The StrutterTraditional Jazz in the Philadelphia Tri-State Area

The Strutter is published by Tri-State Jazz Society, Inc. - P.O. Box 896 - Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054 1

APRIL 2018VOLUME 28 NUMBER 9

OUR NEXT CONCERTRichard Barnes Blackbird Society

Orchestra

Concert Admissions$10 First-time attendees and Members

$20 General AdmissionHigh school/college students with ID andchildren with paying adult admitted free

Pay at the door

Sunday, April 15, 20182:00 – 4:30 p.m.

Haddonfield United Methodist Church29 Warwick Road

Haddonfield, NJ 08033Directions at

http://www.tristatejazz.org/directions-haddonfield.html

In This IssueLooking Ahead.................Page 2Conservatory Band Review...Page 2Colin Hancock…………………… Page 3Concert Schedule………………Page 6

Photo by Blackbird Society Orchestra

Following last year’s sold-out concert inWallingford, PA, the 12-piece Blackbird SocietyOrchestra (BSO) returns with a rousingperformance of 20s and early 30s hot jazz.

The Blackbird Society Orchestra is Philadelphia'sPremier 1920s Hot Jazz / Dance Orchestradedicated to the preservation of the music of "TheJazz Age," "The Roaring 20s," "The GatsbyEra"....Flappers, Prohibition, Gangsters, Model Asand the invention of an American art form known as"Jazz!” At this return visit to TSJS (in March of2017, the ensemble appeared at the CommunityArts Center in Wallingford in an identical format),the 13-piece core BSO will do an opening set.

Following a short intermission, the 22-person PaulWhiteman tribute band, the largest ever at a TSJSconcert, will perform a 7-song set to close out theafternoon in a rare re-creation of the music oflegendary bandleader and “King of Jazz”Whiteman, a pioneer in bridging the gap betweenjazz and the European classical tradition (hecommissioned Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue in1924). For this concert, NYC bandleader and musichistorian Vince Giordano will join the BSO in along-awaited return visit to TSJS. Come early; it'ssure to be another sell-out!

Working from bandleader Richard Barnes'collection of original vintage stock charts andarrangements, BSO authentically and accuratelyrecreates many classic jazz recordings that oncespun on scratchy 78 RPM records on a Victrolawhen the world was still in black and white!Barnes discovered jazz/blues guitarist and vocalistLeon Redbone in 1992, playing regionally with himfor a decade. He also spent five years performingobscure 1920s jazz with the Kim Milliner Band. In1997, Barnes formed BSO with the intention ofpreserving 1920s jazz in note-for-note recreationsusing original stock charts and transcriptions fromvintage recordings.

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LOOKING AHEAD TO OURMAY 2018 CONCERT

On May 20, 2018, our concert will feature NevilleDickie and the Midiri Brothers in Haddonfield, NJ..

CONSERVATORY CLASSIC JAZZBAND REVIEW

By Bill Hoffman

Photo by Jim McGann

World-class British pianist Neville Dickie will rejoinTSJS veterans Joe and Paul Midiri for the 6thstraight year in what promises to be one of the mostexciting trad jazz, stride, and swing programs of theseason. A native of England's County Durham,Dickie is among the most accomplished stride andboogie-woogie pianists on either side of theAtlantic. Performing regularly on BBC Radio, hehas made hundreds of appearances as a soloist orwith his trio, and can be heard on hundreds of jazzrecordings.

The Midiris have made both jazz and classicalmusic the focus of their lives since the mid 1980s,and have recorded with everything from trios to bigbands featuring the arrangements of BennyGoodman, Artie Shaw, and the Dorsey Brothers, aswell as Paul’s original arrangements andcompositions. They have performed extensively inthe Philadelphia, New York, and Atlantic City areasand have been been featured at many festivalsacross the country. Past Dickie-Midiri TSJS showshave set attendance records.

This concert is one of the most popular Tri-StateJazz concerts. This concert usually brings in anaudience of over 200 people. Come early to get aseat!

