SARASOTA JAZZ Sounds
Jason Marsalis Opens 2025 Season Scholarship Winners 2025
7 Questions - Michael Ross Best Jazz Albums Jazz at 2 Season and much more!
Marsalis Jason
Staff
Jane Doernberg - Office Manager
Danielle La Senna - Director of Development
Susan Leavis - Marketing, Sounds Editor
Carline Ash* - Special Projects
Michael Ross - Scholarship -Chair
Brad LoRicco - Media Support
Carol LoRicco - Club Photographer
Chris Angermann - Sounds
Board of Directors
Ed Linehan - President
George McLain
Vice President - Legal Affairs
TBD - Secretary
Paul Toliver - Treasurer
Directors
Peter Anderson
Brian Callahan
Perette DeJean-Cannady
Rosemary Heller
John Hill
Ron Kushner
Carlos Pagån
Fred Nowicki
Charley Rich
Nancy Roucher*, Music Committee Chair
Nik Walker
Honorary Board Members
Dick Hyman
Bob Seymour*
*Life Members
From
President of The Jazz Club Ed Linehan
Dear Jazz Club Members and Friends,
Welcome to our 46th year of presenting and preserving Jazz in Sarasota since our founding in 1980. The familiar wedding adage at the heading of this letter seems to me to be particularly apropos as we launch the 2025-2026 season.
Something Old:
Well, I guess that would be me. Your former, aka “Old,” club president returned to the position early this summer and recently was approved by the Board to continue to serve for another two-year term. I want to thank the Board for their support and expression of confidence. I also want to thank our immediate past president Nik Walker for his leadership during his term. I am even more grateful that Nik will continue to serve on the Board, lending his energy and expertise to our efforts.
Something New:
Wow, Where do I begin?
New Board Members
This September five new individuals have joined the ranks of the Jazz Club Board. Each serving for a twoyear term. They are Brian Callahan, Rosemary Heller, John Hill, Fred Nowicki and Charley Rich. We will provide biographical information in a future issue.
New Offices
Our new offices at 2000 Webber Street will provide greater support to our programs and to our members. It was necessary for us to relocate as our former address is making way for yet another Sarasota high rise project. BTW our phone and email addresses will remain the same.
continued
New Position and Staff Member
The Board unanimously approved the appointment of Danielle La Senna to our new Director of Development position. Danielle will coordinate the Board’s efforts at expanding and better serving our donor base. She brings many years of effective leadership to arts and non-profit organizations here and in New York. This initiative matters as government funding for the arts is decreasing.
New and Expanded Sarasota Sounds Magazine
As you read this issue of the Sounds you will see that we have greatly expanded general interest articles penned by guest writers from our membership. Local writer and editor Chris Angermann was added to the magazine’s staff to coordinate this effort. Who knows, maybe you’ll submit an idea for a future issue.
Major New Program and Sponsorship
Paulenne Kirschenbaum, a lifetime member and good friend to the Jazz Club, has made a $100,000 donation for the dedicated purpose of creating an awards program in memory of Synia Carroll. In recent years Paulenne enjoyed a friendship with Synia. She was impressed by Synia’s dedication to excellence as she pursued her jazz vocalist career after retiring as a public school teacher. Prince Knight has agreed to chair a planning effort which will define the details of the program. The goal is to present the first annual award in the spring of 2027.
Something Borrowed:
That would be the 45 year legacy of dedication and commitment forged by the thousands of club and board members whose efforts we build upon today.
Something Blue:
A blue note is a note that is played at a slightly lower pitch than the standard note, adding emotional depth and expressiveness to jazz and blues music. I really look forward to seeing you at many of our fantastic events this season. You can read about many of them in this issue of Sarasota Sounds.
Until then,
Ed Linehan, President
World-class musical experiences in a diverse range of genres that blend tradition with innovation.
2025 2026
The Queen’s Six, October 28
How Low Can You Go?, November 13
Astral Mixtape, November 20
YCA on Tour, December 9
Morning Song, December 18
Mike Block Trio, January 6
Trumpet Talk, January 22
James Ehnes and Friends, February 10
ArcoStrum, March 5
Invoke, March 17
DragonBoot Quartet, April 12
Voice of the Cello, April 21
Saxophone Splendor, April 30
... and more!
SPOTLIGHT ON BOARD MEMBER Perette DeJean-Cannady
The Healing Power of Music
“Last Night a DJ Saved My Life” is an 1980s anthem that testifies to the healing power of music. Listening or dancing to “my jam” has quickened our heart beats, increased our circulation, soothed our nerves, and often altered our mental state. DJ Perette DeJean Cannady, has long been aware of the power of music. Her international playlist delighted her worldwide listeners, who tuned in to “Vibrational Journeys Radio” on WSLR-LP radio in Sarasota, Florida for 13 years.
“I was exposed to music as an infant in my crib,” says Cannady, who is a certified sound therapist. “My parents would place one of those small translator radios near my crib. I went to sleep listening to the jazz greats, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Wayne Shorter, Stan Getz, and other jazz greats. As a shy teenager, with no friends at school, I used music as my medicine to calm and comfort me in most challenging moments.”
Cannady’s current mission is to encourage music lovers to explore a new level of health consciousness using music and sound therapy. In June 2023, she opened “Vibrational Bliss Wellness,” a sound therapy studio in Sarasota. “As a certified practitioner of vibrational therapies, I offer a holistic approach to relieve stress, clear energetic blockages and release emotional stagnation,” she explains.
“We commune in concerts, with our favorite musicians and composers because they leave us with an uplifted and healing feeling,” she says. Now ancient knowledge is meeting 21st century technology to usher in a new age of music as medicine. The May 4, 2025, issue of “Psychology Today” pointed out, “Before music is entertainment, it’s physiology. Music influences the nervous system beneath awareness, shaping mood, focus, and connection.”
Trumpeter Extraordinaire Miles Davis, once said, “It’s not the notes you play, its’s the notes you don’t play.” Slow steady rhythms, from Miles Davis trumpet in his rendition of “My Funny Valentine” leaves room for breathing deeply. This calms the nervous system, lowering stress hormones like cortisol. It can also support relaxation. A fast rhythm, like Dizzy Gillespie’s “Salt Peanuts” can energize and boost dopamine and endorphins.
“Every body is like an instrument,” says Cannady. “We often get out of tune. Music is not just entertainment; it is vibration, frequency, and rhythm — the same forces that regulate our heartbeat, our brainwaves, and even the cellular processes of the body.”
