The Jazzschool

Afro-Cuban fire comes to the Jazzschool! 🔥

Bay Area drummer and educator Josh Jones leads an all-star Latin jazz quintet performing music by Eddie Palmieri, Ray Barretto, Maraca, and more. Plus, an opening set by the Jazzschool High School Combo led by Max Brody.

A special night that brings together generations of musicians, including bassist Sadie Scott Jones, performing with both the student combo and her father's band.

🕖 Doors 7pm | 🎤 Talk 7:30pm | 🎵 Concert 8pm
🎟️ concerts.jazzschool.org/josh-jones-latin-quintet

Sonny Rollins was one of the most important voices in jazz from the 1950s onward: a deep improviser and master of the tenor saxophone. A player whose sound, imagination, humor, and relentless pursuit of growth changed the language of jazz.

Here, I’ll focus on the aspect of his music that first made a strong impression on me, both as a musician and as a listener: a series of trio albums recorded in 1957 and 1958, featuring only tenor sax, bass, and drums — a format Sonny helped define.

First, Way Out West, the first time he recorded in that instrumentation, made in Los Angeles with Ray Brown and Shelly Manne. Sonny said he had “all these Western songs in mind from my youth,” describing the album as “a tribute to independence and being self-sufficient, which is what the West really means — at least in Westerns.” Perhaps unlikely material for a jazz record, with tunes like “I’m an Old Cowhand,” complete with Shelly Manne’s clip-clop woodblock, and “Wagon Wheels” — but clearly reflective of Sonny’s personality and imagination. And don’t forget the iconic album cover image: Sonny as cowboy!

Next came A Night at the Village Vanguard — my favorite Sonny album, if I had to pick one. A spontaneous affair featuring Elvin Jones and Wilbur Ware, it included standard tunes called on the fly. (There’s a hilarious story about how Elvin came to be there that evening, which you can find in Sonny’s biography by Aidan Levy — highly recommended.) Sonny is killing it, swinging on all cylinders, but also liable to quote “Three Blind Mice” in the middle of a solo.

Finally, there’s Freedom Suite. The extended title composition, built from minimal motivic material as a jumping-off point for group improvisation, feels ahead of its time. In some ways, it foreshadows later large-scale jazz suites like John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme. The album has been referred to as the first prominent civil rights–themed album of the modern jazz era. Sonny described it as “an attempt to introduce some kind of black pride into the conversation of the time” … “That was my history.”

All three albums are tremendous, and notably all came before the period he is most known for in popular culture: his withdrawal from the scene to practice with great intensity on the pedestrian walkway of New York City’s Williamsburg Bridge.

If you don't know these records (or even if you do), put one on and enjoy.
Thank you, Sonny Rollins!

Rob Ewing
Jazzschool Director of Education
Swipe through ➡️

A beautiful night of music, history, and community.

Our final AAPI Heritage Month Salon brought together Francis Wong, Jon Jang, Scott Oshiro, and Roopa Mahadevan for a rich conversation on Asian American jazz and its deep roots in the Bay Area.

Thank you to our artists, collaborators, and everyone who showed up to be part of it.

Concert this week at the Jazzschool

5/20 at 12:30pm - FREE! Brown Bag Jazz Hangs: Jayn Pettingill on Duke Ellington and Radio

5/20 at 7pm - FREE! Jazz Jams at Jupiter

5/22 at 7pm - AAPI Heritage Month Salon Series A Community Affair: Asian American Lineages as Bay Area History

5/23 at 4pm - FREE! Student Showcase: Max Roston-Saul Sextet

5/23 at 8pm - Celebrating Asian American Jazz: Vernaculars plays the Music of Francis Wong

5/24 at 4pm - Vocal Open Mic

Visit concerts.jazzschool.org for details and tickets.

Tune in today at 4pm! 📻

Our Executive Director, Lisa Mezzacappa, joins Jesse “Chuy” Varela on KCSM to talk about what’s coming up at The Jazzschool — from student showcases to big band nights, Latin jazz, offsite performances, and our annual scholarship benefit concert.

Coming up:
🎶 Student Showcase: Max Roston-Saul Sextet Sat, May 23 at 4pm Free admission

🎶 Jazzschool Studio Band + Dave Eshelman’s Jazz Garden Big Band Tue, May 26 at 7:30pm At The Freight

🎶 Josh Jones Latin Quintet Opening set by Jazzschool High School Combo led by Max Brody Sat, June 6 at 8pm $25 general / $15 youth

🎶 OFFSITE: Peter Horvath Group + Advanced High School Jazz Workshop Thu, June 11 at 7pm At Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, SF Tickets: mrtipplessf.com

🎶 21st Annual Dick Conte Jazz Piano Benefit Scholarship Concert Featuring winner Jesse Ashlock Sat, June 13 at 8pm $25 general / $15 youth

Catch Lisa on KCSM today at 4pm, then come hear what our students, faculty, and guest artists have been working on.

The music is happening. Come be part of it.

Jazzschool concerts and events this week!

5/13 at 12:30pm - Brown Bag Jazz Hangs: Ben Goldberg on Steve Lacy (FREE)

5/13 at 7pm - Jazz Jams at Jupiter (FREE)

5/16 at 8pm - Celebrating Asian American Jazz: Roopa in Flux featuring Roopa Mahadevan

5/17 at 4pm - The B3 Sessions with Roger Smith (FREE)

concerts.jazzschool.org

Jazzschool FREE workshops and more!

5/16 at 2pm - Writing and Publishing Your Music Method Book with Chuck Sher, Tony Corman, Susan Muscarella, Hristo Vitchev (FREE)

5/17 at 2pm - Brazilian Choro Workout: From the Practice Room to the Roda with Brian Moran

5/17 at 4pm - The B3 Sessions with Roger Smith (FREE)

jazzschool.org/workshops

⚡ Your kid could build their own instrument this summer.

Not a kit. Not a screen. A real working electronic instrument that they build themselves.

At Sonic Lab, middle school creators will spend 4 days making sounds, recording music, experimenting with audio, and learning how music tech actually works.

Campers will:
✔ Build an electronic instrument using real circuits
✔ Experiment with vocal looping + field recording
✔ Create original sound pieces
✔ Learn hands-on recording studio basics
✔ Leave with their own finished recording

This is for kids who are curious, creative, musical, hands-on, or always taking things apart to see how they work.

🎛 SONIC LAB: Build It, Bend It, Record It!
📍 The Jazzschool — Berkeley
📅 June 29–July 2
🕘 9am–3pm
👥 Middle school students
🎟 $500

Led by teaching artists Anais Azul and Mitch Stahlmann in partnership with Thingamajigs.

Spots are limited. Register now at thingamajigs.org

Homepage - The Jazzschool The Jazzschool community music program offers ensembles, classes and workshops for instrumentalists and vocalists, focusing on theory, performance, musicianship, improvisation, composition, history, culture, aesthetics, and the music business.