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Executive Director's
Message
STJS Executive Director
Gene Berthelsen
from the May 2008 "And All That Jazz"
(Webmaster awaiting June message)
At this juncture, your Executive Director can’t help feeling a little like the kiddies in the poem, “A Visit From St. Nicholas” with the stockings all hung and little ones snug in their beds.
I’m not going to embarrass myself and you by reeling off a chuckle-headed parody of Clement Moore’s poem. That’s been done badly enough so many times that the crime needn’t be repeated. Still, there are parallels.
As the kid on television says, “Things are lookin’ up.” All of the performers are under contract. Flights have been booked' rooms reserved. Tickets and badges have been ordered. Billboards and radio-buys are in the works. Food vendors are busily tuning up their menus. Shuttle services have been ordered. Sound systems are being readied. Phone banks are being manned. The website is gathering ticket orders like a vacuum cleaner. Sponsors have been lined up. Stages haven’t been constructed yet, but the materials are on order and site plans are complete. Pianos are being tuned. Coordination with the city is fully in order. Hospitality rooms have been reserved. The parade entries have been identified and invited. The list goes on.
Obviously, there’s a lot that remains to be done, as exemplified in the daily harvest of e-mails, telephone messages and drop-ins that confront me, but this neophyte director can’t help marveling at how much seems to be in place—and how efficiently.
When I began to think about taking this job, it seemed to me that there were four potential torpedoes that could be fired at us. If the Interstate 5 rehabilitation had been done on the schedule that was planned, hoo boy! If the Kings had made the playoffs, O Boyoboy. Both of those potential problems have disappeared.
That leaves the weather, so let’s make nice with the cheery weatherpeople who dance gaily daily among their isobars and occluded fronts on our TVs.
And it leaves the economy; a problem that isn’t going away. As we whistle past the graveyard, we reserve the hope that the price of gasoline and the dearth of spondulicks will mean more people will stay in Sacramento instead of flying or driving out of the area, and thus find the Jubilee an attractive alternative for entertaining themselves. Let’s hope.
We’ve been pretty prudent with our pennies so far; the Convention and Visitors Bureau has brought us some very high-quality sponsors; we’ve added three quality vendors; and we’ve raised some prices.
That should give us some cushion—I hope enough to be able to say, come Sunday evening, May 26 (Mr. Moore forgive me), “Happy Jubilee to all, and to all a good night.”
Gene Berthelsen's message.
From the April 2008 "And All That
Jazz"
"Whew!"
There are great scenes in the “Star Wars” consecution where our intrepid heroes in their little jerry-built fighter rockets are confronted with what looks like a giant planet but is really a drifting spaceship. As our heroes drift closer and closer toward the behemoth, it grows in size until it finally fills the screen and now we’re looking at just a squirrel‘s-eye view. Details begin to launch themselves out of the firmament, and at last we see an actual entry portal.
When I took this job last July, the festival looked far away and the details were fuzzy. Now, in March, the Jubilee is looming and details are defining themselves. Dozens of people stride daily in and out of our headquarters, past my door, bent on activities and processes that are impossible to identify from a distance.
It comes clear when an anomaly pops up. A band from out of town cancels. That sends ripples all through the schedule, which, if you were to look at it, is a grid containing about 900 separate cells, each filled by a performance. Sometimes it’s possible to give already-engaged bands more performances to fill the slots, but that’s all contingent on travel schedules, bands sharing musicians, distance between venues, themes of performances (blues, western swing, etc.), how late a band played the previous night, and how many performances a band can handle in a day. Roger Krum is a genius at this.
Or we may have to find another band to fill the spot being vacated. The closer we get to the Jubilee, the more processes are affected. The ripples go way beyond the schedule. They involve travel tickets (Janie Graves and Miyamoto Travel) hotel rooms, (Nancy Sullivan and Jackie Cotter), accounting (Vivian Abraham and Tina Lee), band packages, and of course, the printed program (Laura Martin). Band names pop up in the schedule section, the band description section, the Booster section, the special events section, the musical styles section, and probably several places I haven’t thought of.
Once we’re in the belly of the beast, we’ll really know whether or not we’ve covered all the bases.
Gene Berthelsen's message
from the March 2008 "And All That
Jazz"
Whew! Less than three months until the Jubilee, but things are coming together.
Roger Krum and Dave Acheson have finished the schedule about a month early. By the way, give a hoot of thanks to Dave, who took a week of vacation and flew to Sacramento on his own ticket to work with Roger on that.
Our 33 sites have been selected and we're already working arrangements to provide sound at those venues. Linda Cousins has all of her vendors in place, including a late addition, Lockford Sausage Oboy.
This year we have developed a special alliance with the Sacramento Blues Society and will have 15 Blues bands, most of them performing at Laughs Unlimited, which will be renamed "Blues Unlimited" for the festival.
