2024 Jazz Appreciation Month in Historic Leimert Park Village and Beyond
Spring is an amazing season of renewal. The days are longer, and the weather is more pleasant. This is an idea time to get outside to celebrate and enjoy the season of Spring. This is also a friendly reminder to dust off your dancing shoes in preparation for outdoor concerts, events and festival. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, festival season is in bloom!
By Ricky Richardson | Contributing Writer
Spring is an amazing season of renewal. The days are longer, and the weather is more pleasant. This is an ideal time to get outside to celebrate and enjoy the season of Spring. This is also a friendly reminder to dust off your dancing shoes in preparation for outdoor concerts, events and festival. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, festival season is in bloom!
We as a community still must be cognizant of the fact that COVID-19 is still around, even though, most people are fully vaccinated against the virus. Promoters and organizers have been moving forward in scheduling concerts, events and festival and workshops while following safety protocols.
The Smithsonian Museum of American History founded National Jazz Appreciation Jazz Appreciation Month in 2001 to celebrate the culture, music, and heritage associated with jazz. April is Jazz Appreciation Month. National Jazz Appreciation Month celebrates the extraordinary heritage and history of jazz. Jazz Appreciation Month 2024: Celebration of Duke Ellington on his 125th birthday. Duke Ellington is considered by many as a great arranger, composer and musician. As a truly American art form, jazz soulful & rich culture dates back to the 1890s. New Orleans is the birthplace of jazz. The city of New Orleans celebrates the legacy of jazz all year long.
This is a good time to become acquainted with jazz or to bend your ear, so to speak to jazz. A good start is listening to jazz on the radio 24/7. Los Angeles based radio station KJAZZ, 88.1FM. This station can be heard globally on https://jazzandblues.org Spice up your weekend with a little Latin Jazz/Salsa (Friday and Saturday evening). Listeners are able to get a dose of down-home blues on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. KJAZZ is one of only a handful of radio stations nationwide. Many people will agree that KJAZZ is “America’s #1 Jazz Station.” There’s a popular saying “Jazz Made in America, Enjoyed by the World.” Welcome to Jazz Appreciation Month!
You don’t have to travel far in order to listen to jazz recordings. I invite you to visit your parent’s basement or attic. Please walk gently at to not set off their motion sensors guarding their vintage, out of stock collections of LP’s/EP, s. If you want to eventually start your own collection, there are a wide selection of LP’s, Cd’s and DVDs to be found at your local record stores, online, garage sales and or local secondhand thrift stores.
Libraries are a valuable gem with numerous resources to learn about jazz. You can purchase books about jazz online from your local, national bookstores. There are a variety of movies about jazz that you can stream online, check out from your local library, or better yet, purchase online. Look no further than your family tree for great stories about jazz musicians, festivals, concerts, jazz venues etc. There is a good chance that someone in your family is/was a jazz musician or a patron of the local jazz scene.
The Future of Jazz
The future of jazz is looking bright and is vibrant. Students at the Fernando Pullum Community Arts Center are carrying the torch of jazz, performance arts or whichever career path they follow forward into the future. The Fernando Pullum Community Arts Center is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide quality performing arts instructions to youth and help them build self-esteem, develop civic responsibility, and achieve academic success. The teachers provide a program filled with structure and well-planned curriculum to serve all students with a desire to learn and grow their talent. I have had the pleasure of seeing and hearing this talented group on several occasions around town. Their commitment and dedication are apparent in their tight arrangements of pop and jazz standards. Stay on the lookout for a performance by the Fernando Pullum Community Arts Jazz Band in the community. You will be truly rewarded for your efforts.
