HIPNESS REPORT... This past Sundays White Plains Jazz Festival in White Plains, NY was indeed a blast. I and my nonet Ascensión had the privilege/honor of headlining and closing the festival. The week long event (yes, I said week long) was the brainchild of ArtsWestchester and its forward thinking director, Thom Van Buren, who happens to have a Doctoral degree in ethnomusicology. Mother Nature cooperated with beautiful weather and if that wasnt enough, trumpeter Mark Morganellis swinging Brasil Project lit the stage on fire before we came on. A portion of White Plains main thoroughfare, Mamaroneck Avenue, was closed off and over 2,000 people of ALL ages were exposed to a variety of styles in the jazz idiom. And how did they respond? They cheered, roared, danced and pranced, screamed and gleamed. It was a win, win situation for the businesses, people and guess what? The Mayor Tom Roach was even present and he danced! This is what a jazz festival is supposed to be about, COMMUNITY FREAKIN ENGAGEMENT!!! The fact that I saw so many parents with their young children and those kids were grooving to the sounds demonstrates that a NEW audience for Americas greatest art form can be easily built. This music is not an intellectual, elitist art form for a small club of so called hipsters, psuedo-intellectuals, and musicians that have their own secret language that can only be understood by them. It is something for, by, and of the people that was created from the horrors of slavery and oppression, but meant to be freedoms glorious, triumphant, clearest expression. Kudos to my musicians - Lord Gene Jefferson (alto, fl), Jeff Lederer (ten., fl), John Walsh (tpt), Chris Washburne (tbn), Hiram El Pavo Remón (vcls, perc), Leo Traversa (bass), Enrique Haneine (piano), Oreste Abrantes (congas), who kicked butt, took no prisoners and got house. Yours truly, Bobby Sanabria (drums)
Posted on: Tue, 09 Sep 2014 07:48:49 +0000
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