The souvenir program is about 90 per cent of the program completed because of the good work of Laura Martin, who is now hors de combat with Bell's Palsy, but gamely continuing on. Publicity is swinging into action, with our first newspaper ads appearing, and various trade deals being developed with broadcast media.
I tell ya, the way time is fleeting by, the festival will have come and gone and we'll be starting with arrangements for 2009 before we know it!
Gene Berthelsen's message
from the February 2008 "And All That
Jazz"
"RSJO will return in 2009"
I seem to have made an egregious blunder in having asked some of our tried-and-true bands to sit out the 2008 Sacramento Jazz Jubilee. In particular, asking the Royal Society Jazz Orchestra to take a year off has enraged several dozen potential festival attendees. The vitriol this has occasioned, particularly the contention that the Sacramento Jubilee has abandoned traditional jazz, is something of a shock. At least some people, it seems, come to a festival that has 100 groups performing about 800 separate performances just for the purpose of hearing this one band. The Royal Society group is one of my personal favorites. I suppose if I were in the shoes of our gentle correspondents, I might well feel their same dismay. It was a difficult decision to ask them to sit out so we could bring in new talent. We're hoping that some members of our audiences bond with the new groups just as RSJO fans have bonded with Mr. Neely’s excellent ensemble. But I also like to think of our festival as a vast buffet from which you can enjoy all kinds of musical experiences; I would hope those who are so mightily offended might find something to animate them—including the new but exciting bands we have invited. Much of the choler being aimed our way is over our perceived abandonment of traditional jazz, although in our own defense, we continue to present about 40 traditional bands, more than any other festival, in comfy venues that present only that musical genre. Perhaps our gentle correspondents may not recognize that the Sacramento festival is a different animal from the other, exclusively trad festivals around the country, some of which have gone belly up in recent years. We have a very large plant and a very large inventory and a number of paid staff that our nomadic trad jazz fans alone cannot support. We must depend on a broad, nearby Sacramento audience—whose taste runs far beyond traditional jazz—to buy our tickets, and that means we must present music other than traditional jazz. To pare back and become the Sacramento Trad Jazz Festival is something we agonize about often. But from early on, our ambition has been larger than that. And so we have several dozen groups in other genres whose audiences help us to pay for bands like the RSJO, which we fully intend to invite back in 2009.
Gene Berthelsen's message
from the December 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
"The Jubilee Thang"
Jubilation, on sale here: Check out the Jubilee web site . . . Now you can order your Jubilee tickets on line. Tina Lee has been fooling with our site ever since it got built and it just keeps looking spiffier and spiffier. She has to fool with it a lot because things keep happening (like hey we just signed Kermit Ruffins as our headliner) and she has to add or remove stuff all the time. She’s a girl with an artistic eye and a big curiosity, so if you look in on it tomorrow it probably won’t look like it does today. Every once in a while you’ll get a message that the site is under construction but check in a day or so later. (Sometimes Tina has an accident and has to go back to thumb through the manual for awhile.)
BTW (Internet lingo) that promotion we thought up—buy your ticket before December 31 and get a chance at a four–day stay in the Holiday Inn’s penthouse suite plus a hundred drink tokes and all weekend all-events passes—is going gang-busters. About $25,000 in the offers already and it isn’t even Thanksgiving yet. Well, actually it is—as in us thanking all those folks who’ve jumped at the opportunity. At any rate, an on-line purchase is just as good as sending in the form—you’ll still be entered for the weekend if you buy before the end of the year.
One thing that’ll go onto the web site pretty soon is the return of Mike Foley’s Jubilee Learning Experience. The Learning Experience is really nifty. It includes five nights at the Clarion Hotel—meals included, an orientation dinner and mixer, bus trip to Old Sacramento and the Jubilee Parade, all events admission to the festival, an official Jubilee program, free shuttles to all Jubilee venues, special nightly entertainment at the Clarion, and entrance to Musicians’ hospitality rooms. Mike tops off his package with a Graduation Dinner and wind-down. Great way be pampered for a week while taking in the Jubilee. Mike has only 50 rooms for customers this year, so better call (916) 372-5277) and get in on the fun.
Hey all you STJS folks who happen to be members of the Golden 1 Credit Union: Next time you walk in to visit your money, spin around and say thanks to all the folks who work there. Golden 1, longtime Jubilee sponsor, has just signed on for 2008, to sponsor all the sites around the Convention Center. We’re not going to tell you just how much they’ve plunked down, but believe us, it’s a chunk, and so Golden 1 is due a sincere expression of our gratitude . . .like if you’re thinking of downsizing your carbon footprint to a new Prius, finance it with them.
