{"id":1191,"date":"2013-01-20T18:35:18","date_gmt":"2013-01-20T23:35:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/?p=1191"},"modified":"2019-09-12T18:18:47","modified_gmt":"2019-09-12T22:18:47","slug":"neas-jazz-masters-live-program-gets-farther-still-farther-to-get","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2013\/01\/neas-jazz-masters-live-program-gets-farther-still-farther-to-get.html","title":{"rendered":"NEA’s Jazz Masters Live program gets farther, still farther to get"},"content":{"rendered":"

The National Endowment for the Arts<\/a> is not in its essence a presenting organization. Its annual productions of ceremonies inducting new Jazz Masters, like the one at Dizzy’s Club in Jazz at Lincoln Center on January 14, \u00c2\u00a0are special projects, probably stretching the Endowment’s resources of staff, finances, time and energy.<\/p>\n

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Jazz Master Gerald Wilson, right, conducts a young ensemble through Jazz Masters Live event – NEA Arts.gov<\/p><\/div>\n

I commented in my\u00c2\u00a0last post<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0that media attention to this event is unfortunately much less than it deserves, and suggested three\u00c2\u00a0ways outreach, hence notice, might be improved, which I’ll return to below. But meanwhile,\u00c2\u00a0I left out an entire important piece of the NEA’s jazz initiative, which David Fraher of Arts Midwest <\/a>detailed in a comment to the blog —<\/p>\n

Thanks, Howard, for this insightful piece on the importance of the NEA Jazz Masters ceremony to the jazz community. I agree, the work of these incredible artists ought to be celebrated more broadly\u00e2\u20ac\u201dnot only to recognize their contributions to this art form, but also to help build future generations of jazz enthusiasts. I do want to share some information on a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) initiative (managed by Arts Midwest) that tries to do just that \u00e2\u20ac\u201c NEA Jazz Masters Live.<\/p>\n

NEA Jazz Masters Live is a national program that provides grants ranging from $7,500 to $15,000 to jazz festivals and nonprofit presenting organizations to support performances, master classes, clinics, lectures, and workshops featuring NEA Jazz Masters. While Arts Midwest has been managing this program (or its predecessor NEA Jazz Masters on Tour) since 2005, in just the past four years, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve awarded 50 grants totaling just under $1 million to organizations located across the United States. These engagements have featured more than 40 Jazz Masters and have reached more than 130,000 individuals, including more than 7,200 youth\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthat essential and often overlooked jazz audience that you rightly identify in your article.<\/p>\n

While many of these events have been large performances or festivals, some of my favorites have featured more intimate opportunities to connect with the artists\u00e2\u20ac\u201dpanel discussions featuring Dan Morgenstern and a film screening featuring Herbie Hancock in Burlington, VT; a small performance by Chick Corea to K-12 students in Shelburne, VT; a vocal workshop with Sheila Jordan in Healdsburg, CA; Kenny Barron\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s open sound check for high school jazz band students in San Francisco, CA; jam sessions between Jimmy Owens and a student jazz quintet in Cleveland OH; masterclasses featuring Jack DeJohnette, Randy Weston, Paquito D\u00e2\u20ac\u2122Rivera in areas such as Baton Rouge, LA and Hartford, CT; and open rehearsals and Q & A sessions with Ellis Marsalis in New Orleans, LA.<\/p>\n

These events, and countless others featuring Jimmy Cobb, Benny Golson, and Jimmy Heath in places such as Detroit, MI; Stonington, ME; New York, NY; Washington, DC; and Moscow, ID are beginning to meet that important need that you, the NEA, and Arts Midwest see\u00e2\u20ac\u201da need for more opportunities to engage with this art form and to honor these American legends. If you or your readers want more information on this program, please visit http:\/\/www.arts.gov\/national\/jazz\/jml8.html<\/a>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Jazz Masters Live program is obviously a Federally-financed plus towards spreading our jazz culture farther — \u00c2\u00a0in-person exposure of students to Jazz Masters is invaluable, and the all-year-’round sustenance of JMLive activities is another good thing. But I still think America is losing out on a great opportunity if the Masters’ induction ceremonies isn’t exploited for its full media potential. The outreach areas I identified previously were:<\/p>\n