The Conservatory Classic Jazz Band, based in theWashington, DC area, performed for the secondtime at Wallingford on March 11. This six-pieceunit is led by Dave Robinson on cornet, trumpet,and this time on bass trumpet, which looks like anoversized trumpet but has a deeper sound. Therest of the band: Brian Priebe on trombone; GaryGregg on clarinet, tenor and soprano sax; JeffReynolds on guitar and banjo; Dan Hall on stringbass; and Brian Alpert on drums. All have strongcredentials, having played with many big jazznames from the past. The band was formed in2004 by trombonist David Sager and HowardKatzen as the Washington Conservatory Trad JazzEnsemble. After Sager and Katzen left, the namewas shortened and amended to its present form.

Photo by Sandy Catz

The concert opened with "It's Been So Long," atune recorded around 1936 by Benny Goodmanwith Helen Ward on the vocal. It's a swingy tuneand one I've always liked. "Dallas Blues" followed,played in traditional style, but the tune doesn'thave as bluesy a sound as many tunes with Blues intheir names. The band then launched into theHarry James theme "Ciribiribin," but it soundednothing like the way James played it. In NewOrleans style, the clarinet was replaced by thesoprano, giving the song a totally different feel. Iliked it, as I believe the audience also did.

Then it was time to slow the tempo, so we weretreated to "Love Is Just Around the Corner," a songBing Crosby helped make popular in the mid-30s.This was much quieter than the first threenumbers, with muted trumpet and a clarinet solo.

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Colin Hancock: Bolden and Beyond by Joe Bebco

At age 21, Colin Hancock is making serious wavesin the early jazz community. Hancock, now in hisjunior year at Cornell University, discovered themusic of Bix Beiderbecke and the magic of hand-cranked phonographs at an early age. Hisfascination with old jazz records and the machineson which they were played was no passingchildhood fad; his musical and mechanicalinterests, encouraged by his parents and teachers,persisted and intensified.

He received formal lessons on string bass andtrumpet from Dan Torosion, John Moon, andMartin Norgaard, some true veterans of the Austinmusic scene, but went on to teach himself all theother major band instruments “through hours andhours of trying to get the right note and trying to dowhat was on these recordings that I really liked.”Some of these instruments came easily; others, likethe clarinet, were more difficult to master. “It tooka very long time,” he says, “to be able to sit in withensembles and get gigs as a clarinetist.” Fromstrings to reeds to rhythm instruments, he hasbecome a true multi-instrumentalist.

Hancock’s determination to master a band’s worthof instruments says a lot about his ability to solveproblems most would write off as insurmountable.It was, he says, “out of necessity… I wanted to hearwhat it would sound like if these ideas I had wereplayed by a group.” He told himself, “no one in myage group can do this so I’ll do this and be able toput these ideas on a recording.” He started makingmulti-track recordings of himself playing each parton early jazz tunes while he was in the fifth grade.

Photo by 2E Photography

But the relative quiet didn't last-the band nextplayed "Cake Walking Babies From Home," againwith soprano and a strong performance by therhythm section. Of course, this is not a waltz tune,but it was played at an enjoyable tempo.

The bass trumpet got its moment on "When I GrowToo Old to Dream," which was never one of myfavorites, but this version was very pleasant. Thepenultimate song in the first set was one probablynobody in the audience knew: "Rough RidersMarch in Two-Step" written by Kid Ory in 1919.The title was unknown until only a few years ago,and I hope other bands find out about it. It wasplayed, appropriately, in a Dixieland style. The setended with a hurried re-creation of Ellington's"Stevedore Stomp," as the music had spilled overinto intermission. This is not one of Duke's better-known compositions, although a number of tradbands have it in their book. In fact, this was theonly number on the program that CCJB had playedin its 2014 concert; they gave it a very goodrendering.