Don’t be crabby. Eat crabby. Paula Vance and her cadre of narrow-eyed crabbers have put the STJS Crab Feed on the calendar for January 26th at Country Club Lanes on Watt Avenue – same place as last year. (We’re assuming that Governor Whatchinator will unleash the crab fleet any day) If you remember the feed last year, you’ll recall the jostling and clawing hoho to get through the door. The place isn’t any bigger this year, so it might be a good idea to get tickets early to get a seat up near where Vince Bartels and John Coccuzi will be wailing away. How much? $45. And the money goes for a good cause. BTW (again with the lingo), Paula has endowed your own Mr. Big with 10 tickets for sale. If I don’t sell ’em, I have to eat ‘em. Damn, that Paula is tough.
Gene Berthelsen's message
from the November 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
"The Administrative Gang"
As a veteran of 40 years slogging through the trenches of the State of California, I can tell you that nothing strikes more fear in the heart of a bureaucrat than the word “administration”: “personnel matters” or, as they say these days, “human resources”—boy, there’s a phrase that’ll light your fires; and “contracts,” all that fine print and boilerplate (whew!); “accounting” (as in numbers? Uh... never did understand that stuff).
But y’know, if you’re going to run a jazz festival that causes a couple million bucks to change hands annually, one that requires almost 3,000 people to make it happen, runs a fleet of buses, and has a marketing operation that approaches that of a mid-size corporation, you need to have an administrative arm (gruesome as it sounds).
Fortunately, we have a decidedly-ungruesome gang that does all these things. STJS Business Manager Vivian Abraham has been inviting them in, a few at a time, to tell me what they do. Here are some of them:
There’s Joanne Gannon, who makes sure all of the admission sales locations are staffed by people with a ready smile and a sure knowledge of what the prices are and how you go about paying for a badge or wristband. A lot of the people who walk up to our sales locations aren’t sure what they’re buying. Joanne and her 90 or so volunteers walk them through the process and send them on their way to musical nirvana.
Dennis Speciale and Mark Simmons are in charge of, and in control of, every food and beverage ticket sold. Dennis and Mark are “Jubilee brats”—the second generation to serve the festival. (Wonder how many second-generation volunteers there are!) Dennis and Mark make sure all of the ticket booths in our venues are staffed all the time, and they, along with Terri and Lyle Van Horn and their 125 volunteers, do it well.
Dennis and Kathy Grimes oversee a hard working crew of 40 or so volunteers who take their jobs as couriers very seriously.
Jerry Unruh is one of the many volunteers who jet in from various places around the world to keep the Jubilee rolling. He happens to oversee the finance operation—a big responsibility. Vivian says she “inherited Jerry from Kay Reynolds in the mid-1980s.” By now, believe me, he knows his way around a buck.
On Tuesday morning following Jubilee Monday, Tina Lee takes control of every piece of paper generated during the festival. She checks and re-checks to make sure all the numbers tot up. Tina can be seen year-round, flitting about the office with a song in her heart and a pixyish smile on her lips. No green eyeshade for this girl! Not only does she balance the Jubilee numbers, she is the office computer guru—and she doesn’t even wear a pointy hat with stars on it.
The Jubilee has all kinds of ways to get the word out about our great festival. Wayne Hokom runs the 20-person Marketing and Publicity Committee—big job! There’s a brochure to get out, a poster, “paid” as well as “trade” advertising, media releases, direct sales, and special programs like Jazz Ambassadors, the Swing Dance contest, Singles Unite! and a whole bunch more.
Jane Reinmuth and Joe & Jessie Burgess sit by the phones. If you’ve ever wondered about the questions people might ask about the Jubilee, you ought to take a look at their resource book. It’s two inches thick, with answers for every kind of question imaginable. The 80-person phone crew starts its work right after Thanksgiving and keeps at it until a week after the Jubilee, when the lost-and-found calls finally taper off.
A lot of people get to the Jubilee without ever having thought out just what they’re going to. So, they take their questions to one of the information booths staffed by Kathy Kelly’s 60-person crew. They’re on duty throughout the Jubilee, from 10 in the morning to 10 at night. (There’s another two-inch-thick resource book.)
We could go on and on, and probably will in subsequent columns. This is a big, fascinating organization, with 2800 separate stories, that does a lot more than the Jubilee. I wish I could tell all of them, but space is limited. More later.
Gene Berthelsen's message
from the October 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
"Help!"
Oh. Regarding the title of this piece: I’m not asking for help, I’m going to tell you about the help I’m receiving in planning for the 2008 Sacramento Jazz Jubilee. Over the past couple weeks, Bill Evans and what he calls the “tactical wing” have been briefing me on festival operations. It’s a kind of “aw–shucks-it-was-nothin’” kind of a group, but I’d feel about as confident going into battle with them at my side as with an army regiment.
First of all, there are two principal staffers—Vivian Abraham, who handles administrative matters, and Bill Evans, in care of operations. These two know more about the Jubilee than I’ll ever know. They know where the bodies are buried, and they tell me how to tiptoe around the graves. They know whose feelings are easily bruised and who needs a kick in the keester to get up and get something done. They know what’s going on and what isn’t and, frankly, if a worthy weren’t needed to sign contracts, they could run it perfectly well without me.
