The 27th Annual IAJE Conference: New Orleans And All That Jazz

This article was first published on All About Jazz in March 2000.

The 27th annual Conference of the International Association of Jazz Educators (IAJE), held January 12-15, 2000 in the birthplace of Jazz, New Orleans, left me with mixed emotions but no visible wounds (unlike Anaheim the year before, where I managed to fall down twice, skinning a knee and splitting my forehead open).

On the one hand, the yearly get-together of Jazz educators, musicians, industry executives, exhibitors, media reps and others is a great place (for me, at least) to see and hear some marvelous big bands including a number from overseas. On the other, it has been getting bigger (but not necessarily better) every year, and it must be getting harder to find a suitable venue in which to house the many performers and exhibitors. Dividing this year's conference between the Hyatt Regency Hotel and nearby New Orleans Superdome (which is separated from the hotel by a large indoor shopping mall and an outdoor walkway about the length of a football field) wasn't the best way to assure that everyone could see and / or hear everything that was of interest to him or her. Fortunately, the weather came into play only on Friday, with blustery winds and bone-chilling temperatures. Thursday and Saturday were relatively mild and pleasant.

According to the IAJE, more than 7,000 people attended the gathering in New Orleans, the largest turnout in its 27-year history, and that presented yet another problem, as the Hyatt Regency's main ballroom wasn't large enough to accommodate easily those who wanted to see the featured performers each evening, so those concerts were SRO with people standing along the walls or seated in the aisles. I passed on all of them, returning instead to the Holiday Inn (two blocks away) to watch re-runs of TV sitcoms. Never did care much for wall-to-wall crowds.

As this year's theme was Celebrating a New Century of Jazz, and Jazz is flourishing in nooks and crannies all over the world, it was appropriate that participants should have come from some 30 countries including Australia, Canada, Finland, Brazil, Germany, Japan, Austria, the Netherlands, Kazakhstan, the United Kingdom and Sweden. On Saturday evening, Jazz Masters awards were presented on behalf of the National Endowment for the Arts to trombonist / educator David Baker, trumpeter / educator Donald Byrd and pianist / radio hostess Marian McPartland. In lieu of an acceptance speech, Miss McPartland sat down at the piano and offered a crowd-pleasing rendition of the city's unofficial anthem, "When the Saints Come Marching In."

Media coverage was more extensive than ever with the city's National Public Radio (NPR) affiliates, WWOZ and WWNO-FM, providing coverage from NPR's specially built broadcast center in the Hyatt Regency lobby and teaming up with WBGO Jazz 88 (Newark, NJ) and KLON-FM (Long Beach, CA) to offer live morning and afternoon drive-time simulcasts. For the first time, the Conference was cybercast on the internet as Jazze.com, the new media outlet of Knit Media Inc. provided an exclusive stream of the industry track's 30 panels. Meanwhile, GMN.com focused on streaming live performances from the evening's headline concerts. BET on Jazz, which established the BET on Jazz Education Fund in '98 with a $500,000 commitment to IAJE, filmed a number of the conference's education sessions and sponsored a panel discussion on "The Enhancement and Preservation of Jazz Through Television." And finally, NPR produced a half-day radio symposium with panels on issues of interest to Jazz radio professionals.

As no conference is complete without awards for those who have earned them, the IAJE bestowed its President's Award on Dr. Billy Taylor, who at age 78 is as vigorous and dedicated as ever after more than half a century as a musician, educator and Jazz broadcaster. Dr. Taylor, who hosts the NEA's American Jazz Masters awards concert, is a past Jazz Master himself and member of the IAJE Hall of Fame. The new millennium's first Hall of Fame Award was presented to David Liebman, the renowned saxophonist whose contributions to Jazz education are far-reaching and span a period of more than 25 years. Ian Darrington, adviser of music for the Metropolitan Wigan Education Department and director of the UK's superb Wigan Youth Jazz Orchestra, received the IAJE Humanitarian Award, while the Clifford Brown / Stan Getz Fellowships, co-sponsored by the IAJE and National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts and funded by the Herb Alpert Jazz Endowment, were presented to a quintet of outstanding young musicians : alto saxophonist Christopher Steinke (Lincoln, NE); tenor saxophonist Andrew Malmin (Ventura, CA); trumpeter Jonathan Finlayson (Oakland, CA); pianist Aaron Parks (Seattle, WA), and drummer Lamont Taylor (Dallas, TX).

Yumiko Sunami, recipient of the Gil Evans Fellowship, conducted her award-winning composition, "Dual Personality," with the University of North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band. Compositions by the co-recipients of the ASCAP / IAJE Commission, which honors the memory of Duke Ellington, were performed by the U.S. Air Force's leading Jazz ensemble, the Airmen of Note. The commissioned pieces were "Chez Duke" by Baikida Carroll in the "Established Jazz Composer" category, and "Fatima's Garden" by Lisa DeSpain in the "Emerging Jazz Composer" category.

