JAM Magazine: August/September 1998 Issue: News and Notes

A New Home for the KCJW
The Kansas City Jazz Workshop has announced its lineup for 1998-99 as well as a new site for the upcoming season. After five years at UMKC's Pierson Hall, KCJW concerts will now take place at the 12th Street Rag Room of the Hotel Marriott, 12th and Wyandotte Here is the lineup for '98-99. (An additional concert featuring a top local group will be announced at a later date.)

September 14 -- The Junior Mance Trio with Mance (piano), Keeter Betts (bass) and Jackie Williams (drums).
October 5 -- Harry Allen (tenor) and Terry Harrington (tenor/clarinet) backed by KC's Danny Embrey (guitar), Paul Smith (piano), Bob Bowman (bass) and Tommy Ruskin (drums).
November 9 -- The Skip Peck Quartet featuring Donna Peck.
February 8, 1999 -- Phil Wilson (trombone) and Jimmy Seeley (trumpet) backed by Paul Smith (piano), Danny Embrey (guitar), Bob Bowman (bass) and Tommy Ruskin (drums).
March 16 -- The Ted Rosenthal Trio featuring Rosenthal on piano.

With the exception of March 16, a Tuesday, all KCJW concerts fall on Mondays and will start at 7:00 p.m.

More on the KCJW for '98-99
While the '98-99 KCJW season may not be loaded with names familiar to KC audiences, it is nonetheless studded with jazz artists with impeccable credentials. Junior Mance has worked with everyone from Dizzy Gillespie to Lester Young and has 30 albums under his own name; Harry Allen has appeared with Kenny Barron, Bucky and John Pizzarelli, and Randy Sandke (only in his 30s, Allen has already recorded half a dozen albums); Terry Harrington has played with (and conducted for) Mel Torme', Sarah Vaughan and Doc Severinsen and has worked on over 50 TV shows; Skip Peck and wife Donna have been touring together since 1973 and have five CDs to their credit; Phil Wilson has performed with Buddy Rich, Louis Armstrong and Joe Williams and has enjoyed a lengthy teaching career at the Berklee College of Music in Boston; Jimmy Seeley is a native of the Midwest (Horton, KS), is now based in New York, and has appeared with Ray Charles among others; and Ted Rosenthal, a Concord recording artist, last appeared at the KCJW with Trudy Desmond and has backed Art Farmer and Wynton Marsalis.

Kansas City Jazz Workshop season tickets are $75. They will also be available individually in advance and at the door at a higher per concert price. A bonus for season ticket holders this year will be free parking on concert nights in the basement garage of the Marriott. If the Marriott garage fills up, the Barney Allis parking facility across the street will be available without charge to season ticket holders.

"The Kansas City Jazz Workshop, a unit of the Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors, is a non-profit organization dedicated to keeping good jazz alive in Kansas City," says KCJW president, Mike Ning. "Our concerts also provide scholarship funds for the jazz program at UMKC's Conservatory of Music." Ning is one of several people you can contact about season tickets. They are:

Mike and Sherry Ning -- 816-436-0318
Ginney Coleman -- 816-737-3627
Bill Fogarty -- 913-649-7791

And Then There's That Great Sale...
The Kansas City Jazz Workshop's annual fund-raiser sale of jazz records is set for Sunday, August 23, noon to 4:00 p.m. at the Blue Ridge Mall, 4200 Blue Ridge Blvd. Money raised from the event is used to underwrite the Jazz Workshop's annual series of jazz concerts (see above) and to contribute to scholarship funds for jazz students at UMKC's Conservatory of Music.

"We need two things to make this jazz record sale a success," says Mike Ning, KCJW president. "We need donations of jazz records to enlarge our inventory, and we need lovers of recorded jazz to come out and shop for some great bargains. We're looking for CDs, LPs, cassettes, even eight-track tapes and 78s."

Gifts of jazz (and classical) records to KCJW are tax deductible.

This event is more than just a sale. Ning, a popular area jazz pianist, will also assemble a group that will perform at the mall. At the '97 sale, prominent local players sat in.