“The Voice Bio System is my sound-based diagnostic tool of choice.” By simply recording your answers to three simple questions, Cannady explains, the software produces a voice print graph that indicates organ or system imbalances, blocked energy flow, and stress. After the analysis you receive a detailed sheet pinpointing lifestyle and dietary changes, recommendations for vitamins, nutrients, and specific essentials oils. Specific classical music pieces are selected for musical healing meditation. “It is like roadmap for a journey to good health,” she says.
Cannady does voice analysis remotely for musicians, entertainers, or anyone with grueling travel schedules or unable to travel to her Sarasota studio.
A Tribute to his Father Ellis Marsalis
Kick off the Season
November 1st
ince her debut, Nicole Henry has established herself among the jazz world's most acclaimed performers, possessing a potent combination of dynamic vocal abilities, impeccable phrasing, and powerful emotional resonance.Nicole's versatile and emotionally driven performances have captivated audiences in 20 countries.
Usually touring the world with her quartet, Henry has also been a special guest of jazz orchestras, pops orchestras, and big bands.
Heralded by The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Japan Times, El Pais, Jazz Times, Essence, and more, Ms. Henry tells real stories through peerless interpretations of repertoire from the American Songbook, classic and contemporary jazz, popular standards, blues, and originals.
20+ Country Festivals
950,000+ WorldWide Listeners
3500+ Career Performances
Four TOP-10 CDs in US, Japan & UK
JASON MARSALIS
Jason Marsalis, the youngest of the illustrious New Orleans clan of musicians who were collectively named NEA Jazz Masters in 2011, defied long odds by racking up a singular set of accomplishments unequaled by his father, pianist and educator Ellis Marsalis, and his older brothers, saxophonist Branford, trumpeter Wynton and trombonist/ producer Delfeayo.
Andrew Gilbert, San Jose Mercury News
From a tender young age it was clear that Jason Marsalis had what it took to be great. Jason is the son of pianist and music educator Ellis Marsalis and his wife Dolores, and the youngest sibling of Wynton, Branford and Delfeayo. Together, the four brothers and Ellis comprise New Orleans’s venerable first family of jazz, and recipients of the National Endowment for the Arts 2011 Jazz Masters awards. Jason is well known for his prodigal drumming. Working with his father’s group, as well as the great pianist Marcus Roberts, he has fine-tuned his playing in two of the most demanding trio settings in modern jazz. However, with the release of 2013’s “In A World of Mallets”, and his recognition as the 2013 rising star winner in the Downbeat Magazine annual critics poll, listeners are now recognizing Jason for his unique sound on the vibraphones. Since 2000, Jason has been a mainstay on the New Orleans scene as a bandleader from the vibraphone chair. More recently, Jason formed the current incarnation of his Vibes Quartet in the summer of 2007, and has spent the last several years touring and developing repertoire and rapport with his young quartet. The quartet’s sophomore release “In A World Of Mallets” was released in February, 2013, on Basin Street Records, and features Jason’s original music, songs from his band mates, and more. Marsalis also plays marimba, glockenspiel, tubular bells, vibraphone and xylophone on the album as he expands on his “discipline” overdubs of recent years.
Michael Ross
by Ed Linehan
Michael Ross is a fixture in the local Sarasota jazz scene. One of a very short list of bass players whose playing is admired not only by audiences but also by other musicians. He has spent most of his fifty+ professional years here on the Florida Suncoast. Michael is also a former board member of the Jazz Club and currently serves as Chair of the Club’s Scholarship Committee, where he demonstrates his enthusiasm for supporting and working with young aspiring musicians.
EL: Hey Michael, thanks for spending this time with me and sharing your thoughts with our readers. Could you start by telling us a bit about your childhood and your early connections to music?
MR: My pleasure. I grew up in Harrisburg, PA, about 90 miles west of Philadelphia. Fortunately, it was a really great place and time to grow up with an interest in music. There are millions of great players from that area. Some everybody's heard of and others known only in the region. I had a great teacher, a guy named Jim Miller, who was my mentor when I was in high
school. The older players in Harrisburg were nurturing to the younger guys so that was really great. In my senior year I started driving up to New York City to study with Cecil McBee. Other than that, my home life was boring. Pretty typical middle-class upbringing in the '60s and '70s with my folks and two sisters. My cousin Andy and I were very close. He was a guitar player, and we had a garage band. Like most modern bass players, I started on bass guitar. We were playing rock and roll tunes and we were really into the blues. Andy was a fantastic guitarist. He started studying jazz.
SARASOTA JAZZ Sounds
To be honest with you, I was not enamored with jazz at first. It was like, he’s doing this, so I guess I have to do this now. We started studying jazz with some other guys in town and after a couple of years I really began to love it. My electric bass teacher had this upright bass set up in the corner. I would look at it and look at it. I finally got the nerve and asked if I could try it. He laughed and said, "Sure." He showed me some basics. I was immediately hooked. That's how I started playing upright. Most bass players will tell you the same thing, the bass finds you.
EL: As you advanced beyond the initial training what artists or genres had the biggest influence on your playing style?
MR: Well, I’ve been playing for almost 50 years now. When I first started out, it was modern players. You know, Stanley Clark, Eddie Gomez. As I got more and more into the music, I started listening to players who have been around a little bit longer. Ray Brown and especially Ron Carter were just huge influences on me. Also, Dave Holland and Buster Williams. My playing is an amalgamation of all those styles. Even if it's something that doesn't interest you so much later in life, that stuff still stays with you. It's still on your plate.
EL: All musicians, and certainly jazz musicians, develop both their technical skills and their expressive or stylistic voice. How have you balanced those things in your music?
MR: That's an excellent question, because the first job of a bass player is to perform in the role of a bass player. You have to play the bass like a bass. Not like a saxophone, not like a guitar. You know, the bass has a very specific role in a jazz band. That's making the band sound good. It’s great if you have an extra soloist in the band, someone who likes to solo. But the primary role of the bass is to provide harmony as well as creating a great beat along with the drummer. A lot of people don't realize that the bass is a rhythm section instrument. I approach the bass like a drummer would approach his drums. First and foremost, if you want to work as a bass player, you have to have a good feel. You have to be able to lock in with the drummer and make the music swing hard.
EL: I wouldn't have guessed that you are old enough to have been playing this instrument for 50 years. Is there a particular performance, tour, or working relationship that stands out in your career as a defining moment?
MR: Well, yeah. Nathan Page was a guitarist who moved to Florida in the prime of his career. He had been on the road for years with Jimmy Smith. He also
worked with Sonny Rollins. He had just this incredible resume. He basically took me under his wing. We worked together for eight years. It was definitely the school of hard knocks. He presented himself in an old school manner. I’m sure I was taught the way he was taught. No holding back. On and off the bandstand. He called me one morning after a five-hour gig the
night before in Orlando. He says, I just want you to know that I'm firing the whole band. I'm keeping you and I'm firing the rest. I really don't know why he kept me. I guess he saw something in my playing that he liked. But he said, for you to stay in the band, you've got to do this, this, and this. And I did. I took his criticism very seriously. I was 21 at the time.