Jazz Venues in Leimert Park
Los Angeles is home to many world-renowned jazz musicians as well as emerging and rising stars in the genre. Local venues in Leimert Park Village welcomes everyone with open arms to listen to and support live jazz. The World Stage is an educational and performance space in Leimert Park Village, the heart of the Los Angeles African American cultural community. Founded in1989 by the late world-renowned master drummer Billy Higgins ad poet and community activist Kamau Daáood, in an attempt to fill a cultural void in the L.A. community. The World Stage has blossomed to assume a pioneering and pivotal role in South Los Angeles music and arts landscape. The World Stage host in person concerts. Visit https://www.theworldstage.org to view the calendar of upcoming events. The World Stage and Leimert Park Jazz Festival partnered for a concert series Friday Night Jazz. Please visit the respective websites for future shows.
The Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center established in 2009 by Grammy-nominated Jazz & Blues legend Barbara Morrison. The BMPAC provides an intimate space for creators and Los Angeles audiences to enjoy theatrical productions, live comedy, blues, jazz, vocal workshops, dance lessons, and music classes for kids. The Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center host a variety of events. Visit https://tbmpac.com for a list of upcoming events. Tim Morganfield is carrying on the legacy at The Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center after the passing of Barbara Morrison, March 16, 2022.
Ora formerly known as Hot & Cool Café is another venue one can hear jazz music, spoken word performances and live DJ set. Ora has partnered with Leimert Park Jazz Festival for a series of jazz concerts on the fourth Sunday of each month. Visit https://www.instagram.com/oraenergy?hl=e to view a schedule of upcoming concerts as well as photos and videos of past performances at Ora.
Let’s not forget the historic and legendary Regency West. I’m sure that this venue brings back a lot of fond memories for you or your parents back in the day. KAOS Network is another awesome establishment where creators can produce and showcase their talents. I can’t overlook the Vision Theatre which is undergoing renovation. This will be another performing arts venue when it reopens in the future. Important side note, actress Marla Gibbs used to own the Vision Theatre as well as the former Marla’s Memory Lane & Jazz Superclub.
Jazz Festivals of Note
International Jazz Day brings together countries and communities on all seven continents to honor the international art form of jazz, highlighting its important role in encouraging dialogue, combating discrimination and promoting human dignity. November 2011. UNESCO officially designated April 30 as International Jazz Day in order to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role in uniting people in all corners of the world. The Dymally Institute at Cal State University Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), in partnership with Rainbow Promotions is hosting the 5th Annual Dymally International Jazz & Arts Festival, Saturday, April 27, 2024, with a stellar lineup. The festival will feature Teodross Avery, Judith Hill, Jonathan Butler, Stanley Clarke, and Angelique Kidjo. You don’t want to miss this milestone celebration. For more information visit https://www.csudh.edu/dymally-institute/jazz-and-arts-festival https://www.rainbowpromotions.com and to purchase tickets visit https://www.axs.com
The Leimert Park Jazz Festival is executive produced by Diane Robertson in association with Dwight Trible and The World Stage. It has evolved from its beginning in 2015 as an intimate community block party known as Sutro Avenue Summer Soirée to its re-branded iteration in 2020. Its mission is to build and strengthen community while celebrating and showcasing the artistic and cultural spirit of historic Leimert Park Village. The festival brings together a diverse, family-friendly audience to enjoy a fun-filled day that includes a community resource zone, health and wellness zone, kid’s zone, food truck zone, dance, art, and of course, outstanding jazz from local and world-renowned musicians. Previous featured performers included Dwight Trible, Jose Rizo’s Mongorama, Adaawe, Poncho Sanchez, Al Tootie Heath, Sy Smith, Gerald Clayton and Katalyst Collective, to name a few. SAVE THE DATE, the fifth annual Leimert Park Jazz Festival is planned for Saturday, August 31, 2024, at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza, 3650 W. Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. 90008. For more information visit www.leimertparkjazzfestival.org Follow on Facebook and Instagram @leimertparkjazzfestival. The Leimert Park Jazz Festival has partnered with Ora to present Sunday Jazz at the Ora. You can find more information about upcoming shows as well to view photos and videos of past shows at Ora. Sign up for the newsletter to stay in the loop for future shows.