Call any of these Kansas City Jazz Workshop directors to work out a pickup time and place for your gift of jazz records:

Bill Fogarty -- 649-7791
Don McCoy -- 451-8345
Ginney Coleman -- 737-3627
Mike and Sherry Ning -- 436-0318
Bill and Linda Smith -- 761-9533
Verne Christensen -- 764-3803
Bob and Pat Rodina -- 587-9081
Joe and Jac Gradinger --642-9482
Don and Barb Mathewson -- 345-0510
Ann Hoy -- 491-8677

"Last year's sale was a big success," says Ning, "thanks in great part to a gift of several thousand jazz LPs in excellent condition by long-time jazz lover and record collector Leonard Koenigsdorf. We know that this time we can't depend on such a lavish donation, so we are counting on Kansas City area jazz record owners to review their collections and donate whatever they can. It's for a great cause and will be greatly appreciated.

"The 1997 sale also became a great jazz party," Ning adds. "Many of our jazz pals who came to shop for records stayed to enjoy the music played by our live quartet and the excellent players who sat in. We'll be trying again for that same fine ambiance."

Questions? Call Mike or Sherry Ning at 436-0318, Bill Fogarty at 649-7791.

"Ain't Misbehavin'" at the Heartland
The Tony Award winning Fats Waller jazz musical, "Ain't Misbehavin'" continues to delight audiences at the American Heartland Theater. Running from July 10 through September 6, the current production at the Heartland features, as a part of its talented cast, KC's Queen Bey.
"After a local and national search," says Lilli Zarda, Executive Director of the theater, "we have assembled an exceptional cast of talented and accomplished artists. Every member of the cast and creative team is highly respected."

Along with Ms. Bey, the cast includes Michael J. Bobbitt, John Steven Crowley, Cynthia Thomas and Kara-Tameika Watkins. "T'Ain't Nobody's Biz-ness If I Do" and "Honeysuckle Rose" are two of the memorable tunes from this classic musical. Tickets for upcoming shows may be purchased either by phone at 842-9999, or in person at the theater box office located on the third level of the Crown Center Shops. Group rates are also available. Call 842-0202 for more information about that.

Performances are Tuesday through Saturday at 8:00 p.m. and on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. The American Heartland Theater is located in Crown Center, 2450 Grand. For additional ticket information, call 842-9999.

(Ed. Note: Local media personalities Walt Bodine and Charles Ferruzza will host a fundraising benefit for Queen Bey on Saturday, August 22. The event will take place in the American Heartland Theater's VIP suite beginning at 7:00 p.m., desserts and coffee will be served, and there will be a cash bar. Curtain time for that night's performance of "Ain't Misbehavin'" will be at 8:00 p.m. Tickets for this special event are $30 and can be purchased by calling 842-0202.)

N.A.R.A.S. & K.C.
The LaVerne Barker Memorial Fund has invited Mike Greene, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, to speak to Kansas City's recording musicians in a town hall style meeting on Friday, September 11, 12:30-2:30 p.m. at the Mutual Musicians Foundation, 1823 Highland. All area recording musicians, video artists and interested business leaders are invited to attend this meeting and complimentary luncheon.

According to singer/songwriter and N.A.R.A.S. member David Basse, the goal of this event is "to encourage increased participation in the arts by taking the preliminary steps toward eligibility for the status of a Recording Academy branch office in Kansas City." Volunteers from the Mutual Musicians Foundation and others, says Basse, will assist in compiling data, canvassing local musicians for eligibility for voting membership, and structuring a successful N.A.R.A.S. membership drive.

Saxophonist and MMF chairman Ahmad Alaadeen is excited about this opportunity.

"The Foundation is pleased to host such an event. With the renaissance of Kansas City's jazz district, having a Grammy branch office in Kansas City would be the icing on the cake."

"The fact that Mike Greene is coming to Kansas City says a lot about the recording scene here," adds Basse. "This is the chance of a lifetime for the recording community of Kansas City."