EL: Over the course of your career, especially now that we've learned that you've been around for a while, you've worked with a wide range of musicians. What is it that you look for in someone you're going to collaborate with?
MR: I'm a band guy. I enjoy doing freelance gigs and one-nighters. You know, things like that. I like to collaborate with the same people. You have to have some sort of simpatico that meets on the bandstand.
Fred Johnson and Michael
To find common ground. And that doesn't mean that it necessarily checks every box. I think it's most important to find that middle ground of what the guys in the band like to do.
EL: Anyone who's listened to you in recent years knows that you often work with Fred Johnson. And what is it about that collaboration that makes it so enduring?
MR: Ha ha! We first met about fifty years ago. I was working with some older guys and I was just terrible. I'd only been playing for a couple of years. I didn't know any tunes. They were really nice to me and very patient. One night during a break we went out into the parking lot, which is what musicians of that generation used to do. They had a cooler of beer. One of the guys pulls out a cassette tape and he says, "You have to hear this singer. I heard him up in Boston. There's a new club opening and I’m bringing him down." He plays the tape for me. It was Fred Johnson. He was incredible. I never heard anyone do the kind of stuff he was doing. We ended up working together some, but it never went anywhere.
But then I ran into Fred many, many years later, I'd say about 2008, 2009. Fred had left town. He was working New York but coming back to Florida to see his family. He dropped by to this little gig I was doing with Buster Cooper and John Jenkins. We started talking and he
said he was moving back. Fred said, "Listen, we've been talking for years about collaborating let's just do it." So that's kind of how we got started.
EL: I recently re-listened to your 2023 “Giraffe” release and not surprisingly Fred does a couple of tunes. So how did you approach producing that album?
MR: I wanted to do something a little more straight ahead yet contemporary. So that was the idea behind the album. I used a little more piano than I have in the past. I've been using guitar mostly on previous recordings. About half the material was recent originals that I had written but never recorded.
EL: Given your long tenure in the Florida Gulf Coast and Sarasota, I'm interested in hearing your perspective on the future of Jazz in our community.
MR: It's always been super tough to make a living as a jazz musician, and it's getting harder. That's just the reality. But, at the same time, there are just great players coming along all the time. I was in New York a few weeks ago, and I walked around the places that I used to go to listen and play. Even there it’s getting tougher to find live music venues. On Bleecker Street you used to see six or seven places, and they're gone now. It’s the same everywhere. People have so many distractions and other options now.
EL: I completely see the same thing as a jazz fan. Yes, Spotify and other electronic options make everything available everywhere, but it simply isn’t the same. You don’t have that deep personal experience of being in the same room as the musicians playing. And you don’t have the shared experience of being with other jazz enthusiasts grooving to a tune.
Thanks again, Michael, for your time today. We will list your webpage so people can find more information about your recording and where you’re playing. https://www.michaelrossbass.com
MR: Thank you, Ed. And I especially want to thank the Jazz Club for all the opportunities it creates for live jazz performances here in Sarasota.
FOREST FLOWER – Charles Lloyd Quartet
Recorded live at the 1966 Monterey Jazz Festival, Forest Flower captures the romantic spirit of the 1960s like no other jazz record I know. Charles Lloyd attracted talented players throughout his 60-year+ career, and his early quartet featured outstanding musicians who went on to noteworthy careers of their own: Cecil McBee on Bass, Jack DeJohnette on drums, and a 21-year-old Keith Jarrett on piano.
The title number comes in two parts, “Sunrise” and “Sunset,” and abounds with inventive, luxurious melodies. Lloyd plays the tenor sax with his characteristically mellifluous sound. In the “Sunset” section, Jarrett plucks the piano strings and also stops one string as he plays the same note on the keyboard, producing a tinkling, percussive sound. Amazing!
The original release was one of the few jazz albums to sell over a million copies. But get the reissue with additional soundtracks, including “Sombrero Sam,” on which Lloyd plays the flute with magical brilliance.
GETZ MEETS MULLIGAN IN HI-FI
Although Stan Getz and Gerry Mulligan had played together before at several gigs with larger groups, this 1957 album is the only one they made in a quintet setting. Rumor had it that Getz made some disparaging remarks about Mulligan during the recording session, but you would never know it from their inspired playing – smooth, lyrical, and expressive – a delight. At Mulligan’s suggestion, they switched instruments for the first three numbers, “Let’s Fall in Love,” “Anything Goes,” and “Too Close for Comfort.” For the rest of the album, they played their signature horns – Getz soaring with his tenor sax and Mulligan bopping lyrically on the baritone. They sound like two guys who are having fun collaborating and making beautiful music together.
MONEY JUNGLE -
Duke Ellington, Charlie Mingus and Max Roach
This 1962 recording is considered one of the best jazz trio albums ever, which inspired many others that followed. Ellington was 63, suave and elegant; Mingus 40, volatile, physical, and hypersensitive; and Roach 38, quiet, yet surprising and inventive – all three virtuosos. They insisted on no prior rehearsals together, and Ellington, who wrote all but one number, and gave the others verbal, impressionistic instructions, and off they went, jamming. While they respected each other, things soon came to a head, and Mingus grew so frustrated that he took his bass and stormed out of the studio. Ellington went after him and convinced him to continue.
It’s a good thing he did. The album is splendid, as if their intergenerational friction and rivalry drove the three to their creative best. Ellington plays discordant harmonies on the title tune, “Money Jungle,” as never before. “Caravan” gets the most robust, rambunctious treatments ever recorded. And “Fleurette Africaine” (“African Flower”), one of Ellington’s most tender and beautiful tracks, allows Mingus to create a fluttering, otherworldly sound on his bass that is sheer magic.
'FORCES OF NATURE Live at SLUGS’ -
McCoy Tyner and Joe Henderson
This 2-CD set features the two jazz legends along with Henry Grimes on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums in a live session at the famous Slugs’ saloon in New York. The concert took place in the spring of 1966, and a copy of the tapes languished in DeJohnette’s library for nearly 60 years before their 2024 release.
The two headliners were at a pivotal point in their careers. Henderson had just turned 30 and abruptly quit the popular Horace Silver Quintet. Tyner was 27 and had left the John Coltrane Quartet, becoming frustrated with Trane’s atonal explorations. They were ready to step out on their own, and the joy of this live performance is hearing them improvise in long, expansive cuts. Henderson's exuberant energy in “In ‘N Out” is amazing, including a frenetic 12-minute solo that cements his stature as one of the three great modern, post-Bebop jazz tenor saxophonists of the 1960s (besides Coltrane and Sonny Rollins). Then, Tyner adds his inspired 12-minute improvisations replete with cutting-edge ideas.
