The Left Bank Jazz Society was a Baltimore, Maryland-based organization that promoted jazz in Baltimore. It formed in 1964, hosting a series of concerts featuring nationally acclaimed performers like John Coltrane and Duke Ellington. Recordings of these performances were tied up in legal disputes and few were officially released until 2000 (with the notable exception of two mid-1990s Verve Records releases by Joe Henderson).
Left Bank was founded by Vernon L. Welsh (10 February 1919 – 8 August 2002 Baltimore, Maryland) and Benny Kearse (16 March 1930 Allendale, South Carolina – 29 June 1999 Baltimore, Maryland). Welsh recorded more than 800 jazz performances at the Famous Ballroom during the 1960s and 1970s. The tapes recorded by Welsh had been stored at the Morgan State University library for years. Veteran record producer Joel Dorn of the Label M record company, who acquired the tapes, began reissuing them and they subsequently found favor with critics and jazz aficionados. [1] [2]
For seven years, Kearse was president of the group, which sponsored 47 concerts a season at its peak. The Left Bank's first gig was held at the Al-Ho Club, in the 2500 block of Frederick Ave., the year it was founded. After three moves, the society established a long run at the Famous Ballroom in 1967. Portions of Robert Mugge's 1980 documentary, Sun Ra: A Joyful Noise , were shot at the Famous Ballroom during the Left Bank's residency there. The hall is the site of the expanded Charles Theatre. [3]
As producer and live performance venue
Benjamin David Goodman was an American jazz clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing".
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Jazz at Lincoln Center is part of Lincoln Center in New York City. The organization was founded in 1987 and opened at Time Warner Center in October 2004. Wynton Marsalis is the artistic director and the leader of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.
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"April in Paris" is a popular song composed by Vernon Duke with lyrics by Yip Harburg in 1932 for the Broadway musical Walk a Little Faster. The original 1933 hit was performed by Freddy Martin, and the 1952 remake was by the Sauter-Finegan Orchestra, whose version made the Cashbox Top 50. Composer Alec Wilder writes, "There are no two ways about it: this is a perfect theater song. If that sounds too reverent, then I'll reduce the praise to 'perfectly wonderful,' or else say that if it's not perfect, show me why it isn't."
The music of Baltimore, the largest city in Maryland, can be documented as far back as 1784, and the city has become a regional center for Western classical music and jazz. Early Baltimore was home to popular opera and musical theatre, and an important part of the music of Maryland, while the city also hosted several major music publishing firms until well into the 19th century, when Baltimore also saw the rise of native musical instrument manufacturing, specifically pianos and woodwind instruments. African American music existed in Baltimore during the colonial era, and the city was home to vibrant black musical life by the 1860s. Baltimore's African American heritage to the start of the 20th century included ragtime and gospel music. By the end of that century, Baltimore jazz had become a well-recognized scene among jazz fans, and produced a number of local performers to gain national reputations. The city was a major stop on the African American East Coast touring circuit, and it remains a popular regional draw for live performances. Baltimore has produced a wide range of modern rock, punk and metal bands and several indie labels catering to a variety of audiences.
The Charles Theatre, often referred to as simply The Charles, is the oldest movie theatre in Baltimore. The theatre is a Beaux-Arts building designed as a streetcar barn in 1892 by Jackson C. Gott, located in what is now the Station North arts and entertainment district. The theater was renamed the Charles circa 1959 and became a calendar revival house in 1979. Many of John Waters's early films premiered at this theatre; this honor has since shifted to the Senator Theatre.
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Four is an album by jazz saxophonist Joe Henderson released on the Verve label in 1994. It was recorded on April 21, 1968 and features a live performance by Henderson with pianist Wynton Kelly, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Jimmy Cobb. The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow states: "Henderson really pushes the rhythm section and he is certainly inspired by their presence. This is a frequently exciting performance by some of the modern bop greats of the era". Further selections from this concert were released as Straight, No Chaser.
Straight, No Chaser is an album by jazz saxophonist Joe Henderson released on the Verve label. It was recorded on April 21, 1968 and featuring a live performance by Henderson with pianist Wynton Kelly, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Jimmy Cobb. The recording was not released until 1996. The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow states: "Although Henderson had not played with the other musicians before, they blend together quite well and obviously inspired each other". Further selections from this concert were released as Four.
Jam Gems: Live at the Left Bank is collaboration live album by trumpeter Freddie Hubbard and tenor saxophonist Jimmy Heath recorded at the Left Bank ballroom in Baltimore in June 1965 and released on the Label M label in 2001. It features performances by Hubbard, Heath, Gus Simms, Wilbur Little, and Bertell Knox.
Stephen Scott in is an American jazz pianist. Scott played piano from the age of five. While attending New York’s High School of the Performing Arts he was introduced to jazz by alto saxophonist Justin Robinson, in particular the music of Wynton Kelly and Red Garland. Later, he took private lessons at the Juilliard School of Music.
Birks' Works is an album by trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie recorded in 1957 and released on the Verve label. The original album featured 10 tracks and was reissued as Birks Works: The Verve Big Band Sessions, a 2 CD compilation featuring unreleased tracks, alternate takes and tracks from Gillespie's previous 1956 albums Dizzy in Greece and World Statesman.
Sun Ra: A Joyful Noise is a 1980 jazz film by Robert Mugge documenting performances by Sun Ra and his Arkestra in Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and Baltimore, and also including interviews and rehearsal footage. The Philadelphia performances captured by the film took place at Danny's Hollywood Palace and on the rooftop of the Philadelphia International Center. The Baltimore performance took place in the Famous Ballroom, hosted by the Left Bank Jazz Society.
Münchner Klaviersommer was a series of jazz concerts in Munich featuring various famous artists. Despite the name, not only pianists performed in these concerts. The concerts were usually held in July in the Philharmonic Hall Gasteig and they took place from 1981 to 1998. The sequel to the Munich Piano Summer is the Jazz Summer in the Bayerischer Hof at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof.
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