22 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY september 21-27, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com For Lenora Helm Hammonds, interim chair of the North Carolina Central University’s jazz studies program, and 10 of the program’s students, the 66th Monterey Jazz Festival will be their first visit to the prestigious festival, and as winners of the first HBCU Jazz Combo Challenge at that. “Our students are like little helium balloons, they are so excited,” she says. The NCCU Jazz Ensemble performs Sunday, Sept. 24, led by NCCU Jazz Studies Director Robert Trowers, after competing against other historically black colleges or universities to earn the spot. The festival created the competition to expand performance opportunities for HBCU musicians at the festival, and promote greater diversity in jazz. “We had this real desire to make sure our education programs and the festival itself was accessible to all,” especially from Black culture, from which jazz evolved,” says Colleen Bailey, MJF’s executive director. The desire manifested itself first as a pilot program in 2019 with Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas. The festival’s artist-in-residence at the time, two-time Grammy Award-winning bassist Derrick Hodge, worked with students in Houston for two days, culminating with a free public concert by students and professionals. Texas Southern students and professors—including students learning the behind the scenes and business side of the music business—were then flown out to Monterey for free and provided lodging and admission through corporate donations. But they didn’t want to only help one university, Bailey says. Last year MJF invited Morgan State University to bring their bands and gospel choir to perform at the festival. This year, festival organizers decided to create the Jazz Combo Challenge, to give even more HBCUs an opportunity, while maintaining relationships with Texas Southern and Morgan State. Invitations to compete were sent, requesting students submit short video performances. The performances were evaluated by Hodge, 2023 MJF Artist-in-Residence Lakecia Benjamin and saxophonist and educator Dave Ellis. They chose NCCU’s Jazz Combo as the inaugural winner, which comes from what is already considered one of the premier university jazz programs in the country, started by renowned trumpeter Donald Byrd and brought to prominence by legendary saxophonist and flutist Ira Wiggins. NCCU’s jazz faculty includes artists-in-residence Branford Marsalis and Joey Calderazzo. Helm Hammonds says the 10 students who are performing have been writing their own compositions to perform at the festival. “We really focus the students’ attention on contributing to the art form,” she says. NCCU’s program teaches students standards from the beginnings of jazz, right up to what’s current. “Jazz is a living music, it’s not dead music,” she says. Students are encouraged to be part of what keeps jazz evolving. Performing at the festival will be an educational experience, bringing students from theory to practice. But Helm Hammonds says getting to watch “their icons and heroes” play is even more important to the students. “They’re more excited to see Herbie Hancock and Samara Joy than to perform themselves,” she says. North Carolina Central University Jazz Combo perform 11:30-noon Sunday, Sept. 24 on the Courtyard Stage. Friendly Competition The first-ever HBCU Jazz Combo Challenge seeks to improve the future diversity of the genre. By Pam Marino 8:30pm Friday, Sept. 22, West End Stage (with Scary Goldings) 1:50pm Saturday, Sept. 23, Jimmy Lyons Stage (with Yankee Go Home) 7:45pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Pacific Jazz Café Tammy L. Hall San Francisco jazz scene veteran Tammy L. Hall was a frequent performer at Monterey Jazz even before she relocated to Seaside in 2021. This year, the pianist will once again lead a “Sunday Gospel” matinee set featuring the Texas Southern University Choir. Last year’s performance at the festival “was a glorious time,” Hall recalled in a January interview. “We had church that morning.” Feel the spirit and salvation coursing through the music once more. Noon Sunday, Sept. 24, Garden Stage Samara Joy The Grammy Award winner for Best New Artist and Best Jazz Vocal Album returns, this time singing on the festival’s biggest stage. She’s a talent to watch—see story, p. 35. 3:10pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Jimmy Lyons Stage Jamie Cullum The dynamic British singer, songwriter and piano player was a huge hit in his first appearance at MJF, 15 years ago at age 29. The crossover jazzpop artist (he also plays drums and guitar) became the UK’s biggest-selling jazz artist of all time in his 20s. Clint Eastwood subsequently hired Cullum to write the original composition for the film Gran Torino, which was nominated for a Golden Globe. For the past 12 years, Cullum has hosted a weekly jazz show on the BBC. 6:45pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Jimmy Lyons Stage Thundercat Thundercat has evolved from one of the most talented session bassists working into a Grammy-winning solo artist in his own right. His jazz-indebted funk and R&B stylings have made him an indie darling, and his headlining set should bring the house down. For more, see story, p. 36. 8:15pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Jimmy Lyons Stage continued from previous page Singers of the North Carolina Central University Jazz Combo perform at a past event. The band is the first to win the Monterey Jazz Festival’s HBCU Jazz Combo Challenge. MJF 66 Chi Brown
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