On the grow: SFJazz's plan for an 800-seat auditorium, office, education and practice space has been approved by San Francisco planners. The new facility will be part of San Francisco's art district near opera, symphony and ballet, classical, rock and contemporary music venues. Construction is to begin next summer, with the official opening planned for the fall of 2012.

Preservation Hall West: New Orleans' Preservation Hall plans to open an offshoot in San Francisco, as part of an entertainment and restaurant complex that restaurant owner Jack Knowles plans to open on a site that housed the defunct New College.

Odds and Ends

On-stage surprise: On July 12, guitarist Carlos Santana proposed to drummer Cindy Blackman during a Santana concert at the Midwest Bank Amphitheatre in Tinley Park, IL. Four songs into the set, following Blackman's solo on the Santana hit "Corazon Espinado," the guitarist asked the for the drummer's hand in marriage. She accepted, the couple kissed and the audience cheered.

Jamie Cullum: Pianist and singer Jamie Cullum gave a December 10 concert in a private home in Bridgeport, NY. The home owner won an Internet contest whose award included a piano and a concert by Cullum. He played for family and friends and performed a duet with the lucky winner's hair stylist on "Cry Me a River" before jetting back to England.

Final Bars

Here is a rundown of the many artists and industry-related figures who passed away during 2010, including jazz heavyweights Buddy Collette, Herb Ellis, Lena Horne, Hermand Leonard, Gene Lees, Abbey Lincoln, Rob McConnell, James Moody, Benny Powell and Billy Taylor.

Accordion player Esteban "Steve" Jordan.

Bandleader and educator William P. Foster.

Bassists Bob Bowen, Ed Crockett, Johnny "Chano" Martinez, Andy McCloud, Jamil Nasser, Webster Roach and Theo Wilson; bassist and educator Walter Payton.

Clarinetists Chuck Hedges and Monty Sunshine; clarinetist and saxophonist Paulo Moura; clarinetist, saxophonist and bandleader Dick Johnson; clarinetist, saxophonist, composer and arranger and educator Leon Breeden.

Composer Ray Passman; composer and singer Luis Kalaff; composer and multi-instrumentalist George David Weiss.

Conductor, singer, oboe and English horn player and producer Mitch Miller.

Cornetist Tom Saunders.

Drummers Edgar Bateman Jr., Chris Dagley, Martin Drew, Bob Emery, Jane Hanna, Montego Joe (Roger Sanders), Steve Reid, Ed Thigpen, Hakiem Emanuel Thompson, David Via and Wally "Gator" Watson; drummer, bandleader and composer Jack Parnell.

Flutist Eddie Perales.

Guitarists Herb Ellis, Johnnie Moon and Jeff Tillman; guitarist and music educator Frank Dawson; guitarist and vocalist Tam White.

Keyboardist T. Lavitz.

Organists Gloria Coleman, Gene Ludwig and Rosa Rio; organist, pianist and singer Trudy Pitts Carney.

Percussionists Francisco Aguabella, Mike Collazo, Bill Fitch and Victor "Negrito" Pantoja; percussionist, singer and bandleader Giovanni Lugo; percussionist, band leader and educator Hector "Rudy" Regalado.

Pianists John Bunch, Hotep Idris Galeta, Hank Jones, Artie Marco, Johnny Parker, Tony Schilder, Sid Simmons, Fritz Trippel.Joe Vito and Harry Whitaker; pianist and big band leader Erwin Lehn; pianist, bassist and arranger Art Mineo; pianist and composer Allyn Ferguson; pianist, broadcaster, educator and producer Billy Taylor, pianist and organist Jane Jarvis; pianists and singers Johnny Alf, Joyce Collins; pianist and club owner Harold Kaufman.

Producers Wendell Edward Echols and Mario Pacheco; producer, arranger and keyboardist Dan Kleiman; producer, broadcaster and educator Gary Bannister.

Saxophonists Fred Anderson, Marion Brown, Hadley Caliman, Tony Campise, Earl Clark, Ernst Gerber, Noah Howard, Eddie Johnson, Carmen Leggio, Max Lucas, Joe Rinaldi, Ahmad Salaheldeen, Manfred Schulze, Freddie Syer, Ed Wiley Jr., Rudy Wooten and Michael York; saxophonist, flutist, bandleader and composer James Moody; saxophonist, bandleader and composer John Dankworth; saxophonist and club owner Fred Anderson; saxophonist, bass clarinetist, bandleader, composer and arranger Willem Breuker; saxophonist, composer, educator and author Ahmad Alaadeen; saxophonist, flutist, clarinetist, composer, educator, bandleader and civil rights activist Buddy Collette; saxophonist, artist and hip hop MC Richard Lee Sisco Jr.

Singers Juanita Bramlette, King Coleman, Cherie DeCastro, Olga Guillot, Myrna Lake, Graciela Perez-Grillo and Joya Sherrill; singer and actress Lena Horne; singer, composer and actress Abbey Lincoln; singer and actor James H. Stovall Jr. Latin jazz singer, composer and musician Eugenio "Gene" Hernández; Cuban actor, singer, composer, artist Rosendo Rosell; singer and pianist Mimi Perrin.

comments powered by Disqus