For “Taking Off,” Tyner and Henderson said, “Let’s play some minor blues,” and counted off a breakneck tempo that gets ever more driven and intense. DeJohnette, at 23, already a drummer of considerable prowess, adds inventive rhythmic modalities. And Grimes, age 30, keeps up effortlessly, matching the wild syncopations of the other players with his own.
SIDNEY BECHET – The Olympia Concert 1955.
The first jazz musician ever to be recorded – he beat Louis Armstrong by several months – Sidney Bechet developed his New Orleans origins into a soprano saxophone sound whose broad, high-pitched vibrato is instantly recognizable. He spent much of his career in Europe, enjoyed being lionized in France, and gave several, legendary concerts at the Olympia music venue in Paris in the 1950s.
The 1955 concert was free to the public, and the anticipatory energy of people milling about outside beforehand spilled into the hall. Bechet, playing with two French orchestras, delivers a smorgasbord of New Orleans classics like “When the Saints Go Marching In,” and “Panama Rag,” and his own compositions, including “Viper Mad,” and the wildly popular “Onions.” Bechet has a palpable, almost reckless energy throughout, wailing away on his horn with boundless enthusiasm, and the audience responds with equal pleasure. A joyous, high-spirited, thrilling jazz album!
You can hear all of these albums on Spotify or Apple Music. YouTube has the 1954 Olympia Concert and the other four in complete versions.
Scholarship News
or more than three decades The Jazz Club of Sarasota has been awarding financial support to deserving students studying jazz music. Students apply from Sarasota and surrounding counties. The 2025 Scholarship Award Winners were celebrated in a special concert on Sunday, June 22nd at Fogartyville Media & Arts Center.
Photos from the June 22, 2025 Concert courtesy of Carol LoRicco
Special Named Awards
The Matt Bokulic Scholarship commemorates a true icon of the Tampa Bay music scene. Matt was born in Springfield, MA and attended Berklee School of Music and the University of South Florida. He moved to Tampa in 1995. He soon became an area favorite pianist, composer, and educator. He taught piano for more than 20 years at the Players School of Music, recorded with many luminaries and wrote three books about music theory.
The Blake Bennett Scholarship was established by the scholarship committee after Blake tragically died in a traffic accident just five months after graduation. He was an accomplished trumpet player who had received scholarships from the Jazz Club for all four years of undergraduate work at Florida State University. His plans included graduate work at FSU. The Jazz Club Scholarship Committee has decided to continue to award deserving students this distinguished scholarship in Blake’s memory.
The Robert H Weitz Scholarship is in memory of Bob Weitz, past chairman of the Jazz Club scholarship committee. For over 14 years, Bob spent many happy hours attending musical events at high schools across SW Florida as he searched for students showing exceptional talent. He encouraged them to focus their interest on jazz and he recommended that they apply to the Jazz Club for scholarships. So grew the tradition of supporting young talent. A dear friend and champion for the kids, we proudly make this an annual scholarship in Bob’s memory.
(See details on the 2025scholarship winners on next 3 pages.)
Thank you for supporting the future of Jazz!
From the Jazz Club of Sarasota Scholarship Committee
Michael Ross, Chair
Peter Anderson
Louise Coogan
Ronan Cowan
Judy Jones
Danielle La Senna
Dylan McHann
Edris Weiss
Vern Weitz
Frank Williams
The Jazz Club of Sarasota
Scholarship Recipients for 2025
MaxwellHaman
The Blake Bennett Award
Maxwell Haman will be a Freshman at Vanderbilt University. He has participated in numerous jazz and classical music ensembles and performed his original piece “Waited Too Long” to an audience of 2,000 in the famed Berklee Performance Center. Maxwell has since written, arranged and released 3 singles and a full length album under the band “Moonberry”.
The Matt Bukolic Award
Robert Langdon will be a sophomore at Florida State University and is a Jazz Performance major. Robbie recently got the honor of playing in the house set that hosted a jam session at the great Scotty Barnhart’s house for the Count Basie Orchestra. He is looking forward to continuing his studies and finding his place in the larger jazz scene.
RobertLangdon
The Robert H. Weitz Award
William Stenberg will be a freshman at Vanderbilt University, majoring in Jazz Studies and Business. He is both a classical percussionist and a jazz drummer. William was selected for the Florida All State Jazz Band two years in a row, and as a sophomore was a percussionist in the All State Orchestra. He has attended music camps such as Interlochen and Brevard, and has been selected for an all county ensemble, both classical and jazz, 8 times. A highlight of his musical career was performing with the Gainesville Symphony.
WilliamStenberg
Merit winners:
Jack Fletcher will be a Freshman at University of South Florida majoring in Jazz Performance. He started playing drums at the age of 5. At Braden River High School his band competed and placed 1st in the Jazz Club of Sarasota competition; additionally, he joined the school’s marching band that placed 1st in the state in 2025 for their division. He is now touring on the East Coast of the U.S. alongside tribute bands including Sweet Fleet, ABBA Nova and Hell on Heels, and is part of the original alternative-rock project Nowincolor Demetrious Johnson be a sophomore at Hillsborough Community College majoring in Trumpet Performance. Music has been a core part of his life for as long as he can remember and he is committed to making it his career. After college, he plans to join the military band and dedicate his life to playing the trumpet.
DemetriousJohnson
Sarah Langdon will be a senior at Florida State University studying both jazz and classical music. Sarah has performed as a soloist with Florida State University’s Jazz Ensemble II, the Scotty Barnhart Combo, the William Peterson Combo, and the Leon Anderson Combo. She is also a member of the premiere Commercial Music touring band, Seminole Vibes. Sarah is extremely grateful for all of the opportunities found at Florida State University and the generosity of the Jazz Club of Sarasota!
JackFletcher
SarahLangdon
Jayden Titus will be a senior at University of South Florida School of Music. He got his Associates in Arts degree at State College of Florida where he studied jazz with Dr. Pete Carney. Jayden (co-Bandleader of the Barker Project) is a freelance trumpet player and composer. He plays various genres, including Jazz, fusion, R&B, Soul, Contemporary Free Jazz, and more. Jayden has played at a number of venues in the Sarasota and St. Petersburg area.
ColeWheeler ChristopherWheaton JaydenTitus Scholarship Recipients for 2025 Merit winners:
Christopher Wheaton will be a senior at Florida State University. He has been studying music since a young age. Beginning with piano and composition, he soon turned to violin. He has been active in both classical and jazz fields. He was the college division winner of the John Leatherwood Concerto Competition, giving him the opportunity to solo with the Northwest Florida Symphony Orchestra.