Well, actually, with a rookie like me at the helm, they are running it.
So anyway, for the past couple of weeks, Bill has been introducing me to his tactical wing: Mike Lee, whose job, it seems, mostly involves paper towels (how many paper towels does it take to get through a jazz festival?); Rich Himebauch, who, it seems, can lift a grand piano with one hand; the Kuppers—Dick and Marian—whose crew assembles 40 sets of drums every Jubilee and then makes sure that drummers, a notoriously unstable lot, don’t reduce them to scrap metal; and Kurt Lehn, whose folks assemble and care for a half-dozen stages and lights.
Vikki Thompson ramrods about a dozen artists to create everything from restroom signs to stage backdrops; Bob Pike, Linda Kantner and Bev Gunter make sure there are places for musicians and less exalted personages to park; Don and Rosie Bloomstine oversee the half-dozen sites around the Convention Center; Marty Mahoney and Terry Donigan’s gang makes sure there are enough chairs to be graced by all the gluteus maximi enjoying the jazz and food, and then stacks-em and packs-em after the wingding is over; Bill Silva watches for potential accidents and keeps them from happening; Larry and Charlene Holcomb are just now taking on a new job of coordinating management of all the sites; Dennis Curry’s outfit (of about a dozen) installs sound systems on our stages and comes running when an amp blows up—and then there’s Doug Welsh, whose squads get the place sparkly clean after the rest of us trash it.
And those are just the ones I’ve met! Whew!
These are impressive people who find and ride herd on large crews of sometimes-obstreperous volunteers; they rarely need direction, and mostly know exactly what to do when things go wrong. Of course, when they don’t know, there’s Vivian and Bill to call. (Don’t call me!)
This is a Harvard Business Review case study in successful organizations. What an outfit!
(Next time: the administrative gang)
Gene Berthelsen's message
from the September 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
"Thinking Out Loud"
Roger Krum, when he was Executive Director, wrote out a list of activities that are necessary, month by month, to put on our mighty show each year. You’d think, in these dog days of August, things’d be pretty slow. They’re not.
Time to crank up the old publicity machine, believe it or not. How ‘bout this? Buy your all-weekend tickets between now and the end of 2007 and automatically be entered in a drawing to win an all-Jubilee stay in a luxury suite at the Holiday Inn plus $100 in drink tokes. That’s worth more than $2,100! Wow! Wayne Hokom’s Publicity Committee has that and many other things in the works.
Bill Evans is firming up the venue list, with about 25 joints pretty well in the bag, another half dozen tentative, and a couple still to talk to. Should have it wired within a couple weeks. Overall, there‘ll be a minor return to the good old days when we had more music in cabarets. I like that. Much of the Jubilee’s early cachêt came from those up-close-and-personal performances where the folks in the front row got the benefit of the trumpet player’s spit valve.
We have to sign the international bands right away because of all the work it takes to get clearances from the Department of State and Homeland Security. Judy Borcher and Ann Brand are already at work on that. We’re talking to several international bands, with one signed: La Boheme Ragtime Jazz Band, out of Budapessccchhht. Bob Ringwald, Bob Williams, Vince Bartels and Paul Edgerton heard them earlier this year and all are very high the band, which plays classic jazz, early swing and ragtime.
It’s also time to get a handle on the band list. Bob Williams, Beth Duncan, Paul Edgerton, Ringwald, Vivian Lee, and Vince Bartels are beavering away on that one. So far, about 40 groups are committed– about half of what we need. One very exciting prospect is the Jazz Minors – remember them? —who are re-forming for one festival each year. Guess which festival they’ve picked? Yup, that’s us. Other intriguing new groups include the Firecracker Jazz Band from South Carolina and the Original Wildcat Jazz Band, group of young players from the University of Arizona at Tempe. Handsome fellas, by the way.
Then there’s that budget thing. Jill Harper (she’s healthy again, folks!) is working on that, along with Finance Committee memberts Vince, Bob Williams, Larry Holcomb, Alicia Fulbright, and Molly Greene. Jilly says things will be just as tight as last year, so this business of hiring bands and setting up sites and paying the staff is going to be a delicate dance once again.
By the way, if you see a lot of names here, it’s because a lot of people do a lot of work to get this thing going every year. It makes the job of Executive Director an easy one. Basically, it’s just a matter of getting out of their way.
[EDITOR’S NOTE: For Gene Berthelsen’s tribute to Bill Gunter, please look for a copy of the “American Rag” newspaper that Bill used to write articles for.]
Gene Berthelsen's FIRST messagee
from the August 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
I think I’m gonna call this regular feature of And All That Jazz “Thinking Out Loud.” I kinda like the notion of people hearing thoughts about the Jazz Jubilee while they’re still thoughts and before they’ve become mistakes.