The second set featured better-known numbersthan the first. It began with the standard "Smiles,"played in a totally straight-forward way. That wasfollowed by Louis Armstrong's "Back o' TownBlues," during which we heard the afternoon's onlyvocal, by Dave. Dave admitted at the outset that hedoesn't sing like Louis, but did a very credible job.Actually, nobody sounds like Louis, though manyhave tried, and failed. "Runnin' Wild," "SomebodyLoves Me" (featuring bass trumpet, tenor, andstring bass), "Jazz Me Blues," "You're Lucky to Me,""Melancholy Blues," "Dark Eyes," and "MilenbergJoys" rounded out the set. On "Melancholy Blues,"Dan Hall had an excellent extended solo on bowedbass-very nice. "Dark Eyes" was enhanced byBrian's trombone opening.

The ensemble playing as well as all the solos weretight, reflecting the cohesiveness of a band thatplays together on at least a semi-regular basis.Their last performance for Tri-State was in March,2014, with the same personnel except for drums,and with vocals by Lena Seikaly. Lena was notavailable for today's show, a fact that probablypleased those of our members who don't care forvocals. I re-read Jim McGann's review of thatconcert, which I had attended, and found myself ingeneral agreement with his opinions.

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His parents, in addition to supplying musicalinstruments, found him antique acoustic recordingequipment. By his early teens, he had acquiredeverything he needed to make original acousticrecordings on wax cylinders. He found a “shaver,”used to scrape a cylinder clean for a second take,being sold as an antique sewing machine.

During his freshman year Hancock was hauling hisequipment around town to make cylinderrecordings of his friends and of the high schoolband. His experience multi-tracking allowed himto create cylinders of himself playing each part ofjazz recordings. Some of these may be heard onYouTube at SemperPhonographCo, where, alongwith the many non-cylinder multi-tracks he hascreated, one may find other notable jazz-relatedprojects.

By high school Hancock had developed a gift forrecruiting people to help him realize his musicalideas. He made contact with musicians in hiscommunity, including veteran drummer HalSmith, who urged him to embark on what becameknown as “The Buddy Bolden Project.” He broughttogether a band and research team that includedSmith, David Sager, serious classmate musicians,and the music director at the school, MarkKazanoff. After researching early recordingtechniques they reenacted an imagined lost BuddyBolden recording session. Some of the cylinders hecreated during this period are now in the cylindercollection at the University of California at SantaBarbara.

Getting young people excited about such anesoteric project took some cajoling at times. Hesays he used the history to sell it to them. “This isthe way they recorded a hundred years ago,” hetold them, “and how many people in the world getthis opportunity—especially in a setting like thiswhere you’re not at some Edison historic site.” Inthe end, “they would hear themselves on a cylinderand go wow...this is really cool.”

A native of Buda, Texas, (near Austin), Hancockchose Cornell in Ithaca, New York, because, as anAfrican-American, he “wanted to get out of thebubble of the south...and experience another partof the country.” The cooler climate was also cooleron early jazz, which came as a bit of a cultureshock. “The hot jazz community in Austin is pretty

good, it’s very diverse and you get a lot of chancesto play and there are some pretty great players. Ihad the wonderful opportunity to play with some ofthe best hot jazz musicians in the country on aweekly basis as a senior in high school and to gofrom that to no one really knowing what pre-swingstuff was was really challenging at first.”

He also found himself facing the same challengeswith the Cornell jazz program at first. “I did myaudition on cornet and I had to switch to trumpetand I thought that was very symbolic of the wholething. Having to play these high notes on moderntunes was a very good experience for my playingand my technical ability, but I didn’t feel like I wasplaying my kind of jazz.”

His ability, at least, was recognized and he wasmade first trumpet in the Cornell Big Band duringhis freshman year. He also played with theavailable small combos, but they didn’t fulfill hisneeds either. “The moment I realized ‘I have to dosomething about this’ was when I took a solo onsome tune and I was asked to play in a moremodern style. It’s not like I disliked more recentstyles of jazz, but I just thought ‘that’s not what I’mtrying to do, that’s not what got me into this andI’m not trying to become any other trumpetplayer.’”

