NATIONAL CO-ORDINATION NEWSLETTER No 5, May 30, 1988 Writer & editor: Eric Myers, National Jazz Co-ordinator ______

1. Stop Press: Death of Ricky May Sadly, I record the death of Ricky May, who died suddenly of a massive heart attack at the Regent Hotel, , in the early hours of June 1, 1988, shortly after receiving a standing ovation from a capacity audience at the Don Burrows Supper Club. He was 44 years old.

Ricky May: a much-loved figure in the entertainment industry…PHOTO CREDIT EDMOND THOMMEN Ricky was a much-loved figure in the entertainment industry, and everyone will have his or her own favourite Ricky May story. On this sad occasion, let me merely quote from a review I wrote in The Australian on November 7, 1986, on the occasion of another Ricky May opening night at the Supper Club: "His opening performance at the Don Burrows Supper Club was vintage Ricky May: as always, a mixture of inspired chaos and great music... [He] is intrinsically a great jazz singer, but this is a season of cabaret rather than jazz. However, May takes the

1 listener quickly and easily into the frame of mind where one feels the pulse of the music. It is a precious ability. "Add his razor-sharp wit, an enormous capacity to send himself up as well as the audience, and his unquestioned ability to produce great music, and you have a compulsive mixture. It's one of the best entertainments in town."

Ricky May (in white jacket) & Friends, L-R, Steve Murphy (guitar), David Glyde (sax), Col Loughnan (sax), Keith Stirling (trumpet), Herbie Cannon (trombone)…PHOTO CREDIT EDMOND THOMMEN I know that many people will wish to send their condolences to Ricky's wife Colleen, and their daughter Shani. Their address in Sydney is: 93 Elliott St, Balmain NSW 2041.

Ricky May: a razor-sharp wit, and an enormous capacity to send himself up as well as the audience…

2

2. Orchestra to Perform in Sydney The AJO's Australian tour, Stage II, begins on June 11, 1988, with a concert at the Melbourne Concert Hall. Project Manager Peter Brendlé has just announced that the AJO will now perform in Sydney: on Monday, June 13, at 5 pm - a special "sunset" concert - at the Sydney Town Hall. This will be the only performance by the AJO in Sydney in a concert hall during the Bicentennial year. Previous performances at The Basement in February naturally drew audiences of mere jazz club proportions. The Town Hall performance will give more than 2,000 Sydney jazz fans an opportunity to hear the AJO fresh from its successful visit to the United States. The AJO's full itinerary in June, 1988, is as follows: June 11 Melbourne Concert Hall June 12 Flight to Sydney June 13 10 am, Ray Martin Show, TCN Channel 9 5 pm, Sydney Town Hall June 14 Gladstone City Theatre, Qld June 15 Townsville Civic Theatre, Qld June 16 Kuranda Amphitheatre, Via Cairns, Qld June 17 Mackay Entertainment Centre, Qld June 18 5 pm, Brisbane Performing Arts Centre*; 8.15 pm, Brisbane Performing Arts Centre* June 19 Brisbane Performing Arts Centre*

The Australian Jazz Orchestra, rear L-R, Don Burrows, , Warwick Alder, , Alan Turnbull, Gary Costello, James Morrison. Front L-R, Bernie McGann, Bob Venier, Bob Bertles, Doug de Vries… PHOTO CREDIT BRANCO GAICA ______* The three concerts in Brisbane are for World Expo 88.

3

The AJO project is financially supported by the Australian Bicentennial Authority and Philip Morris Australia, managed by Peter Brendlé Enterprises, and administered by the Jazz Co-ordination Association of NSW Inc.

3. Increased Jazz Activity in Tasmania In a State like Tasmania, where there is very little jazz activity - only two or three professional groups are active throughout the whole State, I understand - the State jazz co-ordinator obviously has a difficult job. Without the infrastructures that exist in other States, almost every initiative is a pioneering effort. Yet, the Tasmanian Jazz Co-ordinator Alf Properjohn can take major credit for a number of encouraging developments which will quicken the pulse of Tasmanian jazz in 1988. Chief among these is his concentration on encouraging visits by leading musicians and groups from interstate. The Sydney trumpeter John Hoffman will be in Tasmania in September, 1988 for three weeks, working in the schools. This came about through Alf's approach to the Dept of Education, which is funding the visit in partnership with the Performing Arts Board. Alf assisted with the applications, gathered the relevant information, and later organised the itinerary which will take Hoffman to Hobart, Launceston and Burnie.

