Appreciate The Opportunities Jazz Gives Us
JazzFC seminar, UConn concert help and inspire colleagues and listeners
The University of Connecticut’s jazz studies faculty will be premiering their ambitious Jazz & Justice Suite Tuesday at the UConn campus at Storrs. It’s an exemplar of how jazz can tackle the most profound issues of our lives and help us try to make sense of them. (image courtesy Earl MacDonald, UConn)
Hey, whaddaya know – April is “Jazz Appreciation Month.”
In my deepest philosophical moments, I tend to eschew the idea of every day or week or month having some sort of affiliated celebration dreamed up by some marketing schlub – each moment should be appreciated for what it is – and even the artificial construct of the linear measurement of time itself. But I digress.
So, it is indeed Jazz Appreciation Month (originated in 2001 by the National Museum of American History), and we will darn well appreciate it.
At its best, of course, jazz, and all music, does not just supply us with pleasant melodies that make us happier and energize us. It helps us to navigate the world better, to want to know more, feel more deeply. To be better people.
Two events in the 8495 stand out this month to highlight how our regional jazz artists want to deepen our appreciation for the genre. One of these, a free afternoon-long seminar from the Jazz Society of Fairfield County on “The Business of the Beat,” which will be held April 30, is intended to help the next generation of practitioners learn how to create a realistic economic path for themselves as they pursue their musical passion.
The other, which will be presented 8 pm Tuesday night at the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs, is an ambitious concert called Jazz & Justice Suite: A Multi-Movement Declaration. It’s a seven-movement suite of original works by UConn faculty members, with each movement inspired by an article from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and honoring an historical figure or movement.
Each of these, to this old skeptic, exemplify the community spirit our resident jazz artists live day in and day out.
“Business of the Beat”
The Jazz Society of Fairfield County already does plenty of community outreach. They sponsor an annual scholarship for music students pursuing their art at college. They bring live jazz to schools and senior homes and community centers. And for Greg Wall, JazzFC’s president and artistic director, offering career savvy to fellow musicians is just part of the society’s mission.
“This is really why I wanted to have the non-profit,” Greg told 8495Jazz. He himself learned through what he called “the time and opportunity to make as many mistakes as possible,” but he also said he had always had a knack for finding a way, going back to a newspaper delivery route he had as a kid.
Talent and opportunity met when he came to New York after graduating from the New England Conservatory. He had started a band that performed good trad jazz. They landed a spot in a management company’s roster of mainly classical acts, and a couple positive reviews from the New York papers; they ended up getting regular bookings to the point he was able to establish health insurance and retirement plans for the band. A little later in his career, he hired Boston-based publicist Ann Braithwaite, who landed him stories from the BBC and the Wall Street Journal, things he said he never could have managed by himself.
The seminar will feature advice on promotion basics, including self-promotion and how to work with a publicist, from Jim Eigo of Jazz Promo Services; booking strategies for self-managed artists from Svetlana Shmulyian, whom Greg said is also a musician herself; financial planning tips from Jonathan Brochstein of Weston Wealth Advisors; and a concluding keynote from alto saxophonist Vincent Herring on “keeping it all together.”
The seminar starts with networking at 11:45 am April 30, with Greg’s welcome talk at 12:15, and Vincent’s keynote scheduled for 4 pm. Lunch will be available for purchase. For a registration link – and space is limited, so don’t dawdle – click here.
After the seminar, Vincent will join Greg, who plays the tenor sax, at the Thursday Night Jazz At The Post show.
Jazz & Justice
The UConn faculty members presenting this ambitious work – Leala Cyr on vocals, John Mastroianni on alto sax, Louis Hanzlik on trumpet, Evan Gray on trombone, Scott Sasanecki on guitar, UConn jazz studies director Earl MacDonald on piano, Steve Bulmer on bass, and Jonathan Barber on drums – are well-known to jazz fans in the region. The work itself promises to serve as a reminder of the basic rights each of us have, rights that should be universally recognized.
“Through composition, narration, and improvisation, each piece interprets a specific human rights issue – from racial justice and political participation to gender equality, environmental advocacy, and the right to education,” the program’s promo material tells us. “This suite responds musically to the call for justice, offering a deeply personal, expressive, and intellectually compelling experience.”
Just as an example of how each of the seven movements honor a different aspect of the UDHR, Earl’s “No Exceptions” movement honors the declaration’s Article 7: “All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law.” The inspiration for the movement is the history of racial justice and civil rights struggles in the United States, past and present, honoring the legacy and ongoing fight for equal protection under the law. Leala Cyr’s “We Are” honors Article 27, which states “Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts…”, and is inspired by women’s rights and women in jazz and the arts.
The concert, which will be emceed by James Waller, acting director of the university’s Gladstein Family Human Rights Institute, will be at the von der Mehden Recital Hall, and GA cost is just $15.
Anybody who has followed the arts for any length of time should see tremendous potential for this to be presented at schools, theaters, community centers, you name it, as an exemplar of music’s holistic power. Earl agreed with my assessment about its potential.
