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1. The PHOTO above is the Inaugural AAJC/HBCU Student All-star Big Band� photographed by renowned Jazz photographer, Jim Alexander. This was taken outside the Long Beach, CA, Convention Center in January, 2002, where they performed before an SRO audience at the 29th Annual IAJE Conference 2002. Check out the listing of the student performers and a performance review by jazz writer Jack Bowers of this historic event on the AAJC Website History page. This was the first of annual performances by the African American Jazz Caucus/Historically Black Colleges & Universities Student All-star Big Band at the IAJE Conference and was conceived and produced by AAJC Executive Director Larry Ridley with the aid of the AAJC/HBCU Jazz Directors Committee- Dr. Russell Thomas, Jackson State University, Chairman; Dr. Ira Wiggins, North Carolina Central University, Vice-Chairman; Dr. Howard Harris, Texas Southern University; Professor James Patterson, Clark Atlanta University; Dr. Fred Irby, Howard University. Conference assistance was also provided by then AAJC President Badi Murphy. Our Conductor Emeritus is the legendary NEA Jazz Master, Gerald Wilson. Recently appointed to the Committee in 2006 is Dr. John Lamkin, University of Maryland Eastern Shore.
The student personnel is selected annually through a competetive blind audition process conducted by an outside panel of renowned jazz professionals. Additional historical information regarding the evolution of this project is available by clicking on the AAJC website History button. For HBCU profiles, Big Band and audition information contact Dr. Russell Thomas via Email -- rthomasjr@comcast.net OR russell.thomas@JSUMS.edu 2. AAJC K-12 and Alternative Jazz Ed Concepts & Venues Project Initiation Date: 01/24/2003 2:15:29 PM Eastern Standard Time Beginning in 2007, Current Project Coordinating Consultant - Douglas Harris. For information on the Project, he can be contacted by Email -- DHarris541@aol.com 3. AAJC Dance Band Professor David Hardiman, San Francisco City College, agreed early in the year 2002 to become the Director and coordinator of this big band project beginning with the 2003 IAJE Conference in Toronto, Canada. It is a tradition for the AAJC to sponsor a Friday night dance at the annual IAJE Conferences. Our Director Emeritus is the legendary Jimmy Coe who led the band for a number of years. There was a two year moratorium of the AAJC big band performing at the conference. The dance at the IAJE Conference 2001 in NYC had music performed by the Harlem based big band, the Harlem Renaissance Orchestra. The ensemble of Hank Marr provided the dance music at the 2002 IAJE Conference in Long Beach, CA. The original and reinstituted purpose of this project is two-fold , one- to emphasize the historic legacy of the interaction and interfacing of Jazz and Dance, two- to have a performance forum for many of the AAJC members who attend the annual IAJE Conferences. The AAJC Dance Band strives for excellence in its annual presentations. Therefore, all interested participants who are current or prospective AAJC members are asked to contact Professor Hardiman ASAP in advance of the annual IAJE Conferences for selection and rehearsal guidelines. He can be reached by Email: dhardiman20012000@yahoo.com or dhardima@ccsf.org; USPS address: 38 Bradford Street, San Francisco, CA 94110. 4. AAJC Organizational Fund With the initial contributions by Mr. John Smith, Dr. Larry Ridley, Mr. Ed Thigpen, and Dr. Jesse McCarroll, the African American Jazz Caucus, Inc., an IRS 501 c3, not for profit entity, is beginning the implementation of a fiscal concept to insure the ongoing sustenance of the AAJC. This is a major priority in order for the organization to realize, sustain and perpetuate its goals and objectives. The AAJC welcomes any and all contributors who share our vision, mission and sense of historical urgency. A part of the ongoing strategy is to develop a variety of fund raising events and concepts. ************************************************************************************* The international reputation of the North Carolina Central University (NCCU)Jazz Studies Program has been embellished by a collaborative partnership with the African American Jazz Caucus (AAJC), a 501c3 affiliate of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE). Together they have created a new University approved Jazz Research Institute which is an historical first at an Historic Black College/University (HBCU). The title is an acronym, NAJRI which stands for North Carolina Central University (N), African American Jazz Caucus (A), Jazz (J), Research (R), Institute (I). The first major event sponsored by this newly formed NCCU institutional component was the NCCU/AAJC HBCU Jazz Conference/Festival held on the campus in Durham at NCCU, June 20–23, 2007. NCCU Jazz Studies Program Director, Dr. Ira Wiggins and AAJC Executive Director, Dr. Larry Ridley are the Co-Directors of NAJRI. The opening Conference reception featured a Jazz Photo Exhibit by renowned jazz photographer, Mr. Jim Alexander. Welcoming addresses to the Conference attendees were given by NCCU Provost /Vice Chancellor, Dr. Beverly Jones; NCCU Assistant Vice Chancellor, Dr. Janice Harper and the Honorable Mayor of Durham, Mr. William Bell. The four-day conference included interdisciplinary workshops, panel discussions, seminars and performances by internationally renowned guest artists: pianist Kenny Barron; trumpeter Jimmy Owens; bassist Larry Ridley and the Jazz Legacy Ensemble featuring pianist Richard Wyands, saxophonist Doug Harris, violinist Krystle Ford, drummer Greg Buford, vocalist Jackie Jones, the American Dance Festival Dancers and special guest saxophonist Ira Wiggins; vocalist Lenora Zenzalai Helm and the Zenzalai Project, featuring saxophonist Antoine Roney and pianist Brandon McCune; the NCCU performer/coordinators- trombonist Robert Trowers and pianist Arnold George. Some of the renowned speakers and panelists were- Mr. A.B. Spellman, writer and recently retired Deputy Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts; Mr. Cedric Hendricks, Esq., Assistant to Congressman John Conyers, (D-MI); Reverend Ron Myers, M.D., Chairman, National Juneteenth Council; Dr. Willis Kirk, President Emeritus- City College of San Francisco, CA; Professor Bill Fielder, Rutgers University; Dr. Howard Harris, Texas Southern University; Professor James Patterson, Clark Atlanta University; Dr. John Lamkin, University of Maryland Eastern Shore; Dr. Jesse McCarroll, City University of New York; Mr. Cliff Bellamy, Herald Tribune; Dr. Karen Chandler, College of Charleston (SC); Dr. Irene Owens, NCCU Dean of the School of Library and Information Sciences; Ms. Edith Thorpe, WNCU-FM, General Manager; Mr. Katey Assem, NCCU Vice Chancellor of Institutional Advancement and Mr. Ron Scott, New York Amsterdam News. The Conference/Festival speakers, panelists and performers have given written testimonials to the quality, substance, need and support for NAJRI’s ongoing programs and success. In addition to the Conference/Festival, the partnership was founded to establish the NAJRI Jazz Research Institute Digital Library and the NAJRI Jazz Hall of Fame. Dr. Paula Harrell, Chair of the NCCU Music Department wrote and received a $30,000 Digital Humanities Initiative Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for librarian training. This grant provided an opportunity for Dr. Harrell to take a course, at Cornell University, with music librarian Vernice Faison and library assistants Stephanie Fennell and Yingqi Tang. Cornell is the foremost institution for digital librarianship in the country. The first collection to be established will be comprised of the digital photographs of renowned jazz photographer Jim Alexander of Atlanta, Georgia. This Digital Library ultimately will house photographs, oral histories, sheet and recorded music, as well as other historical documents. |