John Hoffman, here on flugelhorn: in Tasmania for three weeks, working in the schools…PHOTO COURTESY AUSTRALIAN JAZZ MUSEUM

4

The coming visit of John Pochée's group Ten Part Invention in September, 1988, was another of Alf's initiatives. Alf suggested that responsibility for the group's visit be shared by the Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music, the Salamanca Arts Festival, and the Jazz Action Society of Tasmania. Also, at Alf's urging, the Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board came in with a guarantee-against-loss, and a number of small sponsorships, including one from the Musicians Union, were secured.

Ten Part Invention, L-R, Steve Elphick, Bob Bertles, Bernie McGann, Sandy Evans, Paul McNamara, Ken James, Miroslav Bukovsky, John Pochée, Warwick Alder, James Greening…

In fact, Alf Properjohn has done extremely well in securing packages of corporate sponsorship. Motors Pty Ltd, Holden dealers, for example, have sponsored a visit by the Sydney reeds player Paul Furniss, to perform at the Salamanca Arts Festival with pianist Ian Pearce. In June, 1988, the Phil Treloar group Feeling To Thought will be artists-in-residence at the Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music. This group includes Treloar, drums; Mark Simmonds, tenor saxophone; Dave Ades, alto saxophone; and Steve Elphick, double bass. While Alf does not claim all the credit for this development, he advised and assisted with the venture, and it looks as if his suggestion that the Treloar group be invited to perform in Burnie for the North West Community College and the North West Jazz Action Society will be taken up. These ventures will certainly have an effect. Add visits by the American saxophonists Richie Cole and Scott Hamilton; another visit by Paul Furniss to be special guest at the St Helens Sunshine Coast Jazz Festival in June, the formation of the new Launceston Jazz Club, and a vigorous new committee elected by the Jazz Action Society of Tasmania - most of which have had the benefit of the jazz co-ordinator's

5

A visit by Feeling To Thought, led by Phil Treloar (above) and Paul Furniss (below) to be special guest at the St Helens Sunshine Coast Jazz Festival… Initiatives which have benefited from Tas Jazz Co-ordinator Alf Properjohn’s involvement… PHOTO CREDITS TRELOAR (JANE MARCH); FURNISS (PETER SINCLAIR)

involvement - then there is solid evidence that Alf Properjohn's jazz co-ordination program is having a major influence in Tasmania.

6

4. Loss of Jazz Venues in Sydney There is increasing concern in Sydney at the closure of venues which have provided employment for jazz musicians for many years. The most overground of these is, of course, The Basement, which closes in mid-June, 1988. That venue is the victim of so-called "redevelopment", with the building to be demolished. There is, however, a parallel phenomenon which is forcing city hotels to put off live groups: the NSW Government's inability to grant entertainment licences to hotels which fail to satisfy certain requirements. According to an article in the Sydney Morning Herald on May 23, 1988, amendments were brought in to the Liquor Act in 1985, relating to "methods of egress, fire-retarding materials, sprinklers, fire hoses, combustible materials, carpets, wall materials and so on." [Editor's Note: "egress" = "going or coming out".] This means that many hotels, in order to secure an entertainment licence, are required to undergo renovations. But most small hotels, with low incomes, cannot afford such renovations. So, they cannot get an entertainment licence, which means that the live musicians have to go. The latest hotels to cease live entertainment are the Star Hotel, where the New Zenith played for the last three years, and the Civic Hotel. The Gresham Hotel, adjacent to the Town Hall, has been sold, and the licence transferred - this venue will become a bank. The Goulburn Club Hotel, the Forbes Tavern Hotel and the Glasgow Hotel have, I'm told, been sold to developers; all of them have had live groups on from time to time in the past. So, it appears that this situation has developed into a crisis for Sydney jazz musicians, particularly the traditionalists who tended to work in these establishments.

Tom Wood, pianist and manager of the New Zenith Jazz Band, which had played at the Star Hotel for three years…PHOTO CREDIT DR R BYLER

7

In order to get essential information which might throw light on, this problem, I have written to the Chief Secretary, asking for clarification of the requirements for an entertainment licence, and pointing out that the Government's laws are materially affecting the employment of scores of jazz musicians.