For further information, call either 1-800-811-2489 or (816) 753-2692.

Jeff City Jazz
Missouri's state capital will be swinging the weekend of September 11-12. On Friday the 11th there will be the First Annual Jazz Education Forum: Women in Jazz 2000, a series of workshops and panel discussions that will address the challenges facing working female jazz musicians as well as those who are contemplating a career in music. The moderator will be the KCJA's own Toni Oliver, a veteran jazz singer and board member of the Mutual Musicians Foundation. Others appearing will be Telarc recording artist Kristin Korb, jazz flutist Holly Hofmann, Detroit songwriter, arranger and vocalist Kathy Kosins, and KC's Fanny Scott of ASR Records. The event will take place at the Hotel DeVille in Jefferson City. Then on Saturday the 12th, the 7th Annual Capital Jazzfest and Children's Expo will take place on the Capital Lawn. This year's guests include Ellis Marsalis, Nicholas Payton, Kristin Korb, the B-Sharp Quartet, the Camdenton High School Jazz Band and the Lincoln University Jazz Ensemble. The music starts at 2:00 p.m., admission is free. Like to know more? Call 573-635-5720.

A Winning Duo
Noted area jazz musicians Angela Hagenbach and Joe Cartwright will soon be representing KC jazz abroad. The jazz duo (Hagenbach on vocals, Cartwright on piano) has been selected to tour Africa as part of the U.S. Information Agency's (USIA) Jazz Ambassador Touring Program. The twosome was one of seven such duos selected from 27 finalists in a nationwide search by the USIA to represent the United States as Jazz Ambassadors. Hagenbach and Cartwright will tour early this fall and will give concerts and workshops under official U.S. government auspices. Just prior to their departure for Africa, the duo will perform a concert on September 17 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. The five week tour, which begins September 21, includes performances in Mozambique, Swaziland, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mauritius.

"I eagerly await the moment when I can embrace the motherland," says Hagenbach. "What an incredible cycle this will be: we bring our African-influenced jazz to them and return with an infusion of new inspiration from our African experience."

"This is a tremendous opportunity to expose Africans to Kansas City-style jazz," says Cartwright, "not to mention what an exciting learning experience this cultural exchange will be for Angela and me."

For a complete African tour schedule, visit the Amazon Records website at www.amazonrecords.com on or after August 1. Also, check the website for location photos during the tour plus local and regional performance schedules.

Native Sons Receive First Jazz Awards
On June 15 the first annual New York Jazz Awards honored prominent jazz artists at New York's Alice Tully Hall. Among the winners in 24 categories were Sonny Rollins (Improviser of the Year), the Mingus Big Band (Big Bands) and Kenny Barron (Keyboardist). Sharing the award for "Recording of the Year" were T.S. Monk (Monk to Monk) and Charlie Haden and KC's Pat Metheny for their collaboration, Beyond the Missouri Sky. Also, KC's Kevin Mahogany shared the spotlight with the legendary Joe Williams as "Best Male Jazz Vocalist." As always, Kansas City continues to be well represented on the international jazz stage.

Back in the Saddle
After a nine month stay in New York City as a winner of the National Arts Journalism Program Fellowship at Columbia University, jazz critic Calvin Wilson has returned to his post as arts and entertainment writer at The Kansas City Star. And what has become of Wilson's interim replacement Lee Hill Kavanaugh, who did such a bang-up job of filling in? "I've gone from full-time temporary jazz writer to full-time permanent features writer," she tells us. "Plus, because there is no longer the implication of a conflict of interest, I am now free to play local gigs!" (Kavanaugh is a bass trombonist who has worked with Diva: No Man's Band and was once a member of the North Texas State "One O'clock Lab Band.") The KC jazz community regains a fine jazz writer, and an excellent bass trombonist is ready to play. It's a no-lose situation for all.

Got News? Got Notes? Please send to: Editor/JAM, P.O. Box 36181, Kansas City, MO 64171-6181. Deadline for all submissions is the 15th of each odd numbered month.

