OUR MISSION WORKING TOGETHER WORKS! MISSION: The African American Jazz Caucus, Inc., is dedicated to protecting, preserving and perpetuating the rich cultural heritage of jazz, which is one of our indigenous musical art forms. PRESERVING THE JAZZ LEGACY. Jazz is an art form which has its origins, spiritual, heritage and cultural roots in Africa, African American communities and the African Diaspora. The African American Jazz Caucus, Inc. (AAJC), is proactively working to maintain the aesthetic integrity, heritage, legacy and historical facts germane to the music emphasizing "The Roots that have produced the Fruits" . We are engaged in creating programs and providing services to further jazz education and jazz audiences. The Caucus invites and encourages proactive members to share their expertise in our networking with national and international communities. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Opening speech at the 1964 Berlin Jazz Festival "Humanity and the Importance of Jazz" "God has wrought many things out of oppression. He has endowed his creatures with the capacity to create - and from this capacity has flowed the sweet songs of sorrow and joy that have allowed man to cope with his environment and many different situations. Jazz speaks for life. The Blues tell the story of life's difficulties, and if you think for a moment, you will realize that they take the hardest realities of life and put them into music, only to come out with some new hope or sense of triumph. This is triumphant music. Modern Jazz has continued in this tradition, singing the songs of a more complicated urban existence. When life itself offers no order and meaning, the musician creates an order and meaning from the sounds of the earth which flow through his instrument. It is no wonder that so much of the search for identity among American Negroes was championed by Jazz musicians. Long before the modern essayists and scholars wrote of "racial identity" as a problem for a multi-racial world, musicians were returning to their roots to affirm that which was stirring within their souls. Much of the power of our Freedom Movement in the United States has come from this music. It has strengthened us with its sweet rhythms when courage began to fail. It has calmed us with its rich harmonies when spirits were down. And now, Jazz is exported to the world. For in the particular struggle of the Negro in America there is something akin to the universal struggle of modern man. Everybody has the Blues. Everybody longs for meaning. Everybody needs to love and be loved. Everybody needs to clap hands and be happy. Everybody longs for faith. In music, especially this broad category called Jazz, there is a stepping stone towards all of these." ******************************************** PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Release - May 29,2009, 9:00 a.m. Contact: Dr. Larry Ridley, AAJC Executive Director Phone: (212) 979 -0304 The African American Jazz Caucus, Inc. (AAJC) and the National Association of Juneteenth Jazz Presenters, Inc. (NAJJP) invite you to attend a Press Conference on Monday, June 1, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. to commemorate and acknowledge the significance of Juneteenth and June as Black Music Month. The purpose of the press conference is to inform the media and community in general of the AAJC and NAJJP initiatives. These initiatives, at the local and national levels, are designed to recognize and promote June as Black Music Month with an emphasis on Jazz. The Press Conference will be held in the American Negro Theatre at the Schomburg Center, 135th Street and Lenox Avenue (aka Malcolm X Boulevard), New York City. The African American Jazz Caucus, Inc. (AAJC) (a NYC based 501c3) and the National Association of Juneteenth Jazz Presenters, Inc. (NAJJP) hope that you will participate by sending an official representative to assist in documenting these two historically significant components of the African American experience. Thank you for your kind, cordial and professional assistance. Please RSVP – LHRidley1937@gmail.com and please copy Juneteenthdoc@yahoo.com *********************************************************************** 9 A.M. EST, December 16, 2008 Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture of the New York Public Library AAJC/HBCU Student All-star Big Band Performance The African American Jazz Caucus, Inc., in partnership with the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture of the New York Public Library, will launch Black History month by presenting the 2009 AAJC/HBCU Student All-star Big Band in concert, Sunday, February 1, 2009 at 3:00pm, in the Schomburg Langston Hughes Auditorium, 135th Street and Malcolm X Boulevard, Harlem, New