One thought (definitely not a mistake) is that this outfit owes a huge debt of gratitude to a lady named Jill Harper. She took over the job of STJS Executive Dir. when our budget was in serious disarray. With a lot of sometimes-unpopular discipline, she worked tirelessly with many other people to put the outfit right, almost ruining her health in the bargain. Her shoes (possibly sling-back pumps) would be hard to fill except that Jill is a generous woman who has promised to help when it’s needed. (I’m still at the stage where I don’t know what I don’t know. I expect to know what I don’t know in about a year.)
One thing that gives me a lot of confidence is the number of people —really good people—who help run this thing. When I attended a wrap-up meeting on the 2007 Jubilee, we went around the room and virtually everyone there said, “no problems in my area.” That’s another way of saying, “I did a good job,” without bragging about it. I have every confidence that this will continue.
So, we’re off and running with the 2008 Jubilee. Vince Bartels has his Talent Selection Committee at full throttle, sifting through the hundreds of packages that we receive from eager prospective performers every year. We’d like to get our hands on a big name performer, but big name performers are very expensive and would have to be sponsored. So, in addition to a name performer, we’re also looking to see if a big-name sponsor is out there somewhere. Anybody got a half-million dollars? Stay tuned.
Here’s another out-loud thought: Raley Field turned out not to be a very practical venue in spite of some very hard work by the folks in West Sacramento and elsewhere. So, we have to come up with new sites on the Sacramento side of the river. How about the K Street Mall? We could put a site at St. Rose of Lima Park, another at the Pyramid Ale House, return to the Crest, and work with Marilyn’s and maybe some of Randy Paragary’s joints up near the Convention Center. It’d be kinda cool if we had a presence all the way up and down the K Street Mall, wouldn’t it? Especially with RT Light Rail hauling our badge holders up and down the mall for free.
These are out-loud thoughts. If anyone has ideas about how these proposals could work better—or if they are potential mistakes—I’d like to hear about it before they become actual mistakes.
Former Exec. Dir. Jill Harper
(We truly appreciate all that Jill did for
STJS and Jubilee during her time of service.
Thank you, Jill!)
Jill Harper's message
from the June 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
As I write this, we are on the final countdown to Jubilee. In the office, we are dealing with all those little last-minute details that this amazing operation takes to make it happen! Our limited staff is assisted by willing volunteers like Jane Reinmuth and the telephone crew, and others such as Bob Harries, Crawford Paton, Janie Graves, Bruce MacNeil, Tahlie Martin, Jean Slayton, Paula Vance, Chuck Mason and Joni McNellis, not to mention Jerry Unruh who arrives from Arizona to get us through this last week.
At this point, the outlook is positive with pre-sales at last year’s level for this same time period. The publicity is really gearing up, and I want to thank the Marketing/PR Committee, and Gene Berthelsen in particular, for doing a spectacular job this year of getting our message out. I hope you all have taken notice of the rotating billboards, the bus backs, and the numerous television and radio ads calling attention to Jubilee this year. Gene has worked tirelessly, meeting with the press and organizing television interviews, etc. Thanks, Gene; it’s a pleasure to work with you — I especially appreciate your positive outlook and your boundless energy.
I hope you all have a wonderful Jubilee—next month we’ll have a recap of how it went.
Jill Harper's message
from the May 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
It’s almost here! Jubilee number 34 is right around the corner. We have all been working very hard in the office to tie up all the little details. Before we know it, it will be time to party.
Speaking of parties, don’t forget to get your tickets to the Thursday Night Kickoff Party at Freeway Gardens. We have some terrific bands lined up, including Evolution Jazz Band (the amazing youth band from North Bend, Oregon), Vince Bartels’ Migrant Jazz Workers (with Vince, Eddie Higgins, Allan Vaché, Davy Jones, Russ Phillips, Jennifer Leitham, and John Cocuzzi), and Paco Gatsby from Guatemala. There will be food and beverages available to purchase, and you can even be served by your favorite celebrity bartender! This will also be a night to recognize our Volunteer Honorees, as well as our fabulous sponsors, without whom we would not have such a great festival. Be sure to say thank you! Tickets are only $10 presale and $12 at the gate.
Speaking of sponsors—and I was—we have some new ones this year. Joining us for the first time are Bank of the West and Borders Books. As a matter of fact, you can purchase your Souvenir Jubilee CD at any Borders locally. They will also host a CD-signing party for the Rebirth Brass Band on the Sunday of Jubilee, May 27th, 2:00 p.m. at the store on Fair Oaks Blvd. near the Dante Club. Bank of the West is sponsoring the All-Star Venue at the Sheraton Grand Nave Ballroom. Re-joining us after some time away is Regional Transit. In addition to advertising—have you seen the bus backs?—they will provide free rides to all those with Jubilee admissions. Park free at light rail stations at Sunrise, Roseville Road (near Watt) and Florin, then ride free into Sacramento and take our free shuttles between venues. What could be easier? If you are planning to drive, there is reasonable event parking at the Raley Field overflow lots on West Capital Avenue just west of the Tower Bridge, with free shuttle service to all venues. [The Trolley will be free, too.]
