11th ANNUAL CENTRAL BROOKLYN JAZZ FESTIVAL, “EXPRESSIONS OF YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson The celebration of the Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium’s 11th Anniversary year cannot be taken lightly. Brother JiTu Weusi and the CBJC committee have left nothing to chance in commemorating this momentous sequence of events, as the following EVENT ALERT proves: THE CENTRAL BROOKLYN JAZZ CONSORTIUM in conjunction with Medgar Evers College’s W.E.B. DuBOIS - RALPH BUNCH CENTER present: The Jazz and Justice Project  “Where is Jazz Going”? The project will explore Social Justice Issues and their relationship to African-American music and culture. It is a Seminar/ forum discussing the past and future of Jazz/African-American classical music in America and the world. DATE: Saturday, April 10th, 2010 TIME: 2pm- 6pm PLACE: Medgar Evers College Auditorium              1650 Bedford Ave. (corner of Crown St) .FREE ADMISSION Live music to follow discussion.      . PARTIPANTS INCLUDE::   Moderator: Basir Mchawi    Producer-“Education at the Crossroads” (WBAI-99.5 Fm radio Thurs 7pm / Chairperson, International African Arts Festival   Invited Panelists include: Rudi Mwongozi- CBJC member ,Jazz pianist, from Oakland California, innovator Donald Sangster- Chairperson, Andy Kirk Research Foundation, Jazz  Historian Howard Mandel- President, Jazz Journalist Association-Author “Miles Ornette Cecil; Jazz Beyond Jazz” Joanne Cheatham- Publisher, Pure Jazz Magazine Delridge Hunter- Prof. of History, Medgar Evers College, CUNY Grace Metivier- Chairperson, Wynton Kelly Jazz Foundation Yoichi Uzeki- Pianist, Instructor in Jazz studies at York College, Queens For a full listing of festival events, log on to www.cbjcjazz.org.   CENTRAL BROOKLYN’s JAZZ CONSORTIUM’S mission is to serve as an integral part of Medgar Evers College, and tie into the college’s lifelong intellectual tradition through the amalgamation of music and performing arts, thereby becoming an even more integral part of the surrounding communities. Both Medgar Evers College and the Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium were created by and for the needs of the community of Brooklyn. By joining together in their efforts, they not only serve the intellectual needs, but their musical, creative expression and cultural needs as well. That these two great organizations are devoted to serving the Brooklyn community does not in any way preclude their global impact in the realm of music, culture and education. Their impact has had world wide implications. Brooklynites in particular, along with people who love, respect, appreciate and are practioner of our culture are urged to come and be part of the dialogue, be part of history and the continuity. What a shame it would be to have all this treasure in your presence and everyone benefits from it but you. Make your contribution to this unique collaboration. April is CENTRAL BROOKLYN JAZZ CONSORTIUM MONTH. Be there. For Information:   CBJC: 718-773-2252 /   Dubois Bunche Center: 718-270-5062 www.cbjcjazz.org *As part of the 11th Annual Central Brooklyn Jazz Festival “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” For those of you who missed the kick off opening at Boys and Girls High School, allow me to recapitulate somewhat:: The great jazz saxophonist PHAROAH SANDERS, with the great drummer/percussionist GREG BANDY, as well as The Pharoah Sanders Sextet performed, featuring, William Henderson-Piano, Alex Blake on Bass, Neil Clarke on Percussion and Abdus Sabor on Conga. But the real coup was the surprise guest performance by none other than GARY BARTZ, who had just performed the evening before for the National BlackWriters Conference with Gil Scott-Heron and Talib Kweli. Upon hearing that Pharoah Sanders was going to be performing in Brooklyn the next evening, Bartz stayed over to perform with him. And of course, the great Reggie Workman rounded the evening out. The blending of those two great musical giants, along with the overwhelming talent on stage was like sitting in your own private jam session. History being made right in front of you. And there is more yet to be. The CBJC kickoff Festival Gala was co- sponsored by CBJC and the International African Arts Festival (a/k/a African Street Festival)  In addition to Pharoah Sanders as the headliner, Omi Yesa, a Yoruba Folkloric group that recently preformed at the Obama White House took the audience even further back to their roots; and Louis Reyes- Rivera the renowned poet and author of Scattered Scriptures Per founder, JiTu Weusi, “The recent collaboration between the International African Arts Festival {a/k/a African Street Festival} and the Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium is the result of a natural evolution. We have previously collaborated on several events in the past but nothing of the magnitude of bringing Pharoah Sanders back to Brooklyn. To bring this legendary jazz master back into our community required new levels of cooperation, collective work and responsibility. We are happy to have accomplished our