The New Orleans Jazz Museum has joined with four regional jazz clubs, from California to Maryland, to present an online live streaming concert headlined by popular singer-band leader Banu Gibson and a band of New Orleans jazz All-Stars. It may be the first-ever event collaboration of its kind by multiple jazz organizations. The concert will originate at the New Orleans Jazz Museum at the Old U.S. Mint on Saturday, May 15, from 3-4 p.m. CDT and may be viewed on OffBeat‘s Facebook page.
The initiative was spurred by Washington D.C. area’s Potomac River Jazz Club (PRJC) as part of its fiftieth anniversary year celebration. Working with PRJC and the New Orleans Jazz Museum to present the concert are The Tri-State Jazz Society serving the Greater Philadelphia area, Queen City Jass Society based in Buffalo, New York, and The Basin Street Regulars of Pismo Beach, California, organizers of the annual Jazz Jubilee By the Sea.
The New Orleans Jazz Museum was delighted to be able to originate the event because it puts local musicians back on the bandstand after COVID shutdowns and social distancing kept many from performing. Yet the adversity also created new opportunities via streaming technology—Facebook, and YouTube among others—for musicians to reach their audiences at home. Virtual concerts are how these clubs and others and individual performers have been reaching their fans while venues are shuttered. The pact among the four clubs enables them to present high-quality live entertainment to their members jointly, setting a model for possible future ventures. Four clubs working together naturally offers greater promotional opportunities and thus, more potential viewers. Anyone, anywhere in the world can “tune” in.
Gibson is a vivacious bandleader, vocalist, dancer, banjo/guitar player, director, choreographer, manages her own record label, Swing Out Records, and is a budding author with an autobiography in the works. She has headlined at numerous jazz festivals, performing art centers, and has headlined more than 80 appearances with symphony orchestras from Portland, Maine, to Portland, Oregon. Her orchestral concerts include the Boston Pops, the St. Louis Symphony, and the Norwegian Radio Orchestra in Oslo. In 2010, she co-founded The New Orleans Traditional Jazz Camp for adults to preserve and promote “trad” jazz. Students flock from all over North America, South American and Europe to learn the New Orleans style.
Backing her at the May event will be Steve Pistorius on piano, Tom Fischer on reeds, Mark Brooks on bass, and Gerald French on drums. It is probably no coincidence, but all the band members are master class instructors at the Traditional Jazz Camp and veteran, versatile members of the New Orleans jazz scene.
The clubs intend to seek donations during the livestream concert.