5. Recent Australia Council Funding Decisions The Performing Arts Board of the Australia Council recently released its results for grants in the following programs: Composer Commissions, Composer-In-Residence, Recording, Publishing, Community & Regional Music Co-ordination, Visiting Teachers/Music Camps, Artists-In-Schools, Innovative Projects, and Improvement of Arts Management. The closing date for applications under all these programs was November 15, 1987. A perusal of the results would appear to indicate that jazz applicants are doing well. Of course, I am not aware of all those applications from jazz people which might have been unsuccessful - except in NSW, where I'm aware of a number of such applications - but my impression is that a great many jazz musicians and organisations benefited from the round. The results for jazz are listed below. However, I have to say that, in preparing this list, I had to rely on my own knowledge of jazz names and organisations. Particularly in States other than NSW, there may have been other successful recipients whom I could not identify. (In many cases, the published results do not clearly show what sort of musical idiom is involved.) Also, some musicians who are best-known in jazz (such as Bruce Cale and Phil Treloar) might well have been funded for classical music activity or activities other than jazz. However, the results were as follows: 5.1. Composer Commissions. * Judy Bailey received $5,550 to commission Gillian Whitehead to compose a work for jazz pianist & percussion (NSW);

Judy Bailey: $5,550 to commission Gillian Whitehead…PHOTO COURTESY NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

8

* Roslyn Ann Dunlop received $2,415 to commission Phil Treloar to compose a work for clarinet & tape (NSW); * Michael Harvey received $3,900 to commission Phil Treloar to compose Piano Music One for solo piano (NSW); * John Hoffman received $1,144 to commission Col Loughnan to compose invention for three voices & jazz orchestra (NSW); * Louise Johnson received $3,700 to commission Bruce Cale to write Bridal Vale for harp & orchestra (NSW); * John Pochée received $1,005 to commission Paul Grabowsky to compose work for contemporary ten-piece jazz ensemble (NSW-Vic); * Mike Nock received $2,210 to commission Phil Treloar to compose duet for percussion, keyboards & live electronics (NSW);

Nike Nock: $2,210 to commission Phil Treloar… * David Pereira received $4,625 to commission Bruce Cale to compose work for strings, piano, harp & percussion (NSW); * The Pipeline Contemporary Music Project received $3,000 to commission Paul Grabowsky to compose a suite, and $3,318 to commission to compose a work for trombone, multi-percussion & keyboards (NSW-Vic);

9

* Pusz received $4,400 to commission Eric Bryce to compose solos for marimba, xylophone and vibraphone in jazz style, and $5,000 to commission the same composer to write a concerto for marimba/vibraphone & orchestra (SA); and * The Seymour Group received $3,000 to commission Mark Isaacs to compose an ensemble work (NSW). The total amount approved for 'Composer Commissions' was $246,425 and 68 grants were made. The jazz grants I have just identified total $43,637. 5.2. Recording. * Allan Browne received $1,958 for mastertape Grabowsky, Costello & Browne, and $2,535 for mastertape featuring Allan Browne & artists (Vic);

Allan Browne (right): $1,958 for a mastertape featuring himself, Paul Grabowsky (left) and Gary Costello (centre)… * Peter Dasent received $1,650 for mastertape for album Dead Ballerinas, and $3,000 for album featuring The Umbrellas (NSW); * Martin Davidson received $2,845 for manufacture/marketing At Last featuring Keith Hounslow's Jazzmakers (NSW); * Mark Isaacs received $3,000 for mastertape of album featuring Mark Isaacs Band (NSW);

10

* Garry Lee received $2,967 for mastertape of album Western Union, featuring Garry & artists (WA); * Kevin Lucas received $3,000 for mastertape of album Beyond El Rocco Vol I, and $3,000 for mastertape of same album, Vol II (NSW);

Filmmaker Kevin Lucas: $6,000 for mastertapes of Beyond El Rocco albums I and II… * Leonie MacPherson received $3,000 for mastertape of disc No No More, feat. MacPherson, Thompson & Hoffman (NSW); * Music Broadcasting Society of NSW received $3,000 for mastertape for broadcast/album The Col Nolan Quartet, $1,871 for broadcast/album The Village Suite, feat. Peter Boothman, and $3,000 for album A New Saxophone Concerto, feat. Paul Furniss & Orchestra (NSW);

Music Broadcasting Society of NSW received $1,871 for The Village Suite, feat. Peter Boothman (pictured above)…

11

A total of $86,507 was approved for 'Recording' (32 grants). The jazz grants I have just identified total $34,826. 5.3. Visiting Teachers/Music Camps. * The Dalby Jazz received $1,000 for visiting teacher Craig Schlencker to teach big band music (Qld); * The Kaleidoscope Community Arts Company received $1,400 for visiting teacher John Hoffman (Tas); In this category there were 23 grants approved, with the total $39,936. The jazz grants I've identified total $2,400. 5.4. Innovative Projects. * The Lenko Ensemble received $3,000 for a jazz ethnic performance experiment (Vic); * The NT Jazz Action Society Inc. received $5,000 for a series of jazz concerts (NT); * The Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music received $5,500 for a residency by Phil Treloar & Band (Tas); * Tony Wellington received $9,967 for a film interview with John Sangster (NSW).