“I see real potential for this project to have a long life,” he said. “I’m treating this first concert as a trial run—an opportunity to see how it lands and then build from there if it connects. The music is thoughtful, well-crafted, and stylistically unified while still offering plenty of variety. It’s going to be strong.
“We don’t have additional performances booked with this exact group just yet, but I’m exploring a few grant opportunities that could help take the project to the next level and sustain it over time.”
This week’s 8495Jazz Wild Card Gig of the Week features Javon Jackson’s record release gig for his Jackson Plays Dylan album at Scullers in Boston on Friday. For “Forever Young,” he brings in another Connecticut star, Grammy winner Nicole Zuraitis.
Out and About with 8495Jazz
These listings are a curated sampling of shows in the region. As an independent resource for jazz news, 8495Jazz does not receive any consideration, free tickets, or affiliate fees for these listings. Please confirm events are still happening directly with the venue.
8495Jazz Wild Card Gig of the Week
Scullers, Boston, MA
Jackson Plays Dylan Record Release (sax, combo), Friday, April 10, 7 pm. Javon Jackson, director of jazz studies at the Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz at the University of Hartford, shares his take on the Nobel laureate from Hibbing. Friday’s shows are the first celebrating the new album. GA $42.45 - $64.85 including service fees.
8495Jazz Spur of the Moment Gig TODAY
The Parlour, Providence, RI
Parlour First Sunday Jazz Jam, 6 pm. Easter is pretty quiet, but The Parlour’s regular jam is still on. House band set from the Ben Shaw Quartet, followed by open jam. GA $10, jammers $5.
Other Upcoming Shows
Firehouse 12, New Haven, CT
Amanda Monaco’s Deathblow (guitar, combo), Friday, April 10, 3, 8:30 and 10 pm. GA $20 for the 8:30 show, $15 for 10 pm show.
VFW Post 399, Westport, CT
Alma Micic (vocals, combo), Thursday, April 9, 7:30 and 8:45 pm. GA $20.76, student/vet $15.76 for 7:30 show, GA $10.76 for 8:45 show.
Chan’s, Woonsocket, RI
David Hines Quartet (bass, combo) w/guest jazz violinist Tamoko Iwamoto, Friday, April 10, 8 pm. GA $15 in advance, $20 at the door.
Arlington, MA (various sites)
2026 Arlington Jazz Festival, Wednesday, April 8 – Sunday, April 12. Free and ticketed shows.
Regattabar, Cambridge, MA
Lazlo Gardony Quartet feat. Don Braden, Yoron Israel and John Lockwood (piano, combo), Friday, April 10, 7:30 pm. GA $30.15 - $41.79 including service fees.
Jazz Forum Arts, Tarrytown, NY
Helen Sung Oracle Quartet (piano, combo), Friday, April 10 and Saturday, April 11, 7 and 9:30 pm. GA $37.75, students $32.50 including service fee.
The Side Door, Old Lyme, CT
Blues On The Corner: McCoy Tyner Legacy Band, Friday, April 10, 8 pm. GA $59.75, students $27.98 including service fee.
Real Art Ways, Hartford, CT
Instantiations w/ Melanie Dyer (improv viola and combo), Sunday, April 12, 2:30 pm. GA $16.50 including service fee.
Jams
Cafe Nine, New Haven CT
New Haven Jazz Underground jam, usually 2nd and 4th Tuesday of every month: free admission
Saturday jazz jam most Saturdays, 4 pm. Free.
Blackeyed Sally’s, Hartford, CT
Jazz Wednesdays, featured set 7 pm, jam session afterward.
Carmine’s, East Hartford, CT
Paisley’s All Star Memorial Jam, various Tuesdays, click link for dates, 7:30 pm. House band set followed by jam. Free.
Mahoney’s, Poughkeepsie, NY
Poughkeepsie Jazz Project, every Tuesday, 7 pm. Free.
Park City Music Hall, Bridgeport, CT
Scott Cushman and Friends followed by jam, first Wednesday of the month.
The Parlour, Providence, RI
First Sunday Jam (first Sunday of the month) with Ben Shaw Quartet followed by jam, music starts at 6. Jammers $5, audience $10.
Groton Hill Music Center, Groton, MA
Jams every second Tuesday of the month through June, 7 pm. $10 at the door, no advance sales.
Jazz Societies and Organizations (great info on events, festivals, and more)
Jazz Society of Fairfield County
Jazz Fridays at Three Sheets New Haven 1st/3rd Fridays from 6-9pm
Jazz Thursdays at The Cannon New Haven every other Thurs from 7-9pm.
8495Jazz takes its name from the two Interstate highways that cross our region, I-84 and I-95. Within short driving distances from either, you can find incredible entertainment, from local jams to world-famous festivals in New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. 8495Jazz: From Newburgh to Newport!
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Litchfield faculty All statrs at Gunnetry A[pril 3