Saturday, November 19, 2005

Katrina: 24 Hours of the Blues



WHO: The Bay Area Blues Society

WHAT: “24 Hours of the Blues” – A benefit for musicians affected by Hurricane Katrina

WHERE: Vallejo Performing Arts Center, 707 Marin Street, Vallejo, CA

WHEN: November 19th and 20th, 2005
6:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

WHY: The Bay Area Blues Society is assisting the MusiCares Foundation by hosting this 24 Hoursof Blues Benefit. Many styles of music will be presented including Blues, Cajun, Zydeco, R&Band Gospel to raise funds for the many displaced musicians affected by Hurricane Katrina andthe areas of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

The MusiCares Foundation is assisting hundreds of musicians. Hurricane Relief Assistancemay include funds for basic living expenses such as shelter, food, utilities, cell phones andtransportation; medical expenses including doctor, dental, hospital bills, and medication; clothingand toiletries; musical instruments and recording equipment replacement; relocation costs;school supplies for students; insurance payments and more. The funds for this specific need willsoon run out. The Bay Area Blues Society would like to assist by presenting this benefit in order to continue the much needed support for the hundreds of musicians in order for them to make a living. Many musicians in the 7th and 9th Wards of New Orleans lost everything. We cannot let New Orleans, the birthplace of Jazz Music, or it’s music be washed away.

BAY AREA BLUES SOCIETY, INC.

MISSION STATEMENT

The Bay Area Blues Society is a non-profit, 501 © (3) organization dedicated to the perpetuation of Blues, Jazz and Gospel as an indigenous American art form. We are dedicated to the preservation , promotion and representation of this American folk music and cultural forms of Blues, Jazz and Gospel as they took root in African-American communities. The communities of Vallejo, Richmond, Oakland and Russell City all have deep roots in the music idiom.

For the past 17 years, the Bay Area Blues Society has surpassed all other blues society's who focus on just Blues festivals and membership. We have reached out within our community, as well as expanded to other communities, to present the rich musical heritage of the Blues, American's only true home-grown art form.

Sunday, November 13, 2005

ErgoBone

ErgoBone is a new auxiliary device for all trombonists which gives the player a more comfortable, effective and healthy way of playing the trombone.



We have some personal testimonials that this device works! Check out the videos.

Saturday, November 12, 2005

Trombones via Google

In celebration of Trombone Day...















Friday, November 11, 2005

7th Annual Trombone Day

California State University Hayward hosts the 7th Annual Trombone Day, tomorrow, November 12. Featured are clinics and performance by John Engelkes, Bass Trombonist with the San Francisco Symphony, a lecture about Focal Dystonia by guest speaker Jan Kagarice and a concert by the Bay Bonz trombone choir.

My wife, Lori is performing with the Bay Bonz and gave me this list of quite difficult pieces on the program.

Funklore - Earl Zindars
Mister Roberts - Ilja Reijngoud
Bonin' Up - Jack Hayes
Well All Right - Pete Madsen
Adagio from Symphony No. 3 - Saint-Saens
arranged by Ken Murley
Back to the Fair - Bill Reichenbach

Lori likens this event to a Napolean Dynamite family reunion.

Links from the sponsers, AGMusic and California State East Bay.

Friday, November 04, 2005

John Worley Birthday Bash

There are a lot of heavies playing this weekend, but I am going to help John celebrate his 50th birthday at BOAS in Cupertino, Saturday night. All the usual suspects from the Worlview band should be there and I expect a few others to sit in, maybe quite a few others. It should be well worth my time.

Two Three other Worley items of note.

There is a huge article in today's San Francisco Chronicle about John, although I have not yet had time to read it. A very cool article with quotes of high praise from Carla Bley and Steve Swallow about his performance at the recent Monterey Jazz Festival. (That's my photo John!)

Also check out John's blog. He has an interesting post about how he learned to play trumpet. An insightful look at the early Worley.

To top it all off, John is playing tonight and Sunday with Stanley Clark at Yoshi's. Sweet!