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

[WASHINGTON DC JAZZ NETWORK]

Dr. Larry Ridley
3 Stuyvesant Oval Suite 9B
New York , NY 10009-2128
Phone [phone]
African American Jazz Caucus, Inc.


National Association of Juneteenth Jazz Presenters, Inc.
P.O. Box 269
Belzoni, MS 39038
Phone [phone]
www.JuneteenthJazz.com

African American Jazz Caucus, Inc.

PRESS RELEASE
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 – [e-mail] and please copy [e-mail]

MONK, The Play; A Review
By Barry Nix

Sunday, May 24, 2009

The Blair Mansion Inn
Silver Spring, MD
301-588-1688 RSVP

Rome Neal's one-man show, in which he portrays the legendary be-bop pianist Thelonious Monk, from a Laurence Holder script, is everything we Monk fans need it to be, and that's saying quite a lot.

Thelonious Monk is a symbol, an icon, and a national treasure. Now. He was an innovator, an individualist, an enigma, a genius. All of these traits were in full view as Rome Neal , in a spot-on, intense and emotionally resonant performance, joked, skipped, danced, fulminated, rhapsodized and pontificated. There were expressions of comedic wit, pure joy, utter sadness, loathsome regret, and tender love in the 90-or-so-minute performance that earned Mr. Neal a standing ovation from the nearly-full room in the Historic Blair Mansion Restaurant in Silver Spring, MD, just outside of Washington, D.C.

Mr. Neal has performed Monk off Broadway and has received an Audelco Award for his performance. A prolific New York actor and director, Mr. Neal bears a striking resemblance to Thelonious Monk. Add the attention to detail—the mannerisms, the dress, the "striding," the dancing and the cadence—and you swore Monk was in the room. it was an eerie experience. I saw Monk in performance once, in 1970, I believe, in a show at the University of Rochester in upstate New York. I still remember it. He was a different kind of cat, I knew, if not much more at the time. It took me ten years before I really began to appreciate him, but since then, Monk has occupied a central place in my life. I never stray too far from him. And I play his music nearly every day. So, you see, I had more at stake here than attendance at an ordinarily good show. Not to worry, though. Max Roach saw the show before he passed and proclaimed that the "acting was suberb...it was Monk." 'Nuff said, let's get on the road.

This was no mere theatrical exercise. It was a journey into the creative process and its attendant struggles and joys, costs and rewards. Most artists, especially those who insist on introducing a conceptual overhaul that will alter the ways in which all of us think about the form, experience varying degrees of self-doubt. There were, and still are, many forces aligned against the successful innovator, not the least of which are vested commercial interests unwilling to upset their lucrative apple carts for a "new thing, ya dig?"

Thelonious Monk experienced no such self-doubt. He was merely waiting for everyone else to catch up. Unfortunately, "everyone else," those outside of a select group of hip peers and enlightened outsiders, made him somewhat miserable until they did, but not as miserable as an innovator filled with that dreaded self-doubt. I have often marveled at the inner fortitude he must have possessed to withstand the heat of the non-believers, despite detours into drug addiction, alcoholism and madness. He kicked the drugs, but the madness held on. Thanks to Laurence Holder's marvelous script, and his own deep understanding of the issues involved, Rome Neal explains these subtleties to those who are willing to listen, and Monk's take on the truth of the matters to those who will hear.

The work also explores the connection between genius and madness, the tenuous holding on to a world distant from the one in one's head, and the effects of a society's delayed lack of recognition, and many other major and minor slights, on the lives of many of its true innovators.

After the show, the self-effacing Mr. Neal surprisingly remarked how he did not know very much about jazz before encountering Mr. Holder's script.

He told the audience how grateful he was to have played Monk for the past several years and that it has changed his life.

If you are unfamiliar with the history of be-bop, and names like Willie the Lion Smith, James P. Johnson, Oscar Pettiford, Art Tatum, Bud Powell, Coleman Hawkins, and Milt Jackson don't ring a bell, don't worry, you'll learn quite a bit. The audience at this show included several people from the old days of the Washington, D.C. jazz scene, such as John Malachi, Jr., who regaled his table with stories of his father's times as the pianist for Sarah Vaughn.