Cole Wheeler will be a junior at the University of Central Florida in the Jazz Studies Program. He is a drummer and percussionist. Cole stated his goal is “to build a career around playing, teaching and otherwise interacting with music.”
John Rinell
Kitt Moran
Barb King
James Suggs
Jazz Club announces 2025-26 Schedule for Jazz at Two
Jazz at Two features many of the best jazz artists in the area performing a good mix of various types of jazz - classic straight ahead jazz, contemporary jazz, Dixie swing, big band, jazz cabaret and American Songbook music. Many groups include blues, bossa nova and Latin compositions in their performances. Enjoy the best jazz on Florida’s Westcoast.
The Jazz at Two concert series benefits the Jazz Club’s Scholarship Program with a portion of each admission and 100% of donations collected at performances going to the scholarship fund.
Oct 31
Kevin Celebi and Harmonic Sanity Septet
Nov 7 Hot Club of SRQ
Nov 21
Dec 5
Dec 12
Dec 19
Michael Ross Quartet
Isaac Mingus and Friends
John Rinell Trio “Music of Frank Sinatra”
Sarasota Jazz Project
Jan 2 JCS Scholarship Recipients Concert
Jan 9
Jan 16
Jan 23
Jan 30
Feb 6
Feb 13
Feb 20
Feb 27
Eddie Tobin and Friends
Barbara King Quartet
Pete Carney Quartet
James Suggs and Friends
Anne & Mark Burnell Quartet
Mark Moultrup Music
Scotty Wright Quartet
Kitt Moran Quartet “Remembers
Rosemary Clooney”
Mar 6 Rafael (Ruffus) Silva Quartet
Mar 20 Pete BarenBregge and ‘The Foot Note Jazz Band’
Mar 27
Api 10
Apr 17
Apr 24
Skip Conkling’s Dixie Mix
Tom Ellison Trio with Judi & Alex Glover
Thomas Carabasi Quartet
Paul Gormley Quartet
For more information call 941.260.9951 or visit www.jazzclubsarasota.org
I Never Meant to Teach Jazz—
But I’m So Glad I Did
By Jaclyn Winters
hen I started teaching at Gulf Coast Homeschool Fine Arts (GCHFA) during the fall of 2020, I never imagined I’d be launching a jazz program. As a classical pianist and trombonist, jazz wasn’t part of my world. However, during the isolation and uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, students needed something fresh, exciting, and challenging to reconnect them with music and to each other. What began as a small ensemble designed to give them a meaningful year has grown into one of the most vibrant and rapidly expanding parts of GCHFA. Today, the jazz program gives home-schooled students across Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte, and Collier counties a place to explore improvisation, creativity, and collaboration. Many have discovered jazz for the first time, just like I did.
Gulf Coast Homeschool Fine Arts is a nonprofit organization with a mission to make high-quality music education accessible and affordable for homeschool families. My mother, Lisa Evans, founded the program in 2010 with just 18 students in one concert band. Today, GCHFA serves over 275 students, ages one to nineteen, with multiple levels of concert band, orchestra, jazz, choir, theory, and more. Thanks to generous donors, it can offer these opportunities at a fraction of the cost of private programs. When I was a student at GCHFA, I dreamed of returning
to teach and work alongside my mom. After earning my degree in music education, I fulfilled that dream in 2020. I started a small ensemble to spark some excitement and explore a path that GCHFA had never taken before. Most of us were learning together, and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
That first group, now called Fusion, included some of our most advanced students at GCHFA. The name reflects the variety of styles we explore—straight-ahead swing, funk, Latin jazz, gospel-influenced arrangements, and more. Fusion has become the showcase group of the organization, performing throughout Sarasota and surrounding areas, sharing the heart of our mission with the community.
As interest in jazz grew at GCHFA, we realized that we needed a class where less experienced students could build fundamentals. That led to Jazz Lab, a second ensemble for developing players to learn swing, style, and improvisation in preparation to join Fusion. We also launched a dedicated rhythm section class for piano, bass, guitar, and drums—designed to help young players function as a cohesive unit and serve as the foundation of a jazz band. That has grown into two levels of instruction during the summer and has dramatically strengthened our ensembles throughout the school year.
Jaclyn Winters, Peter M'Mwirichia, Dr. Owen Bradley
SARASOTA JAZZ Sounds
In addition, we recently introduced an improvisation class, helping students solo with confidence. Due to its successful reception, Improve Improv will become a regular part of our summer programming.
The heart of the program is the students. Many arrive, never having heard of Miles Davis or Charlie Parker— let alone knowing how to improvise or interpret a chart. But they show up curious, committed, and eager to learn. Watching them grow—musically and personally—as they find their voice through solos, teamwork, and musical expression is the most rewarding part of this journey.
Throughout our growth, we’ve been fortunate to receive mentorship from two outstanding educators. Dr. Owen Bradley, former director of bands at North Port High School, has generously dedicated his time in retirement to work with both Jazz Lab and Fusion, leading clinics and sharing his wealth of experience. Dr. Zachary Bartholomew, a respected educator and performer, has conducted masterclasses, which have deeply inspired our students. He, in turn, has been excited by them:
My first visit to GCHFA consisted of a masterclass that introduced many of the students to jazz improvisation. The following year, we collaborated on a larger event, Jazz Day, which included multiple masterclasses and an evening public concert with my trio, featuring the most experienced students. What progress in such a short timeframe! GCHFA is a cultural gem in the community, and it is incredible to see the positive impact that the jazz program is having on students’ lives. I can’t wait to come back to work with the students again and see how the jazz program has continued to grow!
– Dr. Zachary Bartholomew
One of the greatest impacts I’ve seen during my time at GCHFA is students' confidence. There’s something about jazz that draws them out of their shells. For some, it’s the thrill of improvising a solo for the first time. For others, it’s the sense of belonging that comes from being a vital part of a full ensemble. These aren’t just technical milestones—they’re personal victories.
A perfect example is Nicholas Romig, who joined Fusion as a reserved drummer. Over time, Nicholas developed into a confident leader behind the kit and became a driving force for the band’s energy and
GCHFA had a huge impact on my life. When I started playing drums for Fusion, I was scared to take any improvised solos. I was nervous that I wouldn’t sound impressive or inspired. However, through my time in Fusion, I was given a safe place to experiment and grow more confident, which has also affected other aspects of my life. I’ve become a more outgoing person, I’m willing to take on new challenges, and I want to improve in everything I do. I’ve gone on to play in Florida Gulf Coast University’s jazz band and jazz combos all along Florida’s Gulf Coast. I’ve been so blessed by GCHFA’s education that I want to help students experience that same transformation.