John Sangster, to be filmed by Tony Wellington, who received a grant of $9,967 under ‘Innovative Projects’… PHOTO CREDIT PETER SINCLAIR

12

In this category 26 grants were approved, a total of $181,761. The jazz grants I have identified total $23,467. There were, as far as I know, no jazz grants in the following categories, although it may be that jazz musicians and/or organisations benefited from successful applications in those categories: Composer-In-Residence, Publishing, Community & Regional Music Co-ordination, Artists-In-Schools and Improvement of Arts Management. [NB. Anyone who would like a full list of grants awarded should write to Judie Don, Records Officer, Performing Arts Board, Australia Council, PO Box 302, North Sydney NSW 2060, or ring her on (02) 923 3358.]

6. ARIA Awards. In case you haven't heard, the winner of the Best Australian Jazz Record for 1987 in the recent Australian Record Industry Association Awards, announced on February 29, 1988, was the Vince Jones LP It All Ends Up In Tears.

Vince Jones: an ARIA award for Best Australian Jazz Record for 1987 for the LP It All Ends Up In Tears...

13

These Awards come about in the following way: the members of the Australian Record Industry Association (usually record companies) nominate all the records they have released in the calendar year, and those nominations are sent to a judging panel for preferential voting. In the case of the Jazz Award there were five judges, and the following LPs were nominated: Johnny Nicol Where The Love Is Serge Ermoll Jungle Juice David Miller Morning By An Ocean Vince Jones It All Ends Up In Tears Bob Barnard Bob Barnard At The Winery Ricky May/Bob Barnard A Tribute To Louis Armstrong: Just Foolin' Around Don Burrows Quintet/ The Adelaide Connection Nice N' Easy Kate Ceberano & Her Septet

7. Visit of David D Such in August/September, 1988 I have just received word that the American jazz scholar Dr David G Such will be visiting Australia from August 28-September 2, 1988, to present a paper at the Symposium of the International Musicological Society and Festival of Music in Melbourne. Dr Such is a PhD graduate of the Folklore and Mythology Program at UCLA, and has an extensive background in jazz as a research scholar and performer.

14

Dr Such is available for two weeks either side of the Melbourne function to lecture on any of the following topics: * "The Fusion of Jazz and World Music"; * "Important Trends in Modern Jazz"; * "The Music and Verbal Metaphors in the Everyday Speech of Jazz Musicians." Dr Such has almost finished a book on the topic of the music and verbal behaviour of avant-garde jazz musicians living in New York City. If anyone is interested in Dr Such, please contact me. I have further information on him and can send you such material if you require it.

8. Correction. In the last newsletter, No 4, May 16, 1988, an error crept in. I said that Peter Newton has stepped down as Vice-President of the Sydney Jazz Club. In fact, Peter has indicated that he will be stepping down when his present term of office expires towards the end of 1988. However, he is being pressured to continue, and may yet stand for re-election.

Peter Newton: he may or may not be stepping down as Vice-President of the Sydney Jazz Club…

15

9. Who Receives This Newsletter? The following people receive this newsletter, which is sent out every fortnight: * The members of the committee of the Jazz Co-ordination Association of NSW Inc; * The members of the National Jazz Co-ordination Advisory Committee; * The State Jazz Co-ordinators; * The Performing Arts Board; * The NSW Govt's Office of the Minister for the Arts; * The heads of all jazz education courses in institutions around Australia; * The Chairmen of the jazz co-ordination committees in Qld and Victoria, plus other key enthusiasts in those States (ie States where there is no jazz co-ordinator); * Selected people in the ABC in various States; * The Australian Music Centre; * The editors of all jazz society newsletters in NSW, Vic, NT, and Qld; * Schmoe Elhay, Member, Performing Arts Board;

Adelaide’s Schmoe Elhay, Member of the Performing Arts Board… PHOTO CREDIT PETER SINCLAIR

16

* Helen Matthews, Board Member, Australia Council;

Helen Matthews, Board Member, Australia Council…PHOTOGRAPHER UNKNOWN

* Jazz critics and other journalists in NSW, Vic, Qld, and NT. I am in the process of contacting the other State jazz co-ordinators, with a view to increasing the circulation of this newsletter, and streamlining its distribution.

______

[NB. The views expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily those of the Jazz Co- ordination Association of NSW, nor of the members of the National Jazz Co- ordination Advisory Committee.]

______

NSW Jazz Co-ordinator: Eric Myers (02) 212 1510. Eric Myers is also National Jazz Co-ordinator. NSW Tour Project: (02) 281 1015 The Jazz Co-ordination Program is funded by the New South Wales Government (Office of the Minister for the Arts) and the Performing Arts Board of the Australia Council, the Federal Government's arts funding and advisory body.

17