I've got a barn! I've got some wine coolers! I've got one blue light and one red light!
Gosh, we don't need Jazz City! Let's put on our own jazz festival!
There's something touching about community spirit. One shining recent example is the gathering of like-minded local jazz musicians who stepped up to produce a festival to "sub in" for Jazz City when organizers suddenly decided they were too broke for the show to go on this year.
Nature abhors a vacuum, however. Tommy "the Senator" Banks put it perfectly: "The jazz community in Edmonton will not sit by and not have a jazz festival. Whatever it's called and wherever and whenever it's held, there will be a jazz festival. I can't imagine that there wouldn't be one."
And so it has come to pass that the Yardbird Jazz Festival opens today. Like Jazz City, it's 10 days of live music in numerous local venues. Like Jazz City, there's a lot of jazz. Unlike Jazz City, it's ALL jazz. No pop stars this year.
Pure jazz headliners range from Dave Holland to Sheila Jordan to Tommy Banks to P.J. Perry to a host of local stars. Local musicians rolled up their sleeves and jumped into the thick of it. It might be easier to list the local jazz musicians who aren't playing this year.
"We can't think of a single one," says saxophonist Don Berner, member of the four-man team who put this all together. He and his partners - fellow musicians Ken Hoffman and Kent Sangster and Yardbird Suite honcho Jasiek Poznanski - were each thinking alike, separately. In fact, probably every jazz musician was. A couple of phone calls and some meetings later - plus cash from the Edmonton Arts Council, don't forget - and they were off. Local involvement was a key issue.
"That was one of the goals - to make sure a lot of local guys were playing in concert venues and getting the coverage they deserve," Berner says. "We want to make sure everyone feels part of the experience."
Of course, ahem, the organizers threw themselves a bone or two. Berner has a couple of gigs, as do his playing partners. They also have to be mindful that being "festival producers" has elevated their stature in the community.
Berner laughs, "Sure. But we're doing it for hopefully more altruistic reasons than that."
Besides, if not him, then someone else would've stepped in to save the day. That's just the kind of jazz community Edmonton has.
"There was no doubt in anyone's mind that someone would come along to fill the void," Berner says. "I think we've done the best job we can in a short amount of time and shoestring budget. It's a pretty comparable festival and hopefully Jazz City will get back on its feet and be up and running next year."
The Yardbird Jazz Festival runs through July 3 at venues around Edmonton. Tickets to most shows are on sale at Ticketmaster (451-8000), Citadel Theatre shows at the Citadel (425-1820). For details, visit
www.yardbirdsuite.com or call 432-0428.
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