– Nicholas Romig, music education student at FGCU
Nicholas Romig as a student
spirit. As a graduate from GCHFA, he continues to stay involved, teaching summer jazz classes and managing marketing. His journey from timid student to inspiring performer and educator embodies the transformative power of the program.
Jazz is more than a musical style—it’s a tradition rooted in creativity, collaboration, and expression. At GCHFA, we believe that jazz education is essential
I never expected to join a jazz band. I only picked up the trombone with a good helping of peer pressure. But when I gave it a shot, I quickly realized that playing in a group like Fusion is so much MORE than kids just playing music. It’s an incredible way to grow, share, and have a lot of fun with friends who also share a passion for music making. Connecting with other musicians, improvising and learning, building something that only exists in that moment—that’s what I feel like jazz is about. Being part of Fusion and a thriving jazz community has completely altered how I see jazz and music as a whole, and honestly, it has changed my life.
– Peter M’Mwirichia, GCHFA principal trombonist and tubist
for nurturing well-rounded musicians who understand not only technique, but also the importance of contributing to something bigger than themselves.
Bringing jazz to the home-school community also fills an important gap. Sarasota has a rich jazz legacy, and GCHFA helps students engage with it—usually for the very first time. This creates a bridge between generations, connecting our students with the community through performances, masterclasses, and special events. Whether they’re playing at a local farmers market, a church event, a retirement community, or a Music Performance Assessment, they’re building relationships and sharing joy through music.
The feedback we hear most often is how wonderful it is to see young people playing great music together, and having fun while doing it. Their joy is genuine, fueled by the students’ hard work, ownership of the music, and the camaraderie with one another.
Zach Bartholomew Masterclass
Ultimately, our students learn skills that go far beyond music. They develop confidence, teamwork, and creativity that equips them for a lifetime.
Want to Learn More? If you're inspired by the work of the GCHFA jazz program, there are several ways to support our mission:
Know a homeschooling family? We’d love to connect with them! GCHFA welcomes students at every level. Families can contact us at info@gchfa.org or by visiting GCHFA.org.
Want to hear Fusion perform? View our concert calendar at GCHFA.org/calendar for performance dates throughout the school year.
Interested in supporting the program? Whether you’d like to make a one-time gift, become an annual partner, or explore other ways of giving, your taxdeductible support makes this 501(c)(3) possible. Visit GCHFA.org/donate or email us at info@GCHFA.org.
Connect with us at (941) 232-1296 or info@GCHFA.org. You can also follow our journey at
• Facebook: facebook.com/GCHFA
• Instagram: @GCHFA.Music
Above all, thank you for being part of this story. Every rehearsal, performance, and solo a student bravely steps up to play is possible because of a community that believes in the power of music education.
Jaclyn Winters is the Director of Bands and an administrator at Gulf Coast Homeschool Fine Arts, where she leads multiple jazz ensembles, the advanced concert band, and helps shape the program’s vision. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Music Education and Piano Performance from Olivet Nazarene University. Jaclyn has been a featured soloist with the Bradenton Pops Orchestra on trombone and the Sarasota Orchestra on piano as the 2016 Young Artist Competition. Throughout her career, she has received several music scholarships and competition awards.
Please note: This performance will be held at the Manatee Performing Arts Center
Me, My Dad, and Jazz
by Lee Fanning Hall
grew up as an Army brat who was raised on jazz. My dad, Jack Fanning, loved jazz. In my youth, my parents and I drove across the country several times from one of his assignments to the next. To pass the time, we sang folksongs like “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad” and “Day-O” (The Banana Boat Song). We also sang a lot of jazz. By the time I was six years old, I knew all the words to “Gimme That Wine” from the album, The Hottest New Group in Jazz: Lambert, Hendricks and Ross, an early 1960s vocal jazz trio. I still do.
Then life happened. When I was 12, my parents separated. Mom and I moved to Connecticut, and after leaving the Army, Dad settled in California. He pursued his love of music, taking vibraphone lessons, which I thought was appropriate since he had learned to play piano and drums as a youth. I can still pick out Lionel Hampton because he was my dad’s idol, and Dad played the vibraphone like Lionel. Dad also became one of the founders of the Monterey Bay Hot Jazz Society
As I got older and a group called The Beatles became popular, things changed for me as well. My mom helped me buy an acoustic guitar. I took lessons and learned to play folk and rock. In addition to writing poetry, lyrics, and music, I played and sang in two groups in high school. After graduating in 1971, I didn’t play as often. I still listened to a variety of music but rarely picked up my guitar. Then in the mid-80s, my late husband, Bill, and I were sitting in a small private club in North Carolina when a guitarist on stage offered to let someone from the audience perform. Bill volunteered me. Thankfully, the words and chords to the folk song, “Blow the Candle Out,” came right back to me, and I was asked to perform it three more times! That got me back on track with folk and rock guitar playing.
In 2007, Bill and I retired to Florida, which brought me closer to my dad, who had also moved there. By then, he was an exceptional vibraphonist and played at several venues in the area. As a result, jazz came back into my life with a vengeance. But this time, I was not content to just sing. I wanted to play jazz guitar.
Jack Fanning
Lee Fanning Hall
For people like me, raised on folk, rock, and rhythm, playing jazz guitar is very different and challenging. The first thing I had to do was find the right guitar. While visiting my stepdaughter’s family in Las Vegas, my son-in-law recommended a pawn shop whose owner he knew. I found a beautiful, dark amber Ibanez Art Core Semi-Hollow Body there, and because of my “connection,” I got it, case included, for half price! Guitarist extraordinaire Tony Boffa, who lives in North Port and still plays weekly gigs, offered to set it up for me. I met him through my dad and knew I had made the right decision when Tony told me, “You picked one hell of a good guitar.”
Two people helped me to learn syncopation.
First was my dad. We jammed in his music room a lot. I had a challenging time because it required hand muscles I wasn’t used to using. Additionally, I have small hands, so some of the chords were extremely hard for me to play and syncopate. That is where Laurence Juber or LJ came in. He was the lead guitarist with Paul McCartney and Wings, and I was lucky enough to have a guitar lesson with him.
Now all I had to do was learn to play jazz.
For me, the big challenge was syncopation. A simple definition of syncopation is the emphasis of notes or chords that fall on the offbeats, which creates surprise and excitement by disrupting the expected rhythmic flow. For example, a song written in 4/4 time has accents on the numbered beats (e.g., “one-and-two-and…”). But in syncopation, the accents are on the “ands” or the offbeats. That is very different than playing folk or rock. It takes a lot of practice to get used to.