My long-time friend, Cheri Murphy, will bring her outstanding band of local musicians to entertain us during the May “Jazz Sunday” concert at the Dante Club. We are so fortunate to have such talented musicians here in town. Bring Mom for a truly happy Mother’s Day.
Jill Harper's message
from the April 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
Time is getting short and Jubilee #34 will be here before we know it. Plans are moving forward, and the schedule is in its final stage of preparation. We’ve also proofread the first edition of the program.
I want to recognize our volunteer 2007 Hall of Fame inductees. They are: Judy Hendricks, Dave Acheson, Barbara & Karl Jacobsen, and Liz Tavernese. Judy Hendricks will be volunteering for her 34th Jubilee this year. Judy and I managed the Hospitality Room at the first Jubilee at the old El Rancho Hotel in West Sacramento. She has served on the board of directors and worked on a variety of Jubilee committees, currently with the Sound at the Holiday Inn Ballroom. Dave Acheson has been one of our stalwarts for many years, including serving on the board of directors, scheduling the myriad banjo players at Jubilee, and working with Roger Krum on the entire Jubilee schedule. Barbara & Karl Jacobsen are being recognized for their many years of service with the construction crew (“forever,” says Bill Evans). And, last but not least, Liz Tavernese, manager of the Holiday Inn, Capital Plaza, has been one of Jubilee’s most ardent supporters in the business community. She has served on our Jubilee Business/Community Advisory Committee and trains the most gracious and helpful staff. It’s always a pleasure to stay at the Holiday Inn during Jubilee.
These honorees will be introduced at our Kickoff Party at Freeway Gardens in Old Sacramento on Thursday night, starting at 7:00 pm. This will be an exciting evening with music from the Evolution Jazz Band, Vince Bartels’ Migrant Jazz Workers (M.J.W. = Eddie Higgins, Allan Vaché, Dan Barrett, Russ Phillips, and Jennifer Leitham) with John Cocuzzi, and finishing with Paco Gatsby. In addition to the great music and festivities, a host of celebrity bartenders will be on hand to serve your favorite beverage, and our food vendors will be on hand to feed you. Tickets are only $10 presale and $12 at the gate. Don’t miss it; it will be a blast!
Don’t forget to check out all the great music leading up to Jubilee this year. The Library Series, the Prelude to Jazz Series, and all those gigs in the last week leading up to Jubilee. Check the Jubilee website and keep checking as we add more information.
My previous requests for volunteers to help in various areas have been so successful, I’m going to try again. We here at STJS really need a young (or not), hip, computer-savvy volunteer to do Web page work, develop and maintain both My Space and Craig’s List pages, and maybe even run a blog. If you have skills in these areas and are willing to give us some of your time, please contact me at the office: (916) 372-5277, ext. 11.
Jill Harper's message
from the March 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
Well, the “bug” got me and I’ve been fighting a respiratory virus for over a week. Unfortunately, that meant missing the Trad. Jazz Youth Band Festival, including the Friday night jam session at RoundTable Pizza in Old Sac, and all the exciting sessions at the festival on Saturday. It also meant missing Jazz Sunday—something I rarely do. From all reports, it was a fabulous time for all and a record-setting day.
I did attend the Crab Feed and wish to thank Paula Vance, Tina Lee, TNT, Fulton St. and Black Tues. JBs, and all the many volunteers who put it together.
Don’t forget to get your copy of the Jubilee 2007 Souvenir CD. I purchased the first copy hot off the press and I’ve nearly worn it out already. I may have to get another one! They are only $20, tax included, and you won’t be sorry. It’s sure to become a collector’s item.
Plans for Jubilee are on track and the schedule is nearly complete. The crew just needs to program the special sets and guest artist appearances. We hope to have it on the Web page by the end of March.
Speaking of the Web page, you can now purchase tickets online. Soon, you will be able to purchase membership, the Jubilee CD, and make a contribution online as well.
The committee to develop a business plan for STJS is continuing its work. One of the things we’ve identified is the need for a few additional volunteers. We particularly need someone (young & savvy) to design and manage MySpace and Craig’s List sites on the internet. They tell us “old timers” that is how to reach the younger generation! There are a few other jobs available such as marketing for STJS as a whole, oversight of administration of a survey during Jubilee, and someone to coordinate a series of concerts at the local colleges. We would love to have you share your expertise with us. Call me.
