Sunday, 3 January 2010

All that jazz

When I went to the Jazz Festival in Paihia, August before last I think, a while back anyway, I remember commenting to younger friends we ran into that they were probably the youngest people there.  And they would be in their forties.  I made a point of insisting on seeing a high school jazz band early on the Sunday morning when I would have normally been lazing around.  To be honest, they weren't all that good.

I wondered what was going to happen to jazz, was it dying?  Are all the young ones more interested in that other crap?  After a drink or two I even got a bit maudlin contemplating a world without jazz.  Luckily,  mawkish sentimentality has never been my thing or I could have ruined my weekend. 

But, the news today is good.  Jazz is alive and well.  Last night Billy Scarfe, a fourteen year old of my acquaintance and a group of his friends played their first grown up gig (I think) at Tobys, up in the hills of the Waitakeres.  A lovely setting for good jazz.  And they were wonderful!

The boys are raising money to go to New York, to a big jazz festival where secondary school bands from all over the world gather to perform.  Good luck, boys.  I don't care how silly it sounds, you are my keepers of the faith.

2 comments:

  1. Always good to hear that important parts of our culture are carrying forward!

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  2. I'm not really a fan of Jazz music, but they have Jazz in the park around our neighborhood and we usually take a stroll during the gig and always have a good time.

    I'm glad it was resurrected for you.

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