Late May and again late June bring us one of the more recent pleasures of city life: interleague baseball play and the chance for cross-town rivals, the Mets and the Yankees, to square off. This month however, a new “subway series” occurs: JVC versus Vision. For the first time, the established and establishment JVC Jazz Festival runs concurrently with the scrappy underdog Vision Fest. But rather than speak in terms of competition, take heart that New York has a place for both the most traditional and the most experimental music in jazz. Take a moment to think that Wayne Shorter (Cover Story), playing at JVC, has influenced many of the performers at Vision. And that Fred Anderson (Interview), honored with a Lifetime Achievement Day at Vision, has his roots firmly in the legends JVC celebrates annually. Put aside your blue & white, or blue & orange as the case may be, and make stops at both. You’ll realize the love of good music is plentiful at each. Another event this month is the annual Jazz Journalists Awards (June 14th at B.B. King’s), a chance for writers and music industry professionals to weigh in on the past year in jazz. We’ve added a new wrinkle to our CD review section, highlighting a number of discs and artists who are nominees this year (pg. 26-31). For those who either celebrate or decry critics, this event is a fascinating look into what is sadly only 3% of the total music market today. While you may disagree with the winners, or even the nominees, the event pays tribute to many deserving musicians and proceeds go to help the laudable work of the Jazz Foundation of America. Visit www.jazzjournalistsawards.com for more information. It’s not the Oscars or the Grammys but that can only be a good thing.
We’ll see you there...
Laurence Donohue-Greene & Andrey Henkin
For more information contact All About Jazz.