RETURN TO AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 1998 MAIN INDEX

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© Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2001. All rights reserved.






	Search our site:		A New Home for the KCJW The Kansas City Jazz Workshop has announced its lineup for 1998-99 as well as a new site for the upcoming season. After five years at UMKC's Pierson Hall, KCJW concerts will now take place at the 12th Street Rag Room of the Hotel Marriott, 12th and Wyandotte Here is the lineup for '98-99. (An additional concert featuring a top local group will be announced at a later date.) September 14 -- The Junior Mance Trio with Mance (piano), Keeter Betts (bass) and Jackie Williams (drums). October 5 -- Harry Allen (tenor) and Terry Harrington (tenor/clarinet) backed by KC's Danny Embrey (guitar), Paul Smith (piano), Bob Bowman (bass) and Tommy Ruskin (drums). November 9 -- The Skip Peck Quartet featuring Donna Peck. February 8, 1999 -- Phil Wilson (trombone) and Jimmy Seeley (trumpet) backed by Paul Smith (piano), Danny Embrey (guitar), Bob Bowman (bass) and Tommy Ruskin (drums). March 16 -- The Ted Rosenthal Trio featuring Rosenthal on piano. With the exception of March 16, a Tuesday, all KCJW concerts fall on Mondays and will start at 7:00 p.m. More on the KCJW for '98-99 While the '98-99 KCJW season may not be loaded with names familiar to KC audiences, it is nonetheless studded with jazz artists with impeccable credentials. Junior Mance has worked with everyone from Dizzy Gillespie to Lester Young and has 30 albums under his own name; Harry Allen has appeared with Kenny Barron, Bucky and John Pizzarelli, and Randy Sandke (only in his 30s, Allen has already recorded half a dozen albums); Terry Harrington has played with (and conducted for) Mel Torme', Sarah Vaughan and Doc Severinsen and has worked on over 50 TV shows; Skip Peck and wife Donna have been touring together since 1973 and have five CDs to their credit; Phil Wilson has performed with Buddy Rich, Louis Armstrong and Joe Williams and has enjoyed a lengthy teaching career at the Berklee College of Music in Boston; Jimmy Seeley is a native of the Midwest (Horton, KS), is now based in New York, and has appeared with Ray Charles among others; and Ted Rosenthal, a Concord recording artist, last appeared at the KCJW with Trudy Desmond and has backed Art Farmer and Wynton Marsalis. Kansas City Jazz Workshop season tickets are $75. They will also be available individually in advance and at the door at a higher per concert price. A bonus for season ticket holders this year will be free parking on concert nights in the basement garage of the Marriott. If the Marriott garage fills up, the Barney Allis parking facility across the street will be available without charge to season ticket holders. "The Kansas City Jazz Workshop, a unit of the Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors, is a non-profit organization dedicated to keeping good jazz alive in Kansas City," says KCJW president, Mike Ning. "Our concerts also provide scholarship funds for the jazz program at UMKC's Conservatory of Music." Ning is one of several people you can contact about season tickets. They are: Mike and Sherry Ning -- 816-436-0318 Ginney Coleman -- 816-737-3627 Bill Fogarty -- 913-649-7791 And Then There's That Great Sale... The Kansas City Jazz Workshop's annual fund-raiser sale of jazz records is set for Sunday, August 23, noon to 4:00 p.m. at the Blue Ridge Mall, 4200 Blue Ridge Blvd. Money raised from the event is used to underwrite the Jazz Workshop's annual series of jazz concerts (see above) and to contribute to scholarship funds for jazz students at UMKC's Conservatory of Music. "We need two things to make this jazz record sale a success," says Mike Ning, KCJW president. "We need donations of jazz records to enlarge our inventory, and we need lovers of recorded jazz to come out and shop for some great bargains. We're looking for CDs, LPs, cassettes, even eight-track tapes and 78s." Gifts of jazz (and classical) records to KCJW are tax deductible. This event is more than just a sale. Ning, a popular area jazz pianist, will also assemble a group that will perform at the mall. At the '97 sale, prominent local players sat in. Call any of these Kansas City Jazz Workshop directors to work out a pickup time and place for your gift of