[jja-announce] NCC, Jazz Awards, national meeting June 15, more

[Jazzmandel at aol.com]

Hey, JJA members -- (warning: this is long))

The National Critics Conference in LA last week was the platform for much 
exciting JJA programming, lively participation by about 3 dozen of us, and a 
great 3rd annual Left Coast Jazz Party at the Jazz Bakery, produced by Fred Jung 
(Kenny Burrell, Charlie Haden, Wadada Leo Smith, Gerald Wilson, Dr. Craig 
Springer, KJAZ, Freddie Redd, Joe McPhee, Bobby Bradford's sextet, Dwight Trible's 
quintet, Vinnie Golia's rockin' outband much in attendance). Details of all 
this are posted in my report at Jazzhouse.org, which seems to be provoking some 
discussion of "cultural tourism" -- add comments, as you like. 

Attentions turn to the JJA's 9th annual Jazz Awards, at B. B. King's in NYC 
on June 14. -- but know, too, there's a JJA National Meeting scheduled for 12 
noon on June 15, at the New School 5th floor performance space, 55 W. 13th St., 
NYC. Refreshments will be served.

Now --  Jazz Awards tickets for members cost $50 (you can buy up to 5 at that 
price; otherwise, tickets are $150 apiece), can be reserved and paid for 
online via secure server at www.JazzJournalistsAwards.com and ought to be reserved 
right away for best seating..

You can also buy a supportive 3 line ad in the program book via 
JazzJournalistsAwards.com --  your name, specialty, phone or e-mail-- for $50, a nice way 
to be at the event if not in person.

 Music at the Awards will be by Nnenna Frelon's quartet, Jack DeJohnette solo 
drums, and Mingus Big Band's Sy Johnson with a specially commissioned 75th 
Birthday Suite for Septet, also trumpeter Maurice Brown-saxophonist Quamon 
Fowler and tenor saxophonist Bob Reynolds' two bands (Brown, Fowler and Reynolds 
being winners of ASCAP's Young Jazz Composers Competition). 

Supper, drinks, party favors, guest presenters include Terry Gross (NPR's 
Fresh Air), Kym Hampton (founding player in NY Liberty women's basketball team), 
Rupert Holmes (author most recently of Swing, which comes with a cd of his 
original music providing cluesto the mystery's solution; also a playwrite, 
composer-arranger-conductor-producer for Barbra Streisand), among others, and 
appearances by Clark Terry, Hank Jones, Roy Haynes, Sam Rivers, Marian McPartland, 
Dr. Billy Taylor, many significant other musicians, editors, publishers, 
writers, broadcasters, photographers, producers, presenters, publicists, label folk, 
retailers, aficionados and just plain citizens. 

The "Silent Auction of JJA Members' Classic and Contemporary Jazz 
Photography" is another highlight of the event -- payment for bids by check or charge 
card.

The Jazz Awards is a celebration of excellence -- not a competition. We hope 
that nominees, of whom there were *thousands* (complete list is prepared for 
Jazzhouse posting) and especially finalist nominees, who received the largest 
number of acknowledgements from the JJA's voting membership, understand that 
the presentation to one final "winner" is not remotely a dis of any of them, but 
rather a way to focus attention on the art of *all*, as exemplified *this 
year* by the activities of this *one.* 

It is a convention of polls such as our Awards to present receipients as 
victors, but I think they are representatives. Awards ought to convey continued 
responsibility to the field, and that includes not lording it over others as 
"best." Most of the true best are afflicted by genuine humility which prevents 
that, and jazz is a qualitative, not quantitative form of expression, so "bests" 
are wildly relative thus not functional determinations anyway. It is also the 
responsibility ( at least an option) of those who do not actually take home 
an Award for whichh they were nominated to understand that they have been 
honorable participants in giving honors and celebrating themselves, as part of a 
highly select field of accomplished, all deserving, artists.

The Jazz Awards (and the Left Coast Jazz Party) is a benefit for the Jazz 
Foundation of America's Musicians Emergency Fund and also the JJA's own 
educational initiatives. Upcoming JJA educational initiatives :

follow up and continuation of the Clarence Atkins Fellowship program, which 
hosted six strong and highly diverse jazz journalists at NCC (Jazzhouse will 
soon feature notes on the experience from fellows Cheryl Symister-Masterson, 
Robin James, Rahsaan Clark Morris, Michele Drayton, Laylah Barrayn and Bridget 
Arnwine).

JJA proposal (in draft form) of one-day JJA Jazz Journalism Symposium, with 
keynote speaker, multiple panels featuring the profession's veterans and 
current practitioners, workshop lunch, cocktail reception (aimed at professional 
peers and arts journalism students)

Online mentoring-peer education-writers' clinics programs, to be held at 
Jazzhouse.org

Curriculum development, contacts towards JJA members-in-the-schools and 
afterschool activities;

Jazz Matters panels continuing in New York and New England, established in 
Washington D.C., Chicago and West Coast (L.A., Bay Area, Vancouver).

The JJA has grown considerably in the past 12 months, and is poised to 
present more active, enjoyable, broadly enriching activities. We need sharp, 
efficient volunteers to work on all of the above programs. We get the best: most 
recently, Bay Area broadcaster, editor and art director Forrest Bryant took on 
redesigning Jazz Notes, and wait until you see what he and editor David Adler 
have done to elevate our Journal! Virginia Schaefer has been assiduously 
re-organizing the Jazzhouse Bookshop -- if your book is NOT up there, where it should 
be able to be bought in a couple of clicks through eJazzlines, get in touch 
with her (vaschaefer at hotmail.com). Other JJA members are doing this or that, all 
good.  Possibilities abound. 

Come to the Jazz Awards, and to the National (really, international; at least 
one of our European members has rsvp'd) meeting on Wednesday, June 15 (NOON) 
at the New School; buy a 3 line ad ($50, to support JJA initiatives and give 
yrself a bit of visibility), visit Jazzhouse.org, organize a local panel, be in 
touch -- 

best, more soon -- 

Howard