Jazz Connect Conference In New York
“Fresh Horizons” is the theme for the Jazz Connect Conference in New York next month. Held at Saint Peter’s Church in Manhattan on January 14th and 15th, it once again brings together the international jazz community for workshops, sessions, and get-togethers.
I was on a panel titled “Spolight on Germany” in 2014 and the 2016 edition is going to have a spotlight on Norway. There will be a lot of interesting sessions again, like the one where editors and writers talk about the process of covering and representing jazz in mainstream media, or a session that looks at marketing practices for concerts, clubs, festivals, and recordings.
Also, there will be a special screening of the Jaco Pastorius documentary “Jaco” with a conversation after the screening, moderated by Christian McBride and with the panelists Randy Brecker, Mike Stern, Bill Milkowski, and Paul Marchand, the film maker. The upcoming Miles Davis biopic will also be a topic, with artists and professionals involved in the movie discussing the creation of the music for the film and soundtrack.
The Keynote adress will be held by Dee Dee Bridgewater and the Bruce Lundvall Visionary Award is going to be presented to Brice Rosenbloom, the music director for the Winter Jazzfest, which will kick off right after the conference is over (see article on these pages). I’m really looking forward to meeting lots of old friends and colleagues and making new contacts – my daily blog will come from New York during Jazz Connect, Winter Jazzfest, APAP, and beyond.