The usual number of well-known names were among those taking part as performers, panelists or workshop leaders including Josh Redman, Nicholas Payton, Ellis Marsalis, Pete Fountain, Ramsey Lewis, David Sanchez, Javon Jackson, Nnenna Freelon, Terence Blanchard, Carl Allen, Francois Bourassa, Rufus Reid, Patricia Barber, Bill Watrous, Herbie Hancock, Robin Eubanks, Alvin Batiste, Randy Brecker, Ken Peplowski, Branford Marsalis, Steve Turre, Bobby Shew, Mike Mainieri, Bunky Green, Kurt Elling, Nick Brignola, Ed Thigpen, Don Braden, Terell Stafford, Ernie Watts, Dick Hyman and Michael White. Payton's quintet was featured Wednesday evening with the Dukes of Dixieland, Treme Brass Band and New Orleans Jazz Commission All-Stars; Redman headlined the Thursday evening concert, followed by Lewis's trio and the legendary Count Basie Orchestra; the Benny Green / Christian McBride / Russell Malone Trio kicked off the Friday evening session with Sanchez' sextet and the Airmen of Note also on the program; and Saturday evening's finale included the Jazz Masters presentation and performances by the Danilo Perez Trio, vocalist Nnenna Freelon and saxophonist Joe Lovano with UNT's One O'Clock Lab Band.

But we came to New Orleans to see and hear big bands, and so we did. Some very impressive ones too. Here's an overview of who we saw and when:

• Thursday : The Bellevue (WA) Jazz Ensemble, Miami-Dade Community College Jazz Band, Loyola University (New Orleans) Jazz Ensemble, IAJE Florida Unit Directors' Big Band, University of New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, the John Mahoney Big Band, the Al Belletto Big Jazz Band.
• Friday : The Berklee College of Music Concert Jazz Orchestra, Birmingham (AL) Youth Jazz Ensemble, Columbus (Ohio) Jazz Orchestra, Rob Parton's Ensemble 9, Murgtaler (Austria) Youth Jazz Orchestra, University of Northern Colorado Jazz Lab Band 1.
• Saturday : Henry Ford Community College Big Band with guest Vaughn Nark, Jazz Explosion Youth Ensemble (Castle Rock, CO) with guest Bill Watrous, the University of Miami Concert Jazz Band, Wigan Youth Jazz Orchestra (Great Britain), Keilworth Saxophone Section (Dave Liebman, Ernie Watts, Nick Brignola, Ed Petersen, Mike Smith), the Doncaster Jazz Orchestra (Great Britain), Espoo Big Band (Finland), Woody Herman Orchestra.

As we said, some of these bands were remarkably accomplished, especially Miami-Dade CC, the University of New Orleans ensemble, the John Mahoney Big Band (with two members of the popular group Astral Project, drummer John Vidacovich and tenor saxophonist Tony Dagradi, in the lineup), the Birmingham Youth Orchestra, Henry Ford Community College and the two young bands from the UK, Wigan (whose guest was trumpeter Bobby Shew) and Doncaster who brought with them the fine young vocalist from Britain's National Youth Jazz Orchestra, Sumudu Jayatilaka (who sparkled on "All of Me," "If You Should Change Your Mind" and "How Can I Believe in Love"). It was especially gratifying to see six young women in director Ian Darrington' s Wigan ensemble : two trumpeters and four of the five saxophonists.

Miami-Dade made a strong impression Thursday morning with an excellent program that mixed standards ("All or Nothing at All," "If I Should Lose You," "Willow Weep for Me," a mambo version of "All the Things You Are") with sharp originals by Matt Harris ("Cappucino Freeway," "Jungle Jim") and Billy Strayhorn's "Isfahan." Tight ensemble, first-rate soloists. The University of New Orleans was alive and swingin' on Jerome Richardson's "Groove Merchant," Don Sebesky's "Bluer Than Blue," a ballad by New Orleans' own Ellis Marsalis (who co-directed with Harold Battiste) and a couple of nice vocals, "Almost Like Being in Love" and "Sophisticated Lady." Trombonist John Mahoney's band, made up mostly of teachers, played only his compositions, all of which were impressive. They included "Thousand Island Dressin,'" "Carlos Navarro," "Anticipating Colorado," "Dave's Samba," "Unspoken Requests," "In from Somewhere" and "Another One of Those Things." The veteran Al Belletto's Big Jazz Band, also from New Orleans, was a crowd-pleaser on numbers ranging from Basie's "Jumpin' at the Woodside" to the ballad "Only the Lonely, " on which Belletto's alto saxophone was featured. We ended the day with a stroll through the colorful and crowded exhibit halls (there were several, on two of the hotel's floors).