Two people helped me to learn syncopation. First was my dad. We jammed in his music room a lot. I had a challenging time because it required hand muscles I wasn’t used to using. Additionally, I have small hands, so some of the chords were extremely hard for me to play and syncopate. That is where Laurence Juber or LJ came in. He was the lead guitarist with Paul McCartney and Wings, and I was lucky enough to have a guitar lesson with him. I knew LJ loved playing jazz. (If you want to hear one of the best renditions of “All of Me,”
search on YouTube for LJ playing it.) So, I asked for his help and got some great tips for strengthening my hands and playing those difficult chords. Now I was ready!
Dad and the band played every Tuesday night at Allegro Bistro in Venice, and I became a regular, too. The other musicians were Tommy Goodman on keyboard, Matt
Bokulic on keyboard, Dominic Mancini on bass, and Dane Hassan on drums. It was a jazz jam session, and a myriad of different musicians played or sang throughout the night. Some of the songs we played whose titles begin with A, B, and C, were “Al Di La,” “All of Me,” “Avalon,” “Bill Bailey,” “Blueberry Hill,” “Blue Moon,” “Canadian Sunset,” “Candy,” “Caldonia,” “Choo Choo Ch’ Boogie,” “C Jam Blues,” and “Corcovado.” The jam session always ended with my dad’s signature number, “El Cumbanchero.” All the musicians came up to the stage and played it with us. It was amazing.
Sometimes at the jazz jam session, Dad and I not only played but also sang together. A musical style we enjoyed was polyphony, where two or more independent melodies are played or sung simultaneously. For example, I sang “Bill Bailey” and Dad sang “Around the World.” Another favorite song we performed was “Moanin’,” a Lambert, Hendricks and Ross tune. We loved getting the audience to join us.
My dad passed away on April 1, 2017. I miss him and the music we made. Whether it was in his music room or on all those Tuesday nights at Allegro Bistro, I am so thankful we had music, especially jazz, to play and enjoy together. We created memories I cherish and will never forget. And, I don’t think I need to tell you which song we performed that is my absolute favorite, or why it is. We had so much fun singing “Gimme That Wine!”
If you have “Jazz Memories” you’d like to share for future issues, please get in touch with editor Chris Angermann at c.angermann@verizon.net.
Jack and Lee
My Frank Sinatra Journey
By Carol LoRicco
rowing up in Hoboken, New Jersey, in the 1950s, it was impossible not to have heard of Frank Sinatra. His music was played in restaurants, and his voice emerged from speakers outside of stores. Entering the city, there were street signs: “Welcome to Hoboken, birthplace of baseball and Frank Sinatra.”
As a young girl, I enjoyed Sinatra’s singing, but he was not my favorite. I preferred Dean Martin, doo wop music, and even Elvis. At home, there was always country music on the radio. My mother would sing along with the songs, and she even sang in some of the saloons in Hoboken – she had an entertaining voice, and patrons encouraged her to sing along with country songs on the juke box.
Fast forward to 1968, I was working as a waitress in a Hoboken luncheonette. One day after work, I went to Union City to visit a girlfriend at a bowling alley, still wearing my uniform. The manager asked if I’d be interested in waitressing a couple of nights a week. It sounded like it might be fun, so I said “yes.” A short time later, I met Brad there. He was the manager’s best friend and one of the regulars there. Brad was an avid Sinatra fan, and soon, I became one too. Brad and I married in July 1970. We would have loved to see Sinatra perform live, but tickets were difficult to get. And then he announced his retirement in April 1971. Of course, we were disappointed.
But in 1973, Ol’ Blue Eyes was back! –first in the recording studio, then with a TV special. And in January 1974, he performed at Caesar’s Palace, Las Vegas. We were there for the late show on the second night, and it was thrilling to hear “The Voice” live. Not knowing how long he would continue to perform, we flew out to Vegas to see him live three times that year!
In October 1974, we went to the Main Event Concert in Madison Square Garden, where Sinatra, accompanied by the Woody Herman band, was recorded for an ABC musical special. To be at a live televised event that received a lot of publicity was exciting. You could feel the anticipation in the audience.
Carol LoRicco in 1976
Brad and Carol 1977
Over the next twenty years, we attended his concerts at Las Vegas and Atlantic City casinos, Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, Carnegie Hall and Radio City Music Hall in New York, the Kennedy Center in Washington,
DC, and venues in Tampa, Miami, New Orleans, and New Jersey. There were shows with Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr, Liza Minnelli, Don Rickles, Buddy Rich, Lionel Hampton, Shirley MacLaine, Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé, Nancy and Frank Sinatra Jr, Ella Fitzgerald, and Count Basie. To see the musicians who opened and performed with him was special. They were all well-known and top entertainers.
At concerts, I noticed people taking photos, and, being an amateur photographer, I began to bring my camera to the shows. Most places, you had to be discreet. There was always someone watching and saying, “No photos, no cameras.” But Sinatra didn’t mind. At times, if he noticed you with a camera, he would pose or hesitate before moving on.
SARASOTA JAZZ Sounds
In February 1994, we were in Palm Springs for the Sinatra Celebrity Golf Tournament. One night after dinner, we went to the Autry Hotel for a couple of drinks and some music. To our amazement, in walked Robert Wagner, Sidney Poitier, and Frank Sinatra with his wife, Barbara. They were seated in a booth a short distance in back of us, and we each made a trip to the bathroom for a closer look.
After an hour or so, they got up to leave, and Brad told me to go to the lobby and wait while he paid our tab. As they all came out of the lounge, I called out, my heart thumping in my chest, “Please, Frank, please, I’m from Hoboken.” Brad was walking right behind Sinatra and heard him say, “Hoboken, that’s my hometown.
I called out, my heart thumping in my chest, “Please, Frank, please, I’m from Hoboken.” Brad was walking right behind Sinatra and heard him say, “Hoboken, that’s my hometown. It’s OK, I’ll talk to them.” Frank walked over to us alone, and oh, those gorgeous blue eyes up close!
It’s OK, I’ll talk to them.” Frank walked over to us alone, and oh, those gorgeous blue eyes up close!
For a few minutes, we talked about Hoboken, mentioned knowing his godfather, and thanked him for all the enjoyment his shows had given us over the years. He said, “No, I thank you for coming to see me perform all these years.” Brad had picked up a golf tournament program in the hotel lobby, which had an autograph page, and when we asked if he would sign it, he sketched a cartoon-like image of a face with a bow tie and wrote “For Carol and Brad, love and kisses, Frank Sinatra.” Looking at Brad, he said, “The kisses are for her, not for you.” Then Brad shook his hand. Leaning forward to kiss Frank, I extended my arms to give him a hug, and he hugged me. Then he smiled and joined his wife and Robert Wagner. We watched
Caesar"s Place 1979
Sammy, Liza, Frank 1988
Carol celebrating Frank's 75th birthday.
him leave, realizing a dream had come true.