So he arranged a meeting with Paul Merrill, themusic director of the jazz program, to express hisfrustration and share his fear that his ability to playthe music he loved might suffer for lack of grouppractice. Trusting the organizational ability thatHancock had already demonstrated the directorgave him the space to create an early jazz band atthe school along with some leads to area musicianswho might lend him support.

Finding like-minded students to join the band waseasier than it had been in high school, in partbecause his fellow musicians shared his interest inthe academics of his projects. “The process oflearning that style of music required them to listento the old recordings. So that then to go back andrecreate those recordings in the way they weremade was a fascinating experience.” At last he hadfound a new venue to combine his interest in hotjazz with his interest in early recording techniques.

He organized The Original Cornell Syncopators tocommemorate an important moment in recording

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history—the day in 1917 the Original Dixieland JassBand set up in a New York studio to cut what aresaid to be the earliest jazz sides. Hancockscheduled a concert for the anniversary date, then ayear away, and began to build interest by sendingfliers to bands in cities throughout the region. Hereached back out to Hal Smith and David Sagerwho had aided the Buddy Bolden Project. Smith, hesays, “has always been my main mentor in earlyjazz. The person I trust with everything in themusic business.” Hancock works to maintain theserelationships; Sager has visited with theSyncopators in Ithaca as recently as last fall.

Hancock added several new mentors to act as“coaches from afar.” While still in high school, hehad met and played with Dan Levinson and JanetKlein at an antique phonograph show in California(where he was visiting his friend, collector andhistorian John Levin), so he contacted bothLevinson and Klein for this project. Knowing ofLevinson’s Roof Garden Jass Band, which has afocus on the very earliest jazz, Hancock found himuniquely positioned to advise the CornellSyncopators on tackling ODJB material. Their local“coach” was Joe Salzano, a veteran in the WesternNew York jazz scene.

The process of preparing for the concert proved tobe an education for the new five-member studentensemble and Hancock himself refined his thinkingabout how to approach playing early jazz. “At first,”he said, “we tried to fake book/real book parts forthe Original Dixieland Jass Band music and thatjust got us nowhere. Then I did a few semi-transcriptions but not completely exacttranscriptions because I didn’t want to be a bandthat read transcriptions down pat. That seemedwrong, that didn’t seem like it was honoring themusic for what it was, when in reality a lot of thesesongs were just memorized by the ODJB. So wehad these weird transcription/head sheet thingsand then we actually started to develop as a groupand learn the music.

“The thing that I learned [from that process] wasthat as soon as you really internalize a song andhow it goes, that’s when you are able to become ajazz musician. When you know how a song goesand you can add your own thing to it. When youknow it so well you can change it and make it yourown instead of just reading what’s on a page. Not

to say that certain arrangements that are writtenare not jazz, but it marks a difference, and I thinkthat’s what made, even back then, them think of themusic they were playing as different from ragtimeor different from dance music. What is jazz?...whenit’s something that you can interpret.”

The concert was a roaring success. “People begantaking us seriously as a group and as a real part ofthe jazz program and not just some experiment.”The original five members were invited to the SanDiego Jazz Fest where they joined Katie Cavera fora set playing the music of the Arcadian Serenaders.Closer to home they began to play wherever theywere welcomed—restaurants, formal dances, andeven frat houses. “We played in the same room thatLouis Armstrong played in with FletcherHenderson and Coleman Hawkins in 1924 at one ofthe fraternities...we see ourselves as a real living,breathing example of what this music would havebeen like back in the day.”

The Cornell Syncopators have a standing gig at alocal restaurant lined up this spring. Membershiphas grown to a full thirteen musicians, credited invarious combinations on their new studio release,Wild Jazz. The album was recorded on one micwith the band carefully positioned to create theauthentic sound of early recordings. Selectionsmoved beyond the ODJB to unearthed obscuritiesand an Arcadian Serenaders cover to commemoratetheir San Diego festival debut.