Jill Harper's message
from the Feb. 2007 "And All That
Jazz"
Well, 2007 is here, and I want to wish each of you a very Happy New Year. I can’t believe how quickly the time goes—only four months until the Jubilee! Don’t forget to buy tickets now for the Thursday Night Kick-Off Party, which will likely sell out.
Jubilee plans are well underway; scheduling is on track and writing assignments for the program have been made. There are some interesting gigs leading up to Jubilee this year:
1) There will be a Swing Dance Exhibition on Sat., March 24th in the Plaza Piazza from 11:30am–1:30pm.
2) This year’s theme for the “Library Series” (formerly known as the “Styles of Trad. Jazz” series) will be: the influence of Latin rhythms on the development of jazz. Featured performers are Frank French, pianist, on March 18th; the Steve Homan Quartet featuring Francesca Homan on April 22nd; the CSUS Latin Jazz Band on May 20th; and Paco Gatsby on Wednesday, May 23rd. The three Sunday performances are from 1:30pm–1:30pm, and the Wednesday performance is from 11:30am–1:30pm. All performances will be held in the Tsakopoulos Galleria at Sac. Central Library, 8th and I Streets, in Sacramento.
3) New this year is the “Prelude to Jubilee” series that will spotlight the variety of styles featured at the Jubilee. Kicking off this series of Wednesday-night concerts will be Mick Martin & the Blues Rockers on April 4th, followed by John Cocuzzi & Friends on April 18th, and concluding with the Mat Marucci/Doug Webb Trio on May 2nd. The concerts, sponsored by The Golden One, will be held at Waterfront Park in Old Sacramento from 6:00–8:00pm. The media sponsor is KXJZ, and Old Sacramento Management will assist STJS in the presentation. Lots of fun things to do, and they’re all FREE! Bring the kids, bring your friends...
STJS is still looking for a volunteer to take on the position of historian. We have an amazing amount of “stuff” to organize. If there is anyone out there who is willing to take on this project, please give me a call at the office.
Mid-December update 2006 (from SacJazz-E-News):
A committee from the Board of Directors is working on developing a new Business Plan for STJS. This effort is being led by Don Rothchild, former manager of the Mansion Inn (now the Clarion) and strong Jubilee supporter in past years. He represented Steve Hammond at our board retreat and volunteered to help us with the plan. The committee consists of Molly Greene, Scott Kaufman, Len Strickland, Wendy Maihack, Bob Williams, Vivian Abraham, and me. The committee has met and defined the major components of the plan. The committee will attempt to get a student from SSU to do a market analysis for the plan. Serious work will begin after the first of the year.
The Jubilee promotional brochures are out and look great. We do have a slight problem, however. Sam Reagle, who headed the committee for distribution of the promotional material for several years, has decided to resign this year due to work pressures. We are very much in need of a volunteer to chair this committee to assure that our promotion reaches the widest possible audience. Anyone interested? If you know of any business, etc. who would display the brochures, please pick up some brochures from the STJS office and distribute them there.
Our “Early Bird Special” for Jubilee is in effect again this year. All-events admissions are only $80 until January 3rd and daily admissions are $35. These prices will remain in effect for members until April 8th.
The new Web site is up, although there are still things to do to "fancy it up." A big thank you goes to Scott Kaufman for taking on this huge re-design project. Jason Montiel, the photographer for the Downtown partnership 2007 calendar, emailed us with an offer of photographs from the Jubilee – he thought Scott might want some of them for the new Web site. The Web links are not all operational as yet and other information and graphics need to be finalized as well.
I have a lot of gratitude these days. Major thanks go to volunteer Tom Duff and board member Paul Edgerton, each of whom donated a new computer to STJS. We had — and still have — some pretty outmoded computers with hard drives that could go out at any time. Now accounting and the databases are secure on nice new computers with state-of-the-art technology. Other major thanks go to members of the telephone crew and other volunteers like Janie Graves and Bruce MacNeill, who are staffing the office these days. Also, kudos to Paula Vance, who is heading the Crab Feed, Auction, and Dance fundraiser in January. We really have some of the best, most dedicated volunteers in the world.
Our partnership with the Convention and Visitors Bureau is already paying off. They were able to re-sign Golden 1 as a continuing sponsor even though they are changing the focus of their advertising this year. One component of their sponsorship will be as the presenting sponsor of the “Prelude to Jubilee” series in April and May. This series of three concerts will be held in Old Sacramento at Waterfront Park (think Riverfront Refuge) on Wednesday nights from 6-8:00 p.m. on April 4th, April 18th, and May 2nd. Mick Martin will kick off the series, followed by John Cocuzzi and Friends, and closing with the Mat Marucci-Doug Webb Trio. Golden 1 wanted an association with our more contemporary styles of music for this series. Co-sponsoring will be Old Sacramento Management, and our media sponsor will be KXJZ.
There are also several other major sponsorship proposals out including one for the Trad Jazz youth Band Festival. Everyone keep their fingers crossed.