immediate goal. Pharoah was here and it was a tremendous success! “ The next few years many Black organizations will be celebrating their 40th anniversaries. This can be attributed to the establishment of many of these programs during the 60’s renaissance period when so many of our organizations were just getting started. Many of the consortium members and artists have either worked with and/or performed at the African Street Festival throughout the decades. JiTu Weusi, chair of The Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium, was the founder and visionary behind both The EAST and Uhuru Sasa Shule -- institutions that gave birth to the International African Arts Festival. Uhuru Sasa Shule is celebrating its 40th anniversary, while the International African Arts Festival celebrates its 39th (July 2 thru 5). The Street Festival initially started out as a fund raiser to support the school. Simultaneously, they will celebrate the life of Atiba Coard, a former student at Sasa and a Festival pillar who joined the ancestors last year. This year will mark the year- long process of commemorating the International African Arts Festival’s 40th year in 2011. For a full listing of festival events, log on to www.cbjcjazz.org.  Equally auspicious was the official kickoff at Brooklyn’s Borough Hall, Boro Pres. Marty Markowitz welcomed JiTu Weusi and Segun Shebaka, board member and co-founder of the International African Arts Festival, as well as Pam Green of the Weeksville Heritage Center: Per Borough President Markowitz: “It is my pleasure to join all of them in announcing the 11th ANNUAL CENTRAL BROOKLYN JAZZ FESTIVAL, It will be a feast for jazz lovers in Brooklyn - as well as those who hail from Brooklyn suburbs like Queens, Long Island, New Jersey, and of course, Manhattan. “This year we’re celebrating “EXPRESSIONS OF YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW”-  And whether you’re talking about the past or the future of jazz, Brooklyn’s part is loud and clear. Jazz legends like Max Roach, Reggie Workman, Betty Carter, Herbie Mann, Kenny Washington and Randy Weston, all have developed their chops in Brooklyn. And anyone who knows Brooklyn’s rich jazz history knows that all the greats have played here -- jazz royalty like Duke Ellington, Mr. Be-Bop Charlie Parker, the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald, The brilliant Miles Davis with his quintet, featuring the genius of John Coltrane, the hidee-ho man himself, Cab Calloway, the first major entertainer I ever booked as part of my summer concert series -- he performed on July 16 1981. Jazz greats played t legendary venues like the Paramount theatre, formerly at the corner of Flatbush and Dekalb. And on Charlie Parker’s place, The Blue Coronet (which is also where Mandrill got their start in the 70’s), on Fulton Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant, which once featured more than 20 jazz clubs. Today Brooklyn’s jazz scene is still going strong. Many stand out jazz musicians like Bruce Barth, Ahmed Abdulah, Bob Cunningham, Stanley Banks and Ed Stoute have chosen to live and gig right here.    “And of course, at the CENTRAL BROOKLYN JAZZ FESTIVAL- which gets bigger and bigger every year, we get a chance to see the future legends of jazz, who are keeping this great American art form alive and thriving in Brooklyn today. I’m proud to say that I’ve done a small part to support jazz music in Brooklyn through the jazz acts I’ve booked over the years at the summer concerts I produce. Besides Cab Calloway, performers who have graced our Brooklyn stage include Grover Washington Jr., Ramsey Lewis, Joe Williams, the Duke Ellington Orchestra, the Count Basie Orchestra, Rachelle Ferrel, Noel Pointer, Johnathan Butler, Patti Austin, Roy Ayers, Lionel Hampton, Freddie Hubbard, to name a few. “These are just a few of the brilliant musicians who’ve made summer nights in Brooklyn a little jazzier. The good news is that in Brooklyn, you don’t have to wait for summer to roll around. You can catch live jazz any time of the year ad places like Rustik Tavern (on Dekalb Ave. off of Kent); Puppet’s Jazz in Park Slope; Sugar Hill Supper Club (Dekalb and Nostrand Avenues); Jazz 966 at Grand and Fulton; and Sistuh’s Place (Jefferson and Nostrand ). “In April, New York City’s Jazz Central will be the Central Brooklyn Jazz Festival. You might say the ‘Vanguard” of jazz is happening right here in this borough. After all, who needs Manhattan when Brooklyn is Birdland. In the month of April, whether you want Be-Bop or fusion, straight ahead or latin soul and every kind of jazz in between -- you must take the A-Train to Brooklyn.” Marty Markowitz, Borough President of Brooklyn, NY For a full listing of festival events, log on to www.cbjcjazz.org. CBJC is working to keep your musical history and heritage alive. It’s a labor of love, true. The reward will be your showing up and participating in what it is that makes us such a unique people. Come out and keep the culture alive. This is a series not to be missed. See you there Stay blessed & Eclectically Black Gloria Dulan-Wilson