February 1-2 Sale to Benefit Madison Jazz Society School Grants Program

Madison Jazz Society (MJS) will hold a SUPER JAZZ BOOK & MORE SALE  on Friday, February 1 (2:00-6:00 PM) and Saturday, February 2 (10:00 AM-2:00 PM) as a fundraiser for the Society’s School Grants Fund.  The Fund annually awards grants to schools throughout the Greater Madison area and across Wisconsin to enhance their jazz education programs.  Among the $9,000 in grants awarded this past November were ones to support last month’s Madison All-City High School Jazz Festival and next month’s Sun Prairie High School Jazz Festival.  The Fund also supports things like purchase of jazz charts and instruments, clinician fees, artist-in-residence programs, and the like.

This sale will feature more than 500 jazz books that were recently donated to MJS, as well as a variety of CDs and records.  The books are in pristine condition and MJS assures shoppers that they will find something good to add to your library.

The sale will be held at the Drums ‘N Moore store, 6033 Monona Drive, second floor, in Monona.  Look for signs in front of the building that will direct you to the sale.  The building is next to Studio Z hair design.

Bobby Lewis September 16th

Oshkosh native Bobby Lewis and his Cats’n Jammers quintet kick off the Madison Jazz Society’s fall concert series  on September 16th at the Coliseum Bar, 232 E Olin Avenue, Madison.

Lewis graduated from UW-Madison and performed regularly in Madison while in school, many times with Doc DeHaven. Since moving to Chicago in 1961 he and has led several long-standing groups and is legendary for his warm, lyrical approach to the trumpet and flugelhorn.  In addition to leading bands, he teaches, composes and writes arrangements. To learn more about Lewis and his history check out this in-depth interview by ChicagoJazz. For more videos see Lewis’ youtube page.

Lewis’ band will the same players as in the video except for the bassist. On piano  will be Jim Ryan, who played keyboards for Al Jarreau on his Grammy Award-winning album All Fly Home.  Pat Mallinger, alto & tenor sax, toured with Artie Shaw and Woody Herman and is a member of the Jazz Mentors Sextet sponsored by the Ravinia Festival to develop and teach young jazz musicians in Chicago’s inner-city schools.  Drummer Jeff Stitely began his career in 1984, building a reputation by playing with Chick Corea, Wynton Marsalis, Larry Coryell, Von Freeman and many others.  Stewart Miller, bass, is a regular in jazz clubs, recording studios and festivals in and around Chicago and played with the Glenn Miller Orchestra in the early 1980s.

Date and Time : Sunday, September 16, 2012 from 1-4 p.m.

Location : Coliseum Bar, 232 E Olin Avenue, Madison.

Concert tickets are $20 for MJS members; $25 for non-members and those age 18 and younger are admitted free.  Doors open at noon.  Details can be found at www.madisonjazz.com or by calling 608-850-5400.

Capitol City Jazz Fest

Next weekend is a big one for traditional jazz fans in Madison. The 22nd annual Capital City Jazz Fest will be held April 23-25, 2010, at the Madison Quality Inn & Suites, 2969 Cahill Main, in Madison/Fitchburg. Performers will be the Jim Cullum Jazz Band, the Midiri Brothers Jazz Sextet, the Barbary Coast Dixieland Band and Red Lehr’s Powerhouse Five. 

For a schedule and more on the performers see the Madison Jazz Society web site. Tickets are $35/session but be aware the fest is almost sold out and no tickets remain for Saturday’s performances.

Madison Jazz Society Spring Concert Sampler

Traditional jazz lovers will want to mark their calendars for the recently announced Madison Jazz Society 2009 Spring Concert Series.

The Series opens with The Vagabond Reeds with special guest Brad Pregeant on Sunday, January 25. Brad is a terrific stride style jazz pianist who lived in Madison for many years and moved last year to Colorado. He will join the Vagabond reeds featuring reedmen David MacGregor and Harold Smith on clarinet, curved soprano sax, and bass clarinet. Check out this video, they’re having some fun!