Jill Harper's message
from the Nov. 2006 "And All That
Jazz"
FROM MY VIEW — Another Jazz Sunday has come and gone, and what a day it was! Scott Anthony’s Oct. 8th performance was reminiscent of intermissions at Earthquake McGoon’s (am I dating myself?) and he had terrific backup from our local musicians. It was especially nice to see and hear Bob Hirsch. And was that Bill Dendle on drums? Our illustrious Jazz Camp Director is truly a man of many talents. Norm Echols’ 13-piece Swingtime band had the dance floor packed. With so many talented local musicians in our jazz society, we should be extremely grateful.
We have exciting news for Jubilee fans: the Rebirth Brass Band from New Orleans has been booked to headline the festival. If you watched the Katrina memorial network special, “A Song for New Orleans,” it featured this band and the story of how they re-grouped after the disaster. Or, if you missed it but are a football fan, they are the group that played at the New Orleans Saints' first game back in the Coliseum. They are an energetic young group and have performed all over the world, appealing to both traditional fans and young people.
Also for Jubilee, we have several special events planned including a “Western Swing” afternoon on Saturday, and then on Saturday night at the Swing Dance venue, a show called “Military Swing Band: Then and Now.” There are some interesting new bands scheduled, and of course, some of our long-time favorites. Watch for the promotional brochure due out in November.
As we attempt to diversify our fundraising beyond the Jubilee, STJS is planning a CRAB FEED on Saturday, January 27th. It will be held in the upstairs ballroom (the Sky Room) at Country Club Lanes on Watt Avenue. We will have an auction, live music and dancing, and all-you-can-eat crab! Tickets are only $35 and seating is limited, so get your tickets early from any board member, or call the office at 916-372-5277.
34th annual
SACRAMENTO
JAZZ JUBILEE
Memorial Day Weekend
May 25-28, 2007
Sounds Like Fun!®
Jill Harper's message
from the Oct. 2006 "And All That
Jazz"
Another amazing “Jazz Sunday” with young trumpet player Duke Heitger. With this kind of talent —an international star—I couldn’t believe we didn’t have standing-room only, especially since our admission is so reasonable. It was a terrific show—very nice to see former STJS President Bill Richards playing a set with the guest artist, not to mention the other end of the age spectrum, Brandon Au, on trombone. I heard Duke caution him to enjoy that “young prodigy” status because the time passes all too quickly!
Auditions for TNT for 2006-07 will be over by the time you receive this newsletter. With nearly all brand new band members, Director Dave Johnson has his work cut out for him this year. On the other hand, with all the good talent growing up in this area, maybe not!
Planning for the 2007 Jubilee is well under way. There will be some changes next year:
Crocker Park (which I have come to love) will become the construction staging area for the addition to Crocker Art Museum and will be unavailable to us for the next 2-3 years. We will replace the two venues from Crocker Park with one upstairs at the Convention Center, “Abe’s Attic,” and one in West Sacramento in the RV parking area—a resurrected “RV Pavilion.”
“The Top of the Hyatt” (TOTH) has been booked for a wedding/reception. (They get lots more money from those gigs.) The TOTH venue will be now be called “The Hideaway” after moving to the main floor of the Convention Center, almost directly under the Yolo Room, and The Hyatt Ragtime Corner will also have a new spot, moving to the Golden State Room on the mezzanine of the Hyatt.
Due to the success of swing dancing last year, we will move that venue to the main stage at the Convention Center, with the bleachers lined up on both sides and table seating at the rear of the dance floor.
Jubilee talent selection is nearly complete, and all other aspects are being planned. STJS Board Member Scott Kaufman is heading a team to re-design our Jubilee Web site, www. sacjazz.com, and we are planning to handle our own on-line sales this next year in cooperation with our bank, Wells Fargo. This should avoid many of the difficulties we experienced last Jubilee with our credit card vendor.
Our plans for a major headliner at Raley Field will not happen for 2007. However, it has been a wonderful partnership, and we will again have venues there next year, plus RV parking and public parking. There will still be a headliner for one of our venues, which we are currently negotiating.
JUBILEE VOLUNTEERS: We have openings for a few volunteer managers such as the Lottery Trailer, etc. We could also use some experienced office help. The Marketing and Publicity Committee is looking for two volunteers to handle special incentive programs, including a singles program and several others. The Marketing and Publicity Committee handles media relations, development of the program and other collateral materials, group sales, special projects and graphic development, including billboards, posters, and advertising. If you have advertising, marketing, publicity or media experience, e-mail Gene Berthelsen at catsnjam@sbcglobal.net. For all other positions, please call the Jubilee office at (916) 372-5277.
By the way, no “volunteer fee” for 2007!
34th annual SACRAMENTO JAZZ JUBILEE
May 25-28, 2007 — Memorial Day Weekend
Sounds Like Fun!®
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