The roots of jazz lie in the popular music of the late 19th century: folk music, blues, ragtime, Sousa’s marches, even classical and operatic themes. All this was a part of the American cultural fabric. Elements of these forms had emerged by the earliest of Louis Armstrong’s recordings from the 20’s. American music continued to grow through a cross-pollination of jazz and the music of Broadway writers, composers like Jerome Kern and George Gershwin. French impressionistic influences on the music, primarily, of Gershwin, Bix Beiderbecke, and later Billy Strayhorn, brought a new harmonic sophistication.

This musical tradition was handed down throughout most of the 20th century from musician to musician. Band leaders developed promising artists within their groups who in turn became the new leaders. The music developed to a period of high sophistication in the 30's through World War II, when it was the popular music of the day. After the war, although it had lost its popular music status in the United States, it continued to grow into a more advanced, though largely underground art form, gaining respect and popularity abroad.

As a result of a series of factors, among them the advent of television, mass commercial control of entertainment media, and the loss of great leaders such as Ellington and Coltrane, the music fell on difficult times by the 70’s. In the early 80’s corporate America effectively took over the business, creating their own “jazz stars” from the ranks of universities and conservatories. When this failed to generate the expected profits, those corporations eliminated almost all artists other than vocalists akin to the pop and jazz singers of the midcentury. The 90’s saw the rise of a singular heavily-endowed off-shoot concentrated almost entirely around the idea of “re-creating” the music of earlier masters in a repertoire orchestra setting not that dissimilar from present day classical music. These musical categories have a valid place, but cannot and should not replace the evolution of the still-developing artistic tradition.

Meanwhile in Europe, jazz was revered and nurtured throughout most of the century, receiving a widespread audience and benefiting from government subsidies and ample radio and television exposure. European society has embraced this music for most of its existence. But now with social burdens resulting from the end of the cold war, other social upheaval, and the encroachment of multinational corporate media interest, much of that support has disappeared.

Today, while jazz has been practically eliminated from the American market place, it remains one of the pillars of our culture. Like classical music, opera, and ballet, this music deserves and needs support to be presented properly. But unlike those forms, this improvised music continues to develop as a growing element of our culture. It is our purpose to reinvigorate this vital art form, providing a platform for its development, and enabling audiences beyond the metropolitan centers to share this musical experience.

 SPECIFICALLY:

1. To produce concerts from among a select group of the finest artists in
the field of jazz; musicians who embody the cultural development of
the art form.
2. Beginning in the Fairfield County area of Connecticut, we
would like to eventually expand to other locations.
3. To produce our concerts in acoustically optimal settings using
the absolute minimum of electronic amplification if any at all.
By so doing, our concerts are the jazz counterpart to those of classical
chamber music, affording the listener the rare opportunity to hear the
music in its natural state.
4. To incorporate an educational aspect through master classes and/or
lectures by the artists.
5. To include concerts in areas which have an interest in presenting this
music and a potential for building an audience, but cannot afford
such an undertaking on their own.
6. To expand our efforts in cooperation with other organizations in the
field of cultural diplomacy and present this music abroad in countries
which lack the resources on their own.

 Jazz has a fine history as America’s cultural ambassador, dating back to the fifties, when through the initiative of Congressman Adam Clayton Powell, Dizzy Gillespie’s orchestra was sent around the world representing our country to enthusiastic audiences in countries like Greece, Turkey, and many countries in the Middle East. This lead to Benny Goodman’s famous tour of Russia in the early 60’s and tours of Africa and other parts of the world on behalf our country. Unfortunately those programs were gradually phased out of existence. Today there is a huge need and potential for sharing this music in many disadvantaged areas creating a powerful tool for spreading good will.