Laurie de Koch photo by Marcus Donner
Boxley’s Jazz Club Closing
Boxley’s owner Danny Kolke and musical director Greg Williamson recently announced that the beloved North Bend jazz club will be closing. After almost seven years running the club, Kolke has decided to focus on his 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations Boxley Music Fund and JazzClubsNW, which recently helped the launch of the Tacoma Jazz Association.
“By not operationg the restaurant,” says Kolke, “we believe we can focus on our passion for music programming and improve what we do best.”
Kolke encourages those who wish to help or learn more information to become a member of or make a donation to the Boxley Music Fund and JazzClubsNW. To find out more info, visit jazzclubsnw.org.
Laurie de Koch Named JJA Jazz Hero
Seattle JazzED founder Laurie de Koch was recently named a 2016 Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Hero. The JJA Jazz Awards recognize and honor jazz advocates who have had significant impact on their local communities. De Koch was selected along with 22 other Jazz Heroes.
Since its founding six years ago, Seattle JazzED now serves 350 students a year. These students have access to instruments, private lessons, and ensembles, and half receive financial aid, many through scholarships. JazzED’s steps towards institutionalizing racial equity while pursuing the twin goals of expanding access to music education and its excellence earned the organization the 2015 Mayor’s Arts Award.
Save KPLU Campaign Launches
A fundraising campaign, led by KPLU itself, has launched, after Pacific Lutheran University announced it was selling the radio station to KUOW back in November. In order to “Save KPLU,” the community needs to raise $7 million by June 30. To date, the campaign has raised nearly $3.9 million. Visit kplu.org/save-kplu to learn more information or to make your pledge today.
Jazz Radio
88.5 KPLU hosts Saturday Jazz Matinee, Jazz Sunday Side Up, Ken Wiley’s the Art of Jazz, and Jazz Northwest, in addition to its weekday NPR and late-night and prime-time jazz programs. For KPLU’s full jazz schedule, see kplu.org/schedule.
Jim Wilke’s Jazz Northwest, Sundays, 2pm, features the artists and events of the regional jazz scene. May schedule: May 8, Bill Holman conducts the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra in a concert of his music; May 22, Michael Brockman Quintet concert at the Seattle Art Museum. For JazzNW podcasts of archived programs, see jazznw.org.
90.3 KEXP, late-night Sundays, features Jazz Theater with John Gilbreath, 1am, and Sonarchy, midnight, a live-performance broadcast from the Jack Straw Productions studio, produced by Doug Haire. Full schedule information is available at kexp.org and jackstraw.org.
Sonarchy’s May schedule: May 1, Rik Wright’s Fundamental Forces, new jazz music from this tight band of Wright (electric guitar), Jim DeJoie (clarinet), Geoff Harper (bass), and Greg Campbell (drums); May 8, Yann Novak, a microscopic, ambient, and luxurious performance of composition of altered field recordings; May 15, A Consecutive Sequence, intense, powerhouse improvisation with Bryan Lineberry (alto sax) and Dio Jean-Baptiste (drums, voice); May 22, Fraser Havens, original solo compositions and improvisations for pedal steel guitar; May 29, Velocity, fusion jazz kicked into high gear with Peter Adams (keys, compositions), Brian Smith (drums), Rob Hutchinson (bass), and Cliff Colon (sax).
91.3 KBCS, late Sundays and prime-time Mondays, features Floatation Device with John Seman and Jonathan Lawson; Straight, No Chaser with David Utevsky; Giant Steps with John Pai. A rotation of programmers Gordon Todd, John Midgley, and Megan Sullivan host “The Sound of Modern Jazz,” Mondays at 7pm. More about jazz on KBCS at kbcs.fm.
94.9 KUOW, Saturdays, 7pm, features Amanda Wilde’s the Swing Years and Beyond, popular music from the 1920s to the 1950s. More at kuow.org/swing_years.php.
Hollow Earth Radio, hollowearthradio.org, Fridays at 6pm, biweekly, Black Roots Radio, hosted by Jordan Leonard, promotes jazz as a dynamic genre rooted in the Black American experience. Hollow Earth Radio is Seattle’s freeform online radio station that supports the local music communities in the greater Pacific Northwest and tries to create an open, encouraging stage for underrepresented voices. More at facebook.com/blackrootsradiojl and hollowearthradio.org.
In One Ear News
Email news about Seattle-area jazz artists, for In One Ear, to editor@earshot.org.