Mr. Neal obviously enjoyed the performance venue, as well. The recent $1.5 million renovation looks good on the Blair Mansion Inn. It possesses nearly an ideal combination of formality and informality, sophistication and homliness. Its owners put the music first-for this is a play about music and genius and perseverance. That attitude is also quite apparent, and greatly appreciated, in their A-listed Monday night jam sessions, easily one of the two or three best music values in or outside of Washington. And good food, to boot.

The show was produced by the tireless vocalese singer and local entrepreneur George V. Johnson, Jr, founder of the Washington D.C. Jazz Network, who was quite emotional in his appreciation for a fine turnout.

Leaving the show, one pondered if he should heed Monk's advice, as expressed by Mr. Neal in the play. To paraphrase, "If you run across somebody and they don't listen to jazz, walk away.". If you have to ask....

The final scheduled performance of Monk is scheduled for 3PM on Sunday, May 31st. One would hope that more performances will be scheduled. Calling ahead for reservations is suggested, as word of mouth is quickly turning this into the premier event it deserves to be. Tickets are $35 in advance and $40 at the door. www.blairmansion.com 301-588-1688.

MONK is a one character tour de force about the enigmatic genius jazz pianist, Thelonious Monk, who has brought joy and understanding to people all over the world. It is the powerful story of a musical life force.

Ticket Information: BLAIR MANSION



LAURENCE HOLDER

Who is Laurence Holder?

A major American playwright who specializes in myths and tales about many of the world's most interesting performing artists, entertainers and historical figures. Laurence Holder's work is pre-eminent and his subjects demand the attention of educators and theatre goers. His plays and musicals are regularly acknowledged for excellence by awards in playwriting, music, acting, directing, stage and costume design.
"Laurence Holder doesn't frighten easily . . . his writing is taut and intimate." Frank Rich - New York Times


ww.monktheplay.com

CRITICAL PRAISE FOR MONK-THE PLAY
Max Roach, Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis, Barry Harris, Hal Williams, Mercedes Ellington, Chester Gregory and more.


This is hot! Off Broadway Play "MONK" comes to The Historic "BLAIR MANSION INN". To Celebrate you Must Participate! MORE DETAILS HERE:

For advance tickets and information call [phone] or [phone]



For reservations and information call [phone] or
This is hot! Off Broadway Play "MONK" comes to The Historic "BLAIR MANSION INN". To Celebrate you Must Participate!

JOHN HASSE is a music historian, pianist, and award-winning author and record producer. He serves as Curator of American Music at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History, where he was founding Executive Director of the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, an acclaimed big band, and where he founded the national Jazz Appreciation Month, celebrated every April throughout the U.S.

JOHN HASSE is the author of a critically acclaimed biography, Beyond Category: The Life and Genius of Duke Ellington, with a Foreword by Wynton Marsalis, and the editor of a major illustrated history, Jazz: The First Century, with Forewords by Tony Bennett and Quincy Jones. Library Journal called the book “a major contribution to the understanding of jazz.”

At the Smithsonian, Hasse was co-Director of America’s Jazz Heritage, a 10-year, $7-million partnership with the Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund. He led the Institution’s efforts to acquire the 200,000-page Duke Ellington archive, and curated the traveling exhibition Beyond Category: The Musical Genius of Duke Ellington, which toured to 12 museums and 50 libraries. He also led the museum’s initiative to acquire the archives of Ella Fitzgerald, and co-curated the exhibition Ella Fitzgerald: First Lady of Song. READ MORE

Artistic & Music Director DAVID BAKER & JOHN HASSE

Saturday, June 6, 2009 - 7:30 p.m.–10:00 p.m.

Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra: Thelonious Monk’s 1959 Town Hall Concert

Thelonious Monk organized a 10-piece ensemble to interpret his compositions in a concert at New York’s Town Hall in 1959. Monk asked arranger Hall Overton, a Juilliard-trained composer, to orchestrate the compositions for this project, including a remarkable transcription of Monk's original piano solo on "Little Rootie Tootie.” Overton’s transcriptions preserve Monk’s quirky voicings and harmonic ideas while expanding the ideas to 10 musicians.

Under the direction of David N. Baker, the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra (SJMO) was founded in 1990 with an appropriation from Congress in recognition of the importance of jazz in American culture. In the fourth year of its series with The Smithsonian Associates, SJMO has been hailed for its “vitality and skill” (Jazz Times), “crisp ensemble work,” and “many gifted soloists” (Washington Post).