Lansing’s Old Town has been producing JazzFest for 15 years with a sure formula, drawing as many as 10,000 people to the two-day music festival. But add a new coordinator and triple the size of the planning committee and suddenly new energy slides through the score, breathing excitement into a mainstay.
Sharen Lange, the volunteer coordinator, is most excited about the Aug. 8 Jazz-n-Juniors program, sponsored by Union Bank. It is a free clinic for kids 10 to 18 years, at Perspective 2, conducted by Rodney Whitaker, director of jazz studies at Michigan State University (MSU).
“We’ve always had workshops,” Lange says. “But never before have we tried to bring in the next generation of musicians.”
She hopes for at least 50 kids with a mix of adults.
“I want young band students and children who would like an up close intro to jazz by a true master.”
Preceding the workshop will be a performance of the Lansing Area All Star Band, 17 high school performers playing on the main stage under the direction of Wes “Warm Daddy” Anderson, a professor of jazz at MSU. The group has been organized by Mark Stice, Okemos High School band director.
But the innovation is not just for youngsters. The first Community Jazz Jam will be on the River Stage Aug. 7, celebrating local professional musicians and allowing artists to take rounds playing together.
Lange hopes the crowd this year will grow to 15,000 or more.
Source: Sharen Lange, JazzFest
Gretchen Cochran, Innovation & Jobs editor, may be reached here.
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