The Conservatory Classic Jazz Band will perform in a free concert at Mainstay in Rock Hall sponsored by the John Ben Snow Memorial Trust and in memory of Allen Malcolm. The concert is Thursday February 23 at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free but space is limited and reservations are required.. For information and reservations call 410-639-9133. Information is also available at the Mainstay’s website .
The seven piece Conservatory Classic Jazz Band was formed in 2003 to present the sounds of traditional jazz to Washington, DC audiences. With six instrumentalists and a vocalist, they play New Orleans style, Chicago style, small-group swing, and mainstream jazz. Their repertoire includes the music of Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Bix Beiderbecke, Bessie Smith, Eddie Condon, Benny Goodman and other early jazz pioneers as well as standards from such composers as George Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Hoagy Carmichael.
In 2011, the John Ben Snow Memorial Trust awarded the Mainstay a grant to provide jazz workshops for students at Kent County High School and Washington College. The workshops will be held during the day and at night the band will present a full concert at the Mainstay in memory of Allen Malcolm who was on both the Board of the Mainstay and the Board of the John Ben Snow Memorial Trust before his death.
The Conservatory Classic Jazz Band will be the first group to conduct these workshops. They were originally affiliated with a music conservatory in the DC area though the band now operates independently. Because of their extensive experience in jazz education, conducting workshops and creating “informances” about America’s early jazz heritage they were an ideal fit for the educational project funded by the Snow Trust.
While it is best known as a friendly, informal; performing arts center, the Mainstay’s mission is also to use “the arts as an engine to enhance quality of life, quicken business growth, and enrich education.” It is a 501(c)(3), non profit dedicated to the arts, serving Rock Hall and the surrounding region and committed to presenting local, regional and national level talent, at a reasonable price, in an almost perfect acoustic setting. Wine, beer, sodas and snacks are available at the bar. The Mainstay is supported by ticket sales, fundraising including donations from friends and audience members and an operating grant from the Maryland State Arts Council. . For information and reservations call the Mainstay at 410-639-9133. More information is also available at the Mainstay’s website.
Upcoming Mainstay performances include:
Feb. 26 Potomac Guitar Trio
March 3 Jazz Samba – a tribute to the Stan Getz / Charlie Byrd album at 50 with Scott Silbert, Nate Najar, Chuck Redd and Tommy Cecil
March 8 Lynn Roberts Quartet
March 10 Quiet Storm
March 17 Warner Williams and Jay Summerour
Clark says
Don’t forget Tom McHugh & Philip Dutton, lecture on the origins of New Orleans Jazz Feb. 16, New Line Brass Band Feb. 18th, US Army Swamp Romp Feb. 20.