After catching the first of two new music reading sessions Friday morning, we stopped for a few moments to hear the Berklee College ensemble (in the jam-packed main ballroom), then sprinted down the hall for the Birmingham Youth Orchestra, a fine young group whose program included the ballad "Misty," Charles Mingus's "Nostalgia in Times Square," the spiritual "Go Down Moses," Strayhorn's "Take The 'A' Train," marvelously interpreted by filmmaker Spike Lee's aunt, pianist Consuela Lee, and John Coltrane's "Naima," showcasing tenor saxophonist Herman Green. Next up was the ever-swinging Columbus Jazz Orchestra whose engaging program included "Just in Time," Cole Porter's "In the Still of the Night," Strayhorn's "Isfahan," Ray Noble's "Cherokee" (featuring alto Michael Cox) and a couple of numbers with guests Ken Peplowski (clarinet) and Randy Brecker (trumpet), "Just Friends" and "Cottontail."

After lunch, we took a brief respite from the really big bands to listen to trumpeter Rob Parton's Chicago-based nonet, Project 9, which tore things up in a scorching session that included several tunes from its recent Hallway Records release, Children of the Night, including the title selection and Parton's soulful arrangement of Mingus's "Goodbye Porkpie Hat" that featured tenor saxophonist Mark Colby. Later that afternoon, Gene Aitken's University of Northern Colorado Jazz Lab Band 1, with guest trombonist Nat Wickham, came out swinging on Jim McNeely's "Jump Start" and held the audience in the palm of its hand throughout an exhilarating hour of topnotch big-band Jazz.

After a good night's rest we were back on the scene Saturday morning for a quick listen to the Jazz Explosion ensemble, followed by the Henry Ford Big Band and its stellar six-member vocal group Evergreen Blues (with guest trumpeter Vaughn Nark at his sky-scraping best in spite of the early hour) and Whit Sidener's well-drilled Concert Jazz Band from the University of Miami (whose contingent of standout soloists was led by tenor Mike Campagna). The Wigan Youth Orchestra was onstage at high noon, dressed in white jackets and turtleneck sweaters behind the red-and-white bandstands. Didn't catch the lead trumpeter's name, but he deserved a gold leaf cluster for blowing above and beyond the call, as did drummer Guy Walsh, outstanding on "Aardvark" and the "West Side Story Suite," introduced some years ago by another drummer named Buddy something-or-other. The band also shined on Don Menza's "Groove Blues," the standard "You Stepped Out of a Dream," "Chelsea Bridge," "Breakfast Wine," Johnny Mandel's "Emily" and Matt Harris's sizzling arrangement of "There Is No Greater Love."

While nothing could have surpassed that performance, the Doncaster Jazz Orchestra, decked out in dark suits with bow ties (if there were prizes for best-dressed bands the Brits would have won hands down), finished in a dead heat with Wigan, bringing the audience to its feet with a series of incendiary charts including "Luton Hoo," "Have You Heard," "Chicago," "Oh, So Nice," "One for Oscar" (featuring 15-year-old pianist John Escreet) and "Lover Man" (a dazzling showcase for 17-year-old alto saxophonist Simon Cosgrove). Doncaster, directed by John Ellis, has its own remarkably talented lead trumpeter, and his name is Damien Bell. While that ensemble was a tough act to follow, I was told later that the Espoo Big Band from far-away Finland (much of whose session I missed) came close, abandoning its usual meditative temperament in favor of a more effusive program of straight-ahead swingers. Regretfully, I also had to pass up the Sisters in Jazz Quintet with guest flutist Holly Hofmann. For the record, the group consisted of vocalist Lisa Kelly (University of North Florida), flutist Anne Drummond (Manhattan School of Music), pianist Chihiro Yamanaka (Berklee School of Music), bassist Brandi Disterheft (Humber College) and drummer Karen Teperberg (Berklee School of Music).

The lines began forming around six o'clock Saturday evening for the Woody Herman Orchestra, which for reasons known only to IAJE was slated to appear an hour later in the cramped Esplanade Ballroom (one of the few tactical errors in an otherwise well-planned conference). The doors were opened at 6:50, and seldom have I seen a room filled faster as everyone dashed to find a seat for the eagerly-awaited performance. Woody's band, presided over by saxophonist Frank Tiberi, was as brash and bouncy as ever, deftly blending Herman evergreens ("Four Brothers," "Opus de Funk," "Northwest Passage," "Greasy Sack Blues") with more recent additions to the book such as Joe Zawinul's "Carnavalito." Much of the material was taken from the orchestra's newest CD, Live in London, along with features for Tiberi ("Central Park West") and trombonist John Fedchock ("Laura"). That was a great way to end the week, and so we did. It's time now to start looking forward to the next three : in New York City, Los Angeles and Toronto, Canada (yes, the IAJE's 30th will be the first ever held outside the U.S.). See you there, Jazz lovers!

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