Conference Swings Through Range of Styles, Subjects

The 27th annual convention of the International Assn. of Jazz Educators wound down Saturday night after four days of music, discussion, argument, networking and all-around interaction about jazz. With between 8,000 and 10,000 participants, it was by any estimation one of the largest gatherings ever devoted solely to the examination of the genre.

Appropriately, there was music for every taste, including appearances by world-class jazz artists during evening concerts at the Hyatt Regency Hotel Ballroom. Among the many names in the programming were Ellis Marsalis, Pete Fountain, Nicholas Payton, Danilo Perez and Nnenna Freelon. Particularly effective performances were offered by the all-star ensemble of guitarist Russell Malone, pianist Benny Green and bassist Christian McBride, each setting aside solo aspirations for an evening to produce a set of hard-swinging, surprisingly well-integrated appearances.

Saxophonist David Sanchez’s sextet was a wonder to hear, integrating American jazz with Latin rhythms without sacrificing an iota of the individuality of each.

For those attendees with the energy to continue into the early hours, a jazz club in the Hyatt offered late-night sets from saxophonist Bunky Green, singer Patricia Barber, Javon Jackson and Robin Eubanks. The clubs around town and in the French Quarter added other options with appearances by Donald Harrison at the House of Blues and Roy Hargrove at Howlin’ Wolf.

Some of the most appealing musical moments came unexpectedly. Saturday night, educator-musician David Baker, trumpeter Donald Byrd and pianist Marian McPartland each were granted Jazz Masters awards (worth $20,000 each) from the National Endowment for the Arts. McPartland offered to play in lieu of an acceptance speech--a brilliant decision. She delivered a heartfelt, musically sophisticated rendering of “Amazing Grace” that held the overflow crowd in utter, spellbound silence.

Other memorable performances surfaced at random from the conference’s performance rooms. There was, for example, the stunningly professional Wigan Youth Jazz Orchestra big band from England, which featured four women in the five-person saxophone section and two female trumpeters, all driving their way through a set of arrangements that included at least one difficult Stan Kenton chart. The Manhattan School of Music saxophone quartet performed with elegance and style; the only flaw in its presentation--one too common throughout the convention--was leader Steve Slagel’s use of the performance to advertise his own orchestrations.

Equally unexpected was a spirited appearance by Farwest Jazz, a vocal ensemble from Lakewood, Wash., its well-rehearsed program an example of the joyous impact of jazz on young performers who--despite enthusiasm and skill--probably will not wind up having careers in the top echelon of the entertainment business.

There were many other exciting programs, a number featuring artists such as saxophonists Dave Liebman, Bob Shephard and Joe Lovano, drummer Peter Erskine and pianist Lynn Arriale. But the conference scheduling placed far too many fascinating appearances in the festival’s boondocks rooms at the Superdome, a 10-minute walk from the main proceedings. The result was that many of the younger ensembles--the heart and soul, after all, of an educators’ conference--got overlooked in the busy, multisession programming.

Nor were many of the panel discussions as illuminating as one might have hoped. Documentarian Ken Burns’ presentation was extraordinary, a voice of intelligence, reason and understanding in a milieu of far too many self-serving statements. Other panels--ostensibly designed to offer information on such relevant subjects as digital downloading from the Internet, the creation of a new jazz service organization, the growing importance of jazz on TV (most notably as expressed by Black Entertainment Television, which donated $500,000 to the International Assn. of Jazz Educators) and the conflicts between critics and musicians--too often descended into individual agendas on the part of the panelists, and egocentric searches for attention on the part of many of the attendees.

The bottom line was that the conference, warts and all, was well worth doing. The innocent love of music excitement on the part of the younger participants--many of whom raised funds all year to make the trip to New Orleans--more than compensated for the hyperactive professional egos. Academics provided fascinating insights into esoteric, but worthwhile areas of jazz technique, theory and history in sparsely attended sessions. And in the musical exhibits, there was the opportunity to examine fascinating new musical products. Like jazz itself, the conferences provided a bit of something for everyone’s taste.