner has been named as the new Executive Director of the American Jazz Museum.  A portion of the press release is posted below.  The editorial board of The Kansas City Star applauds the hiring.  Steve Kraske interviewed Kositany-Buckner for KCUR.

*Marcus Lewis is the subject of a lengthy profile by Joe Klopus.

*The Pitch notes the jazz bookings at Prohibition Hall.

*Joe Dimino’s recent Neon Jazz interviews include Matt Wilson and Harold Mabern.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Jermaine Reed- American Jazz Museum announced Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner as Executive Director today @americanjazzkc @repcleaver

*From a press release: The American Jazz Museum (AJM) announced today the appointment of Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner as Executive Director of the organization.  A seasoned nonprofit leader who has garnered numerous awards and recognition for her work, Kositany-Buckner accepts the position following a 25-year career with the Kansas City Public Library, where she rose from network administrator in the IT Department to Deputy Director… The announcement follows a comprehensive national search that included significant local stakeholder involvement and discussions with the leadership of some of the top music and African American cultural institutions in the U.S.

*From a press release: On Sunday, February 21, 2016, legendary jazz artists David Basse and Joe Cartwright will celebrate the release of their new CD Live at Pilgrim Chapel with a concert at Kansas City’s historic Pilgrim Chapel… If anyone embodies the sound and spirit of Kansas City, it’s Joe Cartwright and David Basse. Together and separately, the duo has become known over the past 40 years to represent a jazz musical tradition that began over 100 years ago... the recording would be simple- Joe on a keyboard and David’s vocals.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)