Live on Stage: Musicians, Singers…and All That Jazz!

By JBFC Marketing Volunteer Dotty Battel

We cannot think of a better way to usher in June, the month of love and marriage, than by spending an exhilarating evening with us (and your special someone) immersed in the sights and sounds of great jazz! Here are 3 special programs (part of our annual series Jazz Sessions) that will get your heart singing and your toes tapping. So take your pick, or better yet, enjoy them all. Tickets are on sale now!

Thursday, June 2, 7:30:
Cole Sings Cole, featuring Alexis Cole & her Trio
The best of both worlds: a Cole Porter songbook on screen and on stage! First, immerse yourself in one of Will Friedwald’s “Clip Joint” shows, an innovative “live video mixtape experience,” that BroadwayWorld.com calls “one of New York’s most entertaining open secrets.” The “Clip Joint” show tracks the evolution of Cole Porter’s music, from show tunes to jazz and bebop.

Then sit back and listen to a live performance of his songs by Alexis Cole, with a voice “as smooth and dark as the richest espresso” (Jazz Times) and her trio. Check out this video to hear her sing. It will be music to your ears!

Thursday, June 9, 7:30:
Sound of Redemption: The Frank Morgan Story, featuring saxophonist Grace Kelly
The late great jazz saxophonist Frank Morgan‘s tale of redemption from drug addict, conman, and convict to beloved elder statesman of jazz “joins the pantheon of the greatest jazz documentaries of all time” (Tom Roche, music journalist). An accomplished sax player while still in his teens, and a protégé of bebop virtuoso Charlie “Bird” Parker, Morgan descended into a life of addiction and crime and spent many years in San Quentin, along with many other jazz musicians who were also “in residence.” In fact, they were allowed to form a band called The San Quentin All Stars and gave performances for area residents.

The film hinges on Morgan’s life once he triumphed over his addiction, his creative renewal as a gifted musician and mentor, and the preparation and performance of a tribute concert in a prison. Saxophonist Grace Kelly, a protégé of Morgan’s, brings down the house with her soulful rendition of “Over the Rainbow.”

And, the very same Grace Kelly (“charismatic and immensely talented…all the chops in the world” [Downbeat Magazine]) will bring down our house in a live performance with her Jazz Trio following the film! “Grace Kelly plays with intelligence, wit and feeling…..the hallmarks of a first-class jazz musician.” (Wynton Marsalis)

Listen to Kelly’s joyous sound and her thoughts about her music:

Wednesday, June 1, 7:30:
Syncopation, with an intro by Charles S. Cohen and a musical bonus!
Syncopation, released in 1942 and beautifully restored by the Cohen Film Collection, covers a lot of ground! Featuring jazz greats Benny Goodman, Gene Krupa, Harry James, and many more, this exuberant film chronicles the evolution of American “syncopated” music (ragtime, swing, blues, and boogie woogie) from the turn of the 20^th century, through prohibition, the Great Depression, and the outbreak of WWII. Following the migration of Jazz from New Orleans to Chicago, the journey is told through a fictional narrative with characters that you will be rooting for.

And here’s the bonus: 2 pretty amazing shorts! A Bundle of Blues (1933) with Duke Ellington and Symphony in Black: A Rhapsody of Negro Life (1935) with Billie Holiday, “which is nine and a half minutes of pure cinematic and aural bliss.” (Eric Melin, Scene-Stealers.com)

Introduction by Charles S. Cohen, who formed the Cohen Media Group in 2008, and under whose stewardship and vision, this film has been preserved.

Jazz Sessions is sponsored by Adam R. Rose and Peter R. McQuillan