Jazz ed
Bay Area jazz workshops offer a chance to hit the big time.

By Daniel King

YEARS HAVE PASSED since Dexter Gordon played at Bop City, Miles Davis recorded at Blackhawk, and John Coltrane performed at Both/And. Still, Bay Area jazz performers and workshops continue to light up local culture, and for those who want to learn this music, the opportunities are exciting. So, to keep in step with local jazz workshops' efforts, the Bay Guardian has selected four programs to highlight.

Let's begin by charting the Jazzschool, a six-year-old program located in downtown Berkeley (2087 Addison, Berk. 510-845-5373). "Why not call it what it is?" executive director Susan Muscarella says, regarding the program's name. Courses range from composition clinics to improvisation classes, including an assortment of others, such as "Beginner's Guide to the Recording Studio" and "The Literary Groove of Jazz," a seminar designed to teach students the ins, outs, styles, and spirits of Ralph Ellison, Langston Hughes, Amiri Baraka, and others.

Inside the building, you'll find a café and a bookstore next to an atrium that hosts open-mic jam sessions every Friday from 5 to 7 p.m. Beyond the stage there's a computer lab, Hammond organ practice studio, and drum space. The program's faculty is an all-star cast of musicians who range in age and areas of expertise: there's 65-year-old drummer Eddie Marshall and 18-year-old pianist Taylor Eigsti. The classes are interactive, so it's easy to get quality time with the icon of your choice.

Oaktown Jazz, another adventurous workshop, is held in two Oakland locations (Alice Arts Center, 1428 Alice, Oakl., and Diamond Recreation Center, 3860 Hanly, Oakl. 510-562-4546) and has been nurturing musicians for a decade. "We're all laughing and joking during classes," executive director Khalil Shaheed says. "But at the same time it's a very serious endeavor." If students miss a note or struggle with a melody, Shaheed works with them. "I'm one-on-one," he says. "It's important for instructors, especially in jazz, which gets passed along by people, not just textbooks, to have been in the trenches themselves." Shaheed walks the walk, having played trumpet for four decades now alongside Pharaoh Sanders, Jimi Hendrix, Rufus Reid, and others. "More than teaching music, I teach lifestyles – concentration, sincerity, and hard work."

Each workshop takes place twice a week from 4 to 6 p.m. On a Wednesday a few weeks ago, about 15 students gathered around the table in their jerseys and sports caps. It was after school, and the mood was light, but the stakes were high. Six students so far have enrolled in major conservatories after taking the workshop, and at least one a year attends college on full scholarship. Other perks include retreats in northern California and jam sessions at Yoshi's, Oakland's best-bet jazz club, with Cyrus Chestnut, Terence Blanchard, Joe Zawinul, and other inspiring musicians. Students also play at political luncheons, hotels, and Oakland A's games on occasion, gaining firsthand experience.

For a larger workshop, try the Stanford Jazz Workshop, located on the sprawling campus of Stanford University (P.O. Box 20454, Stanford, CA 94309, 650-736-0324). Shaheed has taught there too – he was one of many musicians who flock to the campus along with 700 students annually. There's been a surge in the program's popularity in recent years, despite an overall dip in U.S. arts funding. Grants and tuition provide steady income for the program, lifting it from mom-and-pop status in 1972 to its current position at the top of the Bay Area jazz-ed ladder.

I interned there a few summers ago and caught the program in action, which features a concurrent camp, residency, and festival. Students as young as 12 and as old as 80 come from all over the world, including China, Sri Lanka, Israel, Argentina, Cuba, Japan, New York City, and Oakland. They're given housing, food, and expert instruction. Over the years faculty members have included bebop drummer Tootie Heath, dynamic pianist Geri Allen, rollicking Jazz Messenger James Williams, New York saxophonist Eric Alexander, soaring trumpeter Dmitri Matheny, and Australian altoist Andrew Speight. In total, 120 faculty members attend each workshop, and more than 100 scholarships are awarded annually.

"Dizzy Gillespie falling asleep at the piano," executive director Jim Nadel says, describing one of the funniest things he's seen at the Stanford Jazz Workshop. Gillespie dozing is a difficult image to top, but this summer's camp will surely produce memorable moments. "Most of our faculty members are locals," he says. "Then we bring in artists from out of town. We frequently gather musicians who have never played together before, such as when Ray Brown and Joe Henderson taught here and performed onstage together. It was a treat."

For a lower-key workshop, one that is smaller but equally creative, try a weeklong course at the San Francisco School (300 Gaven, S.F. 415-239-5065). It's a private program geared toward students from preschool through eighth grade during the fall, winter, and spring, but when the summer rolls around, it hosts all-ages jazz workshops under the direction of Doug Goodkin. With an upright piano at the ready, a disarming personality, and a group of books on the market, Goodkin guides students through sonic adventures.

"Students don't have to know technical terms like 'quarter notes' and 'eighth notes,' " he says. "I use the Orff method, which is a holistic approach to ear training. One student plays a rhythm on your back, and you have to play it on your instrument, for example. We'll use other forms of body percussion too, from clapping your hands to slapping your belly – in conjunction with horns, cymbals, and bells."

The program is nurturing, and it accommodates novices. "A philosophy professor came in once who'd never played before," Goodkin says. "Turned out he could hang. So could the businesspeople who loosened their ties and explored rhythms." Goodkin honed his teaching skills in Taiwan, Germany, and Spain recently, and as a result of his goodwill networking, he recruited vibraphonist Milt Jackson to jam with students in 1998, a year before the Modern Jazz Quartet cofounder died.

"Stefan Harris has been here five times," he adds, referring to the heralded young vibraphonist. "Stefan is so generous with his time, and the students are amazed to watch him play and to play with him."

Oaktown Jazz, the Jazzschool, the Stanford Jazz Workshop, and the San Francisco School compete as friends, not foes. The programs' directors usually embrace each other's efforts. "Students go between programs frequently," Shaheed says. "It's a close-knit community in the Bay Area."

"Many of us enjoy working together," Muscarella says.

"It should be guaranteed in American school systems," Goodkin adds, "that students learn who Billie Holiday is, who Louis Armstrong is. Many of us are here to make that happen."

For information on other jazz programs in the Bay Area, contact UC Berkeley's Ted Moore (www-ucjazz.berkeley.edu), who organizes top-notch ensembles; the Monterey Jazz Festival's Tim Jackson (www.montereyjazzfestival.org), who's preparing to launch the camp's first residency program; SFJAZZ's Dmitri Matheny (www.sfjazz.org), who spearheads a jazz-poetry program in middle schools; and the San Jose Jazz Society's Rob Roman (www.sanjosejazz.org), who coordinates in-school workshops. Daniel King is a Bay Guardian intern.