A year later, we were at Sinatra’s final performance at the Marriott Resort in Desert Springs, California, in February 1995. We had mixed emotions. It wasn’t billed as his final concert, but we had a feeling it would be his last performance, and we needed to be there. We moved to Sarasota in 1999 and began going to Jazz Club events, always with my camera. In the beginning, I just took a few pictures, mostly of musician friends and favorite entertainers, performing in the area. As the years went on, we became regulars, attending more shows and taking many more pictures. Brad started volunteering and helped out with promo flyers and
6am to 9am - Greet the day, with our custom blend of easy, lyrically thoughtful, jazz ballads during our early morning Quiet Hours.
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programs. A number of musicians asked for my photos of them and expressed their thanks. Some used the photos to promote their gigs or on their CD covers. It’s a nice feeling, knowing that they appreciate them.
I am also pleased that a number of my photos of Frank Sinatra have appeared in Sinatra Society magazines in the United States, the Netherlands, the UK, and Japan. But I am most proud of the photo of Frank with his son, Frank Jr, in the booklet accompanying the Frank Sinatra New York box set released on the Reprise label. It captures the excitement of seeing Sinatra live and in person. And 30 years since his last performance, that feeling and the memories are still alive.
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Building a Community of People Who Like to Play Jazz
By Ron Kushner
ince the fall of 2022, at 5:30 PM on two Mondays each month, approximately 25 to 30 jazz enthusiasts—from intermediate-level musicians to pros—gather at the Selby Library in downtown Sarasota for a jam session. An audience of jazz lovers usually attends as well. During snowbird season, this number has occasionally flirted with the legal room capacity of 130.
We never know who will show up or what instruments they’ll bring, but under the skilled guidance of Prince Knight, every musician who wants to play gets the opportunity to perform at least one number in an adhoc jazz combo.
Jazz Jam SRQ operates under the auspices of the Jazz Club of Sarasota. At last count, we had over 200 members and continue to grow.
It all started by accident.
I moved full-time to Sarasota in the fall of 2021. As an intermediate-level jazz pianist, I didn’t know anyone locally to jam with. Seeking fellow musicians, I created a group on the Nextdoor app called Jazz Jammers of SRQ. Soon after, I launched a similar group on Meetup. Within two weeks, 40 people responded. About a month later, we held a Zoom meeting with around 20 participants. Everyone just wanted to jam.
Ron Kushner, Director The Jazz Club of Sarasota
We spent the next few months looking for venues. We met in a few HOA clubhouses and jammed at a condo swimming pool reopening downtown. However, finding a steady home proved elusive. Stable venues required insurance, which meant money for premiums and establishing an LLC. We had no funds and preferred to keep it that way. Our community is held together by enthusiasm and mutual support. Introducing money issues and accounting systems could have led to disagreements. We wanted to avoid such complications.
A turning point came in late spring 2022 when Jazz Club President Ed Linehan and Prince Knight agreed to meet with me for lunch. Ed was aware of our efforts and seemed supportive. I wanted to explore using the Jazz Club’s insurance. Ed wasn’t sure that was feasible, but agreed to raise it with the Board. Later, Prince informed us that the Jazz Club suggested we use the Selby Library for our jams. It had a large meeting room with movable chairs and a grand piano. We liked the idea and held our first jam there in October 2022.
A few months in, we discovered a nearby storage room in the library where we could stash a drum kit and keyboard. Though we didn’t have the funds to buy one,
a generous member of our community with a recording studio provided a spare kit on permanent loan to Jazz Jam SRQ. Now, keyboard players and drummers no longer have to lug instruments to our jams.
We also learned that the Sarasota Library System offers space to 501(c)(3) nonprofits like the Jazz Club. One of its rules is that the events be open to the public and free.
Public awareness of our open jams grew because The Jazz Club routinely mentioned them in its weekly mailings. We also became an official activity of the Selby Library, which meant that they listed our jams as a Library activity.
As word spread, we started to grow. More musicians showed up, and people came just to listen. We now draw musicians from a broad geographical area, as far south as Punta Gorda and as far north as towns north of Clearwater. There clearly was a sizable, pent-up demand for accessible jazz jamming in the SarasotaManatee community. Having our open jams was like attaching a valve to a pressurized steam container— once opened, the steam came gushing out. We've been told that what we have in our local community is rare. The Jazz Club also gave us a large banner—our nowiconic logo—that we hang at each jam.
SARASOTA JAZZ Sounds
As we grew, we realized our mission included building a supportive community. To further that goal, we have:
• Created the position of Jam Coordinator to help arrange small jam sessions among members of our community.
• Launched a program of free workshops led by community members. Topics have included: how to sing a jazz tune, rhythm section communication, Barry Harris's keyboard harmony approach, Paul Pass's jazz guitar methods, using superimposed triads, and crafting a solo. We've recently added a Workshop Coordinator and begun recording and sharing workshop videos.
• Started a monthly Beginners’ Jam taught by an experienced jazz educator. The focus of this group has expanded to include more seasoned players seeking to improve their jazz musicianship and has been renamed “Jazz Fundamentals and Beyond.”
• Formed a Facebook Group, with plans to transition to a Jazz Club-hosted webpage offering more features.
• Offered hats and shirts (via direct vendor ordering) featuring our banner design logo, worn by both musicians and spectators.
SCF.edu/music
We continue all that activity on a voluntary basis and without money, except for two instances: a $500 Jazz Club contribution to upgrade the PA system at the Selby Library, and a monthly payment to the” Jazz Fundamentals and Beyond” instructor.
We’ve come a long way since that first Zoom call. Most of what we’ve done has been ad hoc, making things up as we went along, but we’re now moving toward a more formal structure, including a volunteer steering committee that meets monthly on Zoom to assess our progress and plan for the future.
We are where we are thanks to the Jazz Club’s support—for which we are very grateful—and the enthusiastic participation of jazz players and jazz fans across the Sarasota-Manatee area.
The future looks bright.
Ron Kushner bio:
Ron Kushner has had careers in computers and information systems, and worked as a social work psychotherapist. A lifelong New Yorker, he moved to Sarasota with his wife Pat in the fall of 2021. He plays jazz piano and is a Sarasota Jazz Club board member.
2025-2026 Performance Season
SATURDAY | JAN 17, 2026
7:00PM
Holley Hall
709 N Tamiami Trail Sarasota, Fl
“Ken Peplowski is arguably the greatest living jazz clarinetist” Russell Davies, BBC2