York. The big band is composed of the finest young talent from outstanding jazz programs at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The establishment of the AAJC/HBCU Student All-star Big Band was conceived in 2001 by Dr. Larry Ridley, Executive Director of the African American Jazz Caucus, Inc. They have been performing since 2002 under the direction of the AAJC/HBCU Jazz Directors Committee to standing room only audiences in Long Beach, California; New York City; Toronto, Canada and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. They were also the featured band in 2006 and 2008 at the University of Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival, the oldest collegiate jazz festival in the world. Our Director Emeritus is the legendary Gerald Wilson, National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Jazz Master. The Chairman of the AAJC/HBCU Band Directors Committee is Dr. Russell Thomas, Jackson State University; Vice Chairman, Dr. Ira Wiggins, North Carolina Central University; Dr. Howard Harris, Texas Southern University; Professor James Holden, Virginia State University; Dr. John Lamkin, University of Maryland Eastern Shore; Professor James Patterson, Clark Atlanta University. Students apply annually in a blind audition process and are selected by an independent jury of prestigious jazz professionals. The Historically Black Colleges and Universities represented by the 2009 big band members are: Clark Atlanta University; Fayetteville State University; Florida A & M University; Huston – Tillotson University; Jackson State University; North Carolina Central University; Texas Southern University and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. The big band will be conducted by Professor James Patterson, Clark Atlanta University; Professor James Holden, Virginia State University and Professor Robert Trowers, North Carolina Central University. Rev. Ronald V. Myers, Sr., M.D., Founder & Chairman of the National Juneteenth Holiday Campaign, will present the prestigious “National Juneteenth Leadership Award” to Ms. Patricia R. Deans, Founder & Director of the Brownsville Heritage House in Brooklyn, NY. Ms. Deans played a key role in the successful passage of the historic legislation in 2004 recognizing “Juneteenth Freedom Day” as an official New York State Holiday Observance. Please come celebrate Black History Month in Harlem with us! For more information, please visit www.aajc.us or call (212) 979-0304. Tickets: Schomburg members, $16; non members, $20. For ticket charge call the Schomburg Shop at (212) 491-2206 ACTIVITIES To accomplish our mission, we are presently collaborating with individuals, educational institutions and private organizations in the following programs and activities: Ongoing interaction and programming with Historical Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). In 2001, Dr. Larry Ridley organized the AAJC/HBCU Student All-star Big Band to perform, under the auspices of the AAJC. The annual blind selection process and coordination is administered by the AAJC/HBCU Jazz Directors Committee. Career development of interdisciplinary programs/curricula for jazz instructors, teachers, professors, music management, artists & repertoire directors, promotions, producers, recording engineers, print and broadcast media, writers, historians, critics and music therapy. National technical assistance and consulting services for the continued development of jazz related career activities. Alternative academic and nonacademic Jazz instructional venues. Audience development programs through the creation of a network for performances, clinics, workshops and tours (e.g., inner city schools and other venues). Partnership with the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) as Jazz curricula evaluators. Interaction/interfacing with the music industry and musicians unions. Development of the North Carolina Central University/African American Jazz Caucus Jazz Research Institute (NAJRI), North Carolina Jazz Hall of Fame, Durham, NC. Jazz and Art Collaboration with the National Alliance of Artists at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (NAAHBCU). Rev. Ronald V. Myers, Sr., M.D., Chairman National Juneteenth Holiday Campaign National Juneteenth Observance Foundation (NJOF) National Juneteenth Christian Leadership Council (NJCLC) (662) 247-3364; (662) 247-1471 www.Juneteenth.us; www.19thofJune.com; www.njclc.com; www.JuneteenthJazz.com NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF JUNETEENTH JAZZ PRESENTERS (NAJJP) "June Is Black Music Month!" CELEBRATING JUNETEENTH JAZZ "Preserving our African American Jazz Legacy!" www.JuneteenthJazz.com The African American Jazz Caucus, Inc., is a 501(c)(3), not-for-profit tax exempt organization.