[jja-announce] is it working yet? We think so. . .

[Jazzmandel at aol.com]

Hi everybody -- this is partially a test, because JJA-announce and 
Members-announce at jazzhouse.org have been out-of-service for the past couple weeks due to 
a hardware crash. Now webmaster Whit tells me it's all been fixed, so . . . 

The real content here is that after establishing and maintaining for several 
years -- 6? 7? 8? I'm not sure -- the Last Post, the JJA's valued obituary 
center, Kenny Mathieson has decided to retire from those responsibilities. 
Consequently, we need a new voluntary Last Post editor, who has access to immediate 
news of the deaths of jazz and jazz-related musicians and cultural figures 
worldwide, and can dependably turn out clear, concise bios of them. If you want 
to apply for this well regarded but as yet unpaid job, please send me a note by 
return e-mail. 

Other news of upcoming JJA events -- we will have some sort of panel 
discussion at the Chicago Jazz Festival, over Labor Day weekend; time place and topic 
to be determined. We'll also have the annual JJA brunch (maybe a change from 
dim sum, though that usually goes down easy).  We are pleased to point you to 
the 10th annual Guelph Festival in Ontario on the week after Labor Day, and 
also to announce that the Charle Parker Jazz Festival in NYC has been saved from 
extinction; it occurs in Tompkins Square Park on Aug. 24, with Chas. McPherson 
and Arthur Blythe among the headliners (like the Chgo Jazz Fest, it's free). 
Other upcoming notable jazz fests include the one in Tanglewood, in the 
Berkshires, toward the end of Aug. Anyone interested in organizing JJA 
meetings/panels/feasts at any of these events is encouraged to do so. Need help? Write 
back. 

best, Pres HM