I asked Hancock for advice on building a hot jazzcommunity wherever you may be. He says the twokeys are nurturing connections and using localhistory to your advantage. To encourage localinterest he has researched the extensive tiesbetween Cornell and the New York City jazz sceneof the 1920s. He has also discovered bands, such asThe Cornell Collegians, who were doing back thenwhat the Syncopators are doing now. Knowinghistory has a way of turning the incurious intoboosters of their surroundings. I can easily picturewhole generations passing through that frat houseunawed that a 1924 Louis Armstrong had playedthere. After hearing the Original CornellSyncopators, this generation, anyway, willunderstand and proudly share the story with newmembers.

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FUTURE CONCERTS

All Concerts from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

June 3, 2018 Danny Tobias and FriendsTrumpeter Danny Tobias will return to TSJS withhis quintet, featuring Paul Midiri on vibes, Joe Holton piano, Joe Plowman on bass and Jim Lawlor ondrums. Wallingford, PAJune 24, 2018 Al Harrison Dixieland BandTrumpeter Al Harrison will be returning to TSJSwith a sextet. The program will again featureauthentic early New Orleans jazz and traditionaljazz standards. Haddonfield, NJJuly 15, 2018 Tri-State Jazz All-StarsReedman Bob Rawlins again leads a core band ofTSJS top artists drawn from local bands. They willbe jamming on Dixieland tunes with invited sit-inguests. Wallingford, PAAugust 19, 2018 Cynthia Sayer and herJoyride BandBanjo virtuoso and vocalist Cynthia Sayer has beencalled top 4-string jazz banjoist in the world, leadsNYC quintet with banjo, clarinet, trumpet, bass anddrums. Haddonfield, NJSeptember 9, 2018 Jon Weber-Solo PianoBased in New York, Jon Weber has recorded andtoured all over the world. For his TSJS debut,expect an emphasis on stride and other early jazzstyles. Wallingford, PAWallingford: Concerts are held at the CommunityArts Center, 414 Plush Mill Rd; just west of exit 3 of I-495 (“The Blue Route”).Haddonfield: Concerts are held at the HaddonfieldUnited Methodist Church, 29 Warwick Rd., just south ofKings Highway; about a ten minute walk from thePATCO train station.

He also recommends reaching out to the livinghistory that can be found in every community if youscratch the surface. The Syncopators have mademany connections to people who played withSpiegle Willcox, trombonist of the Jean GoldketteOrchestra, who lived right down the road inCortland, New York. The other thing, and it shouldbe obvious, is to play out. By playing everythingfrom swing dances to pool halls you create anacceptance of early jazz as part of the local sceneand an expectation for it that will draw in moremusicians.

Colin Hancock will be building connections in Italythis spring on a semester abroad. But he is comingback to Cornell in March to meet Wynton Marsalisfor an afternoon workshop with the rest of theSyncopators. He is eager to show Marsalis what theSyncopators have achieved toward mastering theearly 20th century music he loves. “We want tomake the right impression,” said Hancock.

After graduation in 2019 Hancock will be off to lawschool following the venerable tradition of jazzmusicians with impressive day jobs. He willcontinue to play and no doubt there will beopportunities everywhere for a young man who hasalready shown that he has what it takes to be aleader—in a band and in the community at large.The Original Cornell Syncopators will stay on as apermanent part of the Cornell jazz program, alegacy ensuring future students with an early jazzinterest will be taken seriously.

Hancock also has a dream that follows up on all hisearly experimentation with vintage recordingmethods. It illustrates his unique approach toproblem solving. He has always had troublesharing the cylinders he produced. “Not a lot ofpeople have a cylinder player”—but, he says, “a lotof people have 78 players and turntables.” Hewould like to make modern recordings, “sort of likewhat Rivermont is doing now, but that can actuallyplay on a gramophone and do it acoustically theway they did, that would be very, very neat.”

Making acoustically recorded 78 rpm discs andpressing them on authentic materials is admittedlya steep challenge. Hancock concedes that there aredaunting physical and financial obstacles toovercome before the plan is viable, but if ten yearsfrom now I find myself cranking up the Victrola to

hear a new hot band straight off the presses I’llknow that Colin Hancock has done it again.

