Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band from L.A. is coming in and Gordon’s gonna actually be the guest conductor of our High School All-Star Band. And so we’re always trying to do educational stuff. We think it’s important. We’re blessed in our community. We have 19 school districts and every one of them have music programs and many of them have jazz programs. In fact, Reading High School, or the big school district in town, they have three jazz bands at different levels.
Smitty: Wow! That’s outstanding!
JE: So it’s pretty amazing and we have a great educational community for music and we really try to enhance it during the festival.
Smitty: What a beautiful thing. The Berks Jazz Festival set the tone in so many ways throughout the country for so many because of what you do and the unique style that you do it. Before I go any further, I just want to extend our thanks to the entire Berks Arts Council, all the volunteers, the Visitors Center, the Chamber of Commerce, the Hotel owners, the entire city of Reading, for doing such a magnificent job and for allowing us to come in every year and just have such a great time with you great people out there.
JE: Oh, that’s good. That’s good to hear and that’s what we want. We want people to feel comfortable to want to come back and enjoy themselves. We want everyone to have a good time.
Smitty: Yes. Success is on your side, my friend.
JE: It’s a fun event.
Smitty: It really is and I enjoy the great food out there too. (Both laugh.) Oh yeah. One of the great classes or involvement of the young musicians that I really enjoy is Gerald Veasley’s Bass Boot Camp. I think that’s a highlight and I think people really look forward to that every year. I know the kids do. And it’s a great program, it’s a great fun camp for not just kids, but there are some adults in there as well.
JE: Oh, absolutely, yeah.
Smitty: (Laughs.)
JE: We started that relationship with Gerald several years ago. He started his Bass Boot Camp and he was looking for a venue to hold it and Gerald and I were talking and I said “Why don’t you hold it during the first week of the festival?” And he started that and it’s worked out and it’s become an event within the event, and Gerald does a three-day camp for bass players that come from all over the country, of all ages, from teenagers to people in their sixties and seventies come to take part in this incredible three-day camp for bass players.
Smitty: Very cool.
JE: And, in fact, this year we’re working with Chuck Loeb. We’re gonna do a one-day guitar camp the second weekend.
Smitty: Oh wow.
JE: With Chuck and Pat Martino and some other guitar players we’re working on. Details on that are just being finalized, so I don’t want to get ahead of myself here, but it’s coming together. It’s gonna be called Chuck Loeb’s String Training.
Smitty: String Training. I love it! (Laughs.)
JE: Yeah.
Smitty: That’s a great name.
JE: Yeah.
Smitty: And, now, you couldn’t have picked a better guitarist for that. I mean, he’s a great guy and a great teacher.
JE: Yeah, he’s just a great person. I love working with Chuck.
Smitty: Yeah, well, that’s wonderful, just so many great things coming out of there. Now let’s talk about this year events because every year you feature some of the primo, the best artists in the business, from straight-ahead jazz to smooth jazz, contemporary jazz…always a magnificent lineup. Talk about some of the highlights of this coming year.
JE: Wow, yeah, we are excited about the lineup this year. We’ve spent a lot of time on it. We try every year to present something that’s fresh, hopefully something that has some new elements to it, and I think we’ve accomplished that this year. The test is if people come and enjoy themselves, but we feel pretty confident we have a very strong lineup this year and we’re really honored to have the kickoff concert with Dave Brubeck Quartet.
Smitty: Whew! That’s kickin’ it off right.
JE: I mean, that to me is something I’ve been wanting to do and we’re fortunate to work it out with his schedule and he’s gonna be the opening act for the festival. And then from there we go to events like the program called Downright Upright All-Stars featuring Randy Brecker, Jeff Lorber, Gary Meek, and Dave Weckl. They did this show in Japan and they have never really done it in this country, so we got it to come to the festival and we’re doing a lot of stuff throughout the week. There are two special programs we’re working on celebrating the life and music of Luther Vandross. Jason Miles is coordinating that along with Nat Adderley Jr. The show is gonna feature Luther’s original band, all his band members, back-up singers, and we have Dionne Warwick coming in to sing, we have Kirk Whalum on the bill, Walter Beasley, Cissy Houston, Doc Powell…I mean, it’s gonna be an amazing show, and there’s a few other things we’re working on that may be announced later for that show too. And Rick Braun’s doing a special show this year. Its called Rick Braun & Friends and he’s bringing in Jonathan Butler, Richard Elliot, Jackiem Joyner, and Rayford Griffin with him.