jazz records: Bill Fogarty -- 649-7791 Don McCoy -- 451-8345 Ginney Coleman -- 737-3627 Mike and Sherry Ning -- 436-0318 Bill and Linda Smith -- 761-9533 Verne Christensen -- 764-3803 Bob and Pat Rodina -- 587-9081 Joe and Jac Gradinger --642-9482 Don and Barb Mathewson -- 345-0510 Ann Hoy -- 491-8677 "Last year's sale was a big success," says Ning, "thanks in great part to a gift of several thousand jazz LPs in excellent condition by long-time jazz lover and record collector Leonard Koenigsdorf. We know that this time we can't depend on such a lavish donation, so we are counting on Kansas City area jazz record owners to review their collections and donate whatever they can. It's for a great cause and will be greatly appreciated. "The 1997 sale also became a great jazz party," Ning adds. "Many of our jazz pals who came to shop for records stayed to enjoy the music played by our live quartet and the excellent players who sat in. We'll be trying again for that same fine ambiance." Questions? Call Mike or Sherry Ning at 436-0318, Bill Fogarty at 649-7791. "Ain't Misbehavin'" at the Heartland The Tony Award winning Fats Waller jazz musical, "Ain't Misbehavin'" continues to delight audiences at the American Heartland Theater. Running from July 10 through September 6, the current production at the Heartland features, as a part of its talented cast, KC's Queen Bey. "After a local and national search," says Lilli Zarda, Executive Director of the theater, "we have assembled an exceptional cast of talented and accomplished artists. Every member of the cast and creative team is highly respected." Along with Ms. Bey, the cast includes Michael J. Bobbitt, John Steven Crowley, Cynthia Thomas and Kara-Tameika Watkins. "T'Ain't Nobody's Biz-ness If I Do" and "Honeysuckle Rose" are two of the memorable tunes from this classic musical. Tickets for upcoming shows may be purchased either by phone at 842-9999, or in person at the theater box office located on the third level of the Crown Center Shops. Group rates are also available. Call 842-0202 for more information about that. Performances are Tuesday through Saturday at 8:00 p.m. and on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. The American Heartland Theater is located in Crown Center, 2450 Grand. For additional ticket information, call 842-9999. (Ed. Note: Local media personalities Walt Bodine and Charles Ferruzza will host a fundraising benefit for Queen Bey on Saturday, August 22. The event will take place in the American Heartland Theater's VIP suite beginning at 7:00 p.m., desserts and coffee will be served, and there will be a cash bar. Curtain time for that night's performance of "Ain't Misbehavin'" will be at 8:00 p.m. Tickets for this special event are $30 and can be purchased by calling 842-0202.) N.A.R.A.S. & K.C. The LaVerne Barker Memorial Fund has invited Mike Greene, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, to speak to Kansas City's recording musicians in a town hall style meeting on Friday, September 11, 12:30-2:30 p.m. at the Mutual Musicians Foundation, 1823 Highland. All area recording musicians, video artists and interested business leaders are invited to attend this meeting and complimentary luncheon. According to singer/songwriter and N.A.R.A.S. member David Basse, the goal of this event is "to encourage increased participation in the arts by taking the preliminary steps toward eligibility for the status of a Recording Academy branch office in Kansas City." Volunteers from the Mutual Musicians Foundation and others, says Basse, will assist in compiling data, canvassing local musicians for eligibility for voting membership, and structuring a successful N.A.R.A.S. membership drive. Saxophonist and MMF chairman Ahmad Alaadeen is excited about this opportunity. "The Foundation is pleased to host such an event. With the renaissance of Kansas City's jazz district, having a Grammy branch office in Kansas City would be the icing on the cake." "The fact that Mike Greene is coming to Kansas City says a lot about the recording scene here," adds Basse. "This is the chance of a lifetime for the recording community of Kansas City." For further information, call either 1-800-811-2489 or (816) 753-2692. Jeff City Jazz Missouri's state capital will be swinging the weekend of September 11-12. On Friday the 11th there will be the First Annual Jazz Education Forum: Women in Jazz 2000, a series of workshops and panel discussions that will address the challenges facing working female jazz musicians as well as those who are contemplating a career in music. The moderator will be the KCJA's own Toni Oliver, a veteran jazz singer and board member of the Mutual Musicians Foundation. Others appearing will be Telarc recording artist Kristin Korb, jazz flutist Holly Hofmann, Detroit songwriter, arranger and vocalist Kathy Kosins, and KC's Fanny Scott of ASR Records. The event will take place at the Hotel DeVille in Jefferson City. Then on Saturday the 12th, the 7th Annual Capital Jazzfest and Children's Expo will take place on the Capital Lawn. This year's guests include Ellis Marsalis, Nicholas Payton, Kristin Korb, the B-Sharp Quartet, the Camdenton High School Jazz Band and the Lincoln University Jazz Ensemble. The music starts at 2:00 p.m., admission is free. Like to know more? Call 573-635-5720. A Winning Duo Noted area jazz musicians Angela Hagenbach and Joe Cartwright will soon be representing KC jazz abroad. The jazz duo (Hagenbach on vocals, Cartwright on piano) has been selected to tour Africa as part of the U.S. Information Agency's (USIA) Jazz Ambassador Touring Program. The twosome was one of seven such duos selected from 27 finalists in a nationwide search by the USIA to represent the United States as Jazz Ambassadors. Hagenbach and Cartwright will tour early this fall and will give concerts and workshops under official U.S. government auspices. Just prior to their departure for Africa, the duo will perform a concert on September 17 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. The five week tour, which begins September 21, includes performances in Mozambique, Swaziland, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mauritius. "I eagerly await the moment when I can embrace the motherland," says Hagenbach. "What an incredible cycle this will be: we bring our African-influenced jazz to them and return with an infusion of new inspiration from our African experience." "This is a tremendous opportunity to expose Africans to Kansas City-style jazz," says Cartwright, "not to mention what an exciting learning experience this cultural exchange will be for Angela and me." For a complete African tour schedule, visit the Amazon Records website at www.amazonrecords.com on or after August 1. Also, check the website for location photos during the tour plus local and regional performance schedules. Native Sons Receive First Jazz Awards On June 15 the first annual New York Jazz Awards honored prominent jazz artists at New York's Alice Tully Hall. Among the winners in 24 categories were Sonny Rollins (Improviser of the Year), the Mingus Big Band (Big Bands) and Kenny Barron (Keyboardist). Sharing the award for "Recording of the Year" were T.S. Monk (Monk to Monk) and Charlie Haden and KC's Pat Metheny for their collaboration, Beyond the Missouri Sky. Also, KC's Kevin Mahogany shared the spotlight with the legendary Joe Williams as "Best Male Jazz Vocalist." As always, Kansas City continues to be well represented on the international jazz stage. Back in the Saddle After a nine month stay in New York City as a winner of the National Arts Journalism Program Fellowship at Columbia University, jazz critic Calvin Wilson has returned to his post as arts and entertainment writer at The Kansas City Star. And what has become of Wilson's interim replacement Lee Hill Kavanaugh, who did such a bang-up job of filling in? "I've gone from full-time temporary jazz writer to full-time permanent features writer," she tells us. "Plus, because there is no longer the implication of a conflict of interest, I am now free to play local gigs!" (Kavanaugh is a bass trombonist who has worked with Diva: No Man's Band and was once a member of the North Texas State "One O'clock Lab Band.") The KC jazz community regains a fine jazz writer, and an excellent bass trombonist is ready to play. It's a no-lose situation for all. Got News? Got Notes? Please send to: Editor/JAM, P.O. Box 36181, Kansas City, MO 64171-6181. Deadline for all submissions is the 15th of each odd numbered month. RETURN TO AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 1998 MAIN INDEX ------------------------------------------------------------------------ © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2001. All rights reserved.