John Gilbreath photo by Bill Uznay
April is becoming the month for global jazz awareness, with major organizations and institutions bringing new muscle to hold up the torch long carried by jazz-loving individuals.
The Smithsonian Institution designated April as Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM) in 2001, organizing annual campaigns to honor jazz as an “original American art form.” This year, the Museum of American History celebrates JAM with “Jazz Alchemy: A Love Supreme,” paying tribute to John Coltrane and the 50th anniversary of his masterwork, A Love Supreme.
UNESCO brought jazz appreciation to the world stage in 2011, joining the Thelonious Monk Institute to establish International Jazz Day, “to raise awareness in the international community regarding jazz’s virtues as an educational tool, as a vehicle for peace, unity, dialogue, and for enhanced cooperation between peoples.” Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock led celebrations in Paris and Istanbul so far, and on April 30th, a who’s who of jazz notables will rock Osaka – Japan’s “jazz mecca” – for this year’s International Jazz Day.
Here at Earshot Jazz, every month is jazz appreciation month. Seattle is blessed with a robust jazz scene year round, and Earshot Jazz is the non-profit community organization in place to support it. Clearly, we can learn some public-relations lessons from the sophisticated initiatives, but as a hard-working community organization, we can’t help imagining instead how many artists those budgets could bring to new stages in schools and community centers around the region, ultimately letting jazz speak for itself.
This April, we ask that you think of Earshot Jazz in the same spirit as your favorite public radio station(s) seasonal fund drives. Considering the value we bring to the community, and understanding that much of our funding comes from members just like you, we ask that you make a donation to Earshot Jazz – right now! – at whatever level you can afford.
Since 1984(!) the Earshot Jazz organization has served and documented this incredible jazz community with publications, education and service programs, and thousands of one-of-a-kind concerts, celebrating Seattle’s place in this incredible world of jazz.
Please, make a donation to Earshot Jazz – right now – at whatever level you can afford!
And thank you!
John Gilbreath,
Executive Director
