Takoma
JazzFest 8: variety, diversity, and a splash of audience participation
BY MITCHELL TROPIN
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This year's
Takoma JazzFest, to be held Saturday, June 14, from
11 a.m. to 7 p.m., at Jequie Park in North Takoma, effectively
embodies the diversity and variety for which Takoma
Park is so well known. The 8th annual festival features
a lineup that shows off the many facets of jazzbig band
and small combo, traditional and cutting edge music,
emerging young artists and jazz greats.
This year's headliner is Chuck Redd, a Takoma Park
native and internationally celebrated vibraphonist and
drummer who has performed with Charlie Byrd and Dizzy
Gillespie. He performs at 6 p.m. with the Chuck Redd
All-Stars, a band he assembled exclusively for this
occasion, featuring bass player Joe Byrd and guitarist
Frank Vignola.
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PHOTO: JULIE WIATT
Saxophonist and JazzFest organizer
Bruce Krohmer.
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Reflecting the people-friendly nature of Takoma Park, JazzFest
8 includes plenty of opportunities for attendees to participate.
In keeping with this year's theme of "happy feet,"
the festival has hired dance instructors to teach folks how
to dance to jazz and booked two bands that play irresistibly
danceable swing and rhythm & blues. One is a small combo,
The Darryl Davis Band; the other, the Alan Baylock Orchestra,
is a 17-piece big band fronted by the arranger for the U.S.
Air Force's jazz band.
The festival will also include an open jam, something which
organizer Bruce Krohmer says is fairly unique among jazz festivals.
The jam, which is "open to anybody who can actually play
an instrument," will have a drummer, a bassist, and a
piano player to support the participants.
Opening the festival is the Hokum Jazz Band, playing old-time,
acoustic jazz and blues. Also performing is the Federal Jazz
Commission, one of the best known traditional jazz bands in
the area. The Commission, a mainstay at Colonel Brooks' Tavern
near Catholic University, has been performing together for
over 15 years.
Also performing is the Barry Neil Quartet, featuring vocalist
Dave Anderson. The quartet was the winner of this year's Jazz
Brawl competition, the annual Takoma JazzFest fundraiser,
held every spring. Krohmer says battle of the bands events
haven't been done much in the jazz world since the '30s or
'40s. But back in 1996, after the first Takoma JazzFest got
virtually rained out, Krohmer suggested that they do a fundraiser"but
not a car wash or bake sale."
He gave it some thought and came up with the Jazz Brawl.
Now, every year, he sorts through a dozen or so recordings
to select three groups to face off in the competition. When
possible, he chooses contrasting bands. For example, if two
entrants are instrumental groups, he'll look for a third that
has a vocalist.
Also performing at this year's festival is The Federal Focus,
a Washington, D.C. youth band that plays traditional jazz.
"We want to keep the music growing," says Krohmer,
and "keep bringing in new musicians so they can be part
of it."
The position of JazzFest coordinator is new to Krohmer, who
recently took over the role from the original coordinator,
co-founder Dave Lorentz. When Lorentz decided to step down
so he could focus more on the Takoma Park Symphony, the festival
committee selected Krohmer, who had been actively involved
with producing the festival from the very start.
Krohmer first arrived in Takoma Park in 1994 and noticed
an advertisement in the Takoma Voice, calling for people to
help create a jazz festival. Answering the ad, Krohmer hooked
up with Lorentz, and eighteen months later, in May of 1996,
the first Takoma JazzFest was held at Ed Wilhelm Field.
Despite torrential rain, the event drew an enthusiasticalbeit
smallcrowd. Rain has, in fact, been a common element in six
of the last seven Takoma JazzFests. This year, in efforts
to stop that trend, the planning committee decided to begin
holding the Fest in mid-June instead of May.
Takoma JazzFest 8 takes place Saturday, June 14, from 11
a.m. to 7 p.m., at Jequie Park in North Takoma.
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