Reprinted by special permission with TheSyncopated Times

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ABOUT TRI-STATE JAZZ SOCIETYBOARD OF DIRECTORS

Sanford Catz, President, 2019,president@tristatejazz.org , webmaster@tristatejazz.orgChris Jones, Vice President, Photo Editor, 2018,vp@tristatejazz.orgMike Mudry, Treasurer, 2019,treasurer@tristatejazz.org

Bill Hoffman, Music Committee Chairman, BandsContact, 2020, booking@tristatejazz.org

Dewaine Osman, Secretary, Strutter Editor, 2018Chic Bach, Sound Coordinator, 2019,sound@tristatejazz.orgSally Cannon, Refreshments Manager, 2020Bob Rawlins, Music Committee, 2020Steven Peitzman, Programs Editor, 2018Robert Robbins, Publicity & Assistant StrutterEditor, 2018

COMMITTEE CHAIRMENJay Schultz, Membership Chairmanmembership@tristatejazz.org

More Volunteers are listed on our website at:www.tristatejazz.org/officers.html

TSJS CONTACT INFORMATIONMailing Address: PO Box 896, Mount Laurel, NJ.08054E-mail: info@tristatejazz.org

Hotline Phone for updated concert information:(856) 720-0232

TSJS SUSTAINERSVery Special - $200 or more, $220 couples

● Chuck Haggerty & Sarah Burke● Sanford Catz● Mary Ann & Dr. Charles H. Emely● William N. Hoffman● Richard & Peggy Hughlett● Chris Jones and Amy Galer● Bob Mackie● Dewaine & Clare Osman● DeWitt Peterson● Bob & Nancy Rawlins● Dr. Myron E. & Phoebe R. Resnick● Sylvia Rosenberg● Alice V. Schmidt● Jay & Orinda Lou Schultz

TSJS PATRONSThe Big Time - $100 or more, $120 couples

● Jack & Joan Adams● Elaine Berkowitz● John & Susan Bingley● Walt Brenner● Stephen Faha● Bruce Gast● Carl Meister, Jr. & Linda Hickman● James & Lorraine Maitland● Mike Mudry● Selina Higgins & Bill Nixon● John Otterson● Jolyne Dalzell & Richard Scarlett● Robert Carr & Barbara Steele● Jerry & Josephine Yocum

TSJS SPONSORSHeadliners - $50 or more, $70 couples

● Chic Bach● Joan Bauer● Jack Boesch● Louis DePietro● Robert & Cynthia Freedman● Gerald Carter & Janet S. Graehling● J. Mervyn & Peg Harris● John H. Hoover● Jack Jennings● Robert Kerns, Jr.● Sheila Larson● Michael & Irene Lastra● Michael Lefkowitz● Steven Peitzman & Nancy Pontone● Katherine & Michael Perloff● Peggy de Prophetis & Louis Kaplan● Terry Rave● Mark Raymond● Peter Reichlin● R. Adam Rogers III● Lynn Ryan● Bob & Kay Troxell● Anne Uniman● Fred Weber● Constance & Donald Windus● Mary Lou Adams & Sandra Zullo

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TRI-STATE JAZZ SOCIETY, INC.P.O. BOX 896MOUNT LAUREL, NJ 08054

Membership Form

Basic Dues: q Individual $20 q Couple $40Sponsor Dues: q Individual $50 q Couple $70Patron Dues: q Individual $100 q Couple $120Sustainer Dues: q Individual $200 or more q Couple $220 or moreAmount Enclosed $________________ Date_________________ Check No._________

Members are admitted to all regular concerts at half price. Memberships renewed prior to expiration start at the end of current membership; expired memberships start on receipt of payment. All memberships run for one year.Email and Newsletter Options: q TSJS concert announcements and membership notices(Check all boxes that apply.) q Strutter Newsletter by Email q Strutter by U.S. Mail (Patrons, Sponsors, Sustainers Only)

Mail with check payable to Tri-State Jazz Society, Inc., P .O. Box 896, Mount Laurel, NJ 08054

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