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Another near Sell-Out Crowd!
This year CFJS member and world wide popular jazz and blues entertainer-vocalist “Melva Houston”
sang with the UNCW
Big Band 
under the direction of Dr. Frank Bongiorno. Melva opened the show performing with the UNCW Saxtet ensemble featuring two of last year’s CFJS scholarship recipients, Taylor Lee on bass and Jon Tucker, Alto Sax.
Our annual concert is the one event that provides funds for the jazz
scholarships at UNCW; the rest of the money comes from your donations. We
truly appreciate your individual
contributions we received again this year. Thanks
and you can look forward to another great concert next year!
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THIS was NOT YOUR TYPICAL SUNDAY AFTERNOON of Jazz!
Presented on MARCH 16TH UNCW CULTURAL ARTS BUILDING, ROOM 2033
3 TO 5 PM
The question of “What is Smooth Jazz” was the topic of discussion presented with lots of great jazz both smooth and contemporary by Gerry White on March 16th at the monthly meeting of the Cape Fear Jazz Society.
Gerry is a 30 year veteran concert promoter and producer and a veritable fountain of fun and information on any aspect of JAZZ! This time, what we call Smooth Jazz.
The crowd enjoyed a lively, entertaining, and informative afternoon exploring the world wide popularity of “Smooth Jazz”. We heard music samples of jazz classics we know and love (back to back) revisited by Smooth Jazz artists. Lively discussions of pros, cons, likes, dislikes, origin of the music, what qualifies it to be “jazz”, view of the artists, future local concerts, and much more took place.
The future of Jazz is alive and well as we heard from the biggest “Stars” performing contemporary Jazz today.
Our CFJS Sunday programs are presented to inspire and familiarize our audiences with all varieties of jazz. Preserving and promoting the future of America’s only true art form is the constant mission of CFJS. We explore and enjoy the past but we must look to the future.
As are all our 3rd Sunday jazz programs, this program was free and open to Cape Fear Jazz Society members and everyone !
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BRUBECK BROTHERS QUARTET SIZZLES!
“JAZZ
NITE AT SCOTTISH RITE” OCT 6, 2007!
By David Merkle
to start with Rich
Schmetterer (the perennial Vice President of CFJS). He gave us the inspiration
to bring to
Fast Forward to Saturday
October 6th. Here we are attending the jazz society’s annual event, where we
have featured some of the truly great artists in the jazz genre over the past 10
years.
The Brubeck Brothers Quartet
begins with Chris Brubeck. He plays bass, trombone, and serves as the
leader/spokesman for the group, but he is much more than that. His inspiration
is a primary force that energizes the quartet. We all like musicians to talk to
us along with their playing-and Chris did that-he kept us in the loop and
entertained us as well.
Brother Dan is a drummer. We
certainly got to appreciate his great artistry as the evening progressed, but
never more than when he did his thing on the classic tune “Take Five”.
(Dave) Brubeck fans remember the great drum solo that Joe Morello did on that
same tune. It was an historic performance in the world of percussionists and
fans. Dan utilized some of his father’s renowned time initiatives in his drum
work; he apparently has been wowing music fans worldwide.
Guitarist/composer Mike
DeMicco added and supported greatly with his original compositions and spirited
leads. But then there was Chuck Lamb-the pianist and composer extraordinaire!
Lamb’s leads and compositions were everything that I think Dave Brubeck would
have hoped for: creative,
melodic and really spell
bounding!
The group delighted us with
a combination of original compositions and some big bows to the signature tunes
of the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Their renditions of such tunes as “Blue Rondo a
la Turk”, “In Your Own Sweet Way”, and “Take Five” were quite removed
from the recorded versions from many years ago, as they have their own take on
such great compositions. The Scottish Rite crowd clearly delighted in hearing
these new variations. Another truly remarkable and memorable “Night at
Scottish Rite”!
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THE COUNT BASIE ORCHESTRA
In
Concert on Stage at Thalian Hall
Wednesday
Evening, March 21, 2007-7:30PM
BIRTHDAY
CELEBRATION EXTRAVAGANZA
By
Yes, it was our (CFJS) birthday, and a “big one”-- ten years of nurturing,
presenting and promoting jazz in the
Big Band Jazz is a special kind of jazz and the Count Basie Band is a special
kind of band, so what better entertainment for this our tenth anniversary
special. We started the evening with a delicious appetizer buffet, catered by
Angie of Chris’s Restaurant. The food was delicious and plentiful. Close to
400 took part in that part of our evening. There was champagne to toast to the
next ten years, and a really jazzy cake donated by Danny’s Bakery, plus Island
Florals by Roxanne donated a spectacular floral centerpiece for the buffet
table.
Everyone wanted to help us celebrate---what a great feeling! Reed’s Jewelers
donated a $600 woman’s watch, which was raffled off to a lucky lady. Bill
Fender, at the membership table was busy selling memberships to those who either
had not known of our existence or those who realized that we are doing good
things musically and want to be a part of it. To all of the new
members—“WELCOME”!
Now to the centerpiece of the evening—the Count Basie Band concert—there are
not enough superlatives and !!!!! to describe the music, the presentation, the
vocalist, the sound---so I am not even going to try, except to say “you had to
be there!” If you weren’t, I am sorry, because you missed a performance of
jazz at its’ finest.
Following the concert at Thalian, about 100 hearty partiers continued the
evening’s celebration at the “after Party” at the Blockade Runner Resort
at
THE
COUNT BASIE ORCHESTRA AT THALIAN HALL
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The Dena DeRose Trio" with Mat Wilson and Martin Wind
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HURRICANE
KATRINA
On September
11, 05 local Jazz Drummer-Musician and producer, Lee
Venters in conjunction with the Cape Fear Jazz Society hosted a Jazz Benefit Concert at UNCW’s
Kenan Auditorium to aid the American Red Cross and the Katrina disaster victims.
Area Jazz fans were treated to a fantastic afternoon of
“non-stop-variety-jazz”. In
addition to the income from the performance and donations, a souvenir DVD
was produced for sale by CFJS member Peter Bruno www.lifetimevideopro.com
CFJS proudly sent a check to the American
Red Cross in the amount of $3250.00.
Partnership with:
• UNCW
for annual benefit concerts, from
which we raised over $30,000.
• UNCW Dept. of Music to found and sustain
scholarships for talented young musicians in order for them to pursue an
education in jazz music. Thus far we have given financial aid to seven such
qualifying students.
• The Chamber Music Society of Wilmington & the Black Arts
Alliance to bring to Wilmington a production of Langston Hughes’ “Soul
Gone Home”, set to music by composer William Banfield and performed by a jazz
singer, chamber music ensemble and African/American drummers & dancers.
•
• The Cape Fear Museum to bring the first Friday concerts inside the
museum during the winter months, thus bringing new people into the
museum, increasing their membership and continuing jazz performances throughout
the year.
• Free monthly programs open to the public which are geared to educate
and entertain the attendees in the various forms and styles of jazz.
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