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Board of Directors Meeting, November 18,2021 at 11am (Zoom)

Board and Invited Attendees: Board Members: Ryan Baker, Chris Blando, Bart di Bartolo, Tom Hall, Judy Tarte, Mimi Williams, Sheila Wingfield,

LVJS Advisory Board – None

1 – Verification/adoption of 10/28/2021 minutes. Chris made a motion to accept, Mimi 2nd motion, all approved. Minutes were accepted

2 – Monthly Financial Statement – Bart viewed the financial statement. We have $8,071.79 in the bank.

3 – Banking Details – Chris

  • The 11/14/2021 Bootlegger event had a profit of $155.

  • It was approved to purchase of a cell phone to use at events for CC transactions. Tom suggested getting a T-Mobil phone at Walmart and using T-Mobil as our carrier. Chris will follow up and get the phone.

4 – Membership – Shelia. We have 125 paid members. Judy sent out October and November Dues reminder letters and Sheila will start in November to send reminders out Monthly.

  • There was a discussion on the structure of the donations on our Web Site. For some reason it’s only set up to donate amounts up to $50.00. We will ask Susan if its possible to change.

  • Judy, Chris and Sheila will have a separate meeting to discuss the artist dues, do we want to continue dues at $55 or do we make it an individual or family amount, and if we do, when do we change over.

5 – Committee Reports

EVENTS – Tom Hall. Tom will get with Dave Loeb to review the UNLV calendar before we plan 2022 events.

  • Discussion on low attendance at Patrick Hogan Event. Possible problems, No phone calls to members on this event, publicity, announcements were sent to the press, however, we’re not sure it they were published. We need to do a better job at our next event. Post on LVJS Facebook group page. More media awareness and follow up to ensure it’s being published in media Mimi is sending it to. Pay to advertise and invite via Facebook to target jazz lovers. Add to Urban Jazz Society Facebook page. A lot of ideas were discussed, everyone will send ideas into Judy and Chris and they will put together a Media Task To Do List for every event. This falls under the Jazz Awareness Committee

  • Volunteer and Board Party will be on December 11th at Headquarters (Judy’s) Open House from 2-5. Invites will be sent via email with RSVP to Judy and Chris. We will hire Joe Darro to perform.

EDUCATION– Bart. Bart and Judy had a meeting with Adam and Patrick and went through the MOA Patrick will add everything that was discussed.

  • $1,000 a year donation which is 4 $250 scholarships will be added to the MOA.

  • NSA mentioned we can use their facility for Rehearsals or Meeting, plus the stage in the auditorium will be available in Jan 2022.

  • LVJS will coordinate our events with their events.

  • Thom Pastor and Tom Hall will discuss how they are going to run the Desert Heat Community Band and what the requirements are for the players.

  • Adam Schroder and Thom Paster will be the Co-Directors and Bart diBartolo will be the Administrator.

Invited Guest Peppe Morella – Discussion on what he has done in San Francisco for Jazz Awareness

  • Peppe moved here about 3 months ago and he is taking classes and teaching at UNLV and getting to know the LV musicians.

  • He suggested we get the NY and LA musicians together. He knows a lot of NY musicians and can personally reach out to them to arrange concerts with our local musicians. It would be a lot cheaper going through him. We would need a venue/club that we can use and/or have them pay for it. Start small and build as needed.

  • He suggested the 1st set would be a local group, 2nd set a headliner, and 3rd set would be a jam session. Maybe it would be 2 nights in a row, depends on the club.

Meeting adjourned at 12:30pm

Next Meeting December 16th,2021 at 11am we will discuss 2022 Business Plan

September, 2021

The 9/12/2021 event was very successful.  Since Carl Saunders was ill, we felt obliged to offer refunds.  With the cancellations we made a profit of $612.00 AND everyone enjoyed the substitute group which featured Carlos Mata-Alvarez, Ken Seiffert, Peppe Merolla and Dave Loeb. Thanks to Dave Loeb for getting a new group together so quickly.

Our Membership drive was very successful!  We had 228 delinquent members and we sent them all letters.  They were well received, and the dues started pouring in.  Thanks to Ryan, Sheila and Judy for all the work they put into this drive! 

Up-coming Events

The Annual Community Picnic is back the Winchester Dondero Cultural Center on Sunday October 24th from 1pm-5pm. The lineup is:

    • 1pm Tom Hall’s Boss BeBop Group

    • 2pm Tom Pastor and Bill King with a Tribute to Phil Woods

    • 3pm Jazzmin Vocal Band, featuring their new album

    • 4pm Ryan Baker Jazz Ensemble

November 14th Sunday Jazz at the Bootlegger will feature the Patrick Hogan Trio with a NEW starting time of 1pm-3pm

Save the Music

We’re looking for volunteers we can train to catalog, store and set up an effective lending system for the Hemming’s Rehearsal Hall Charts. They have been under the guardianship of Thom Pastor and the Jazz Society has taken over the responsibility to save this music and set us an effect system for lending the charts to all musicians. If you’re interested in helping with this mission, please contact Bart diBartolo via email at verdiltd@gmail.com.

Board Elections

After the period for the reconstruction and reorganization by the Interim Board during 2020, elections were held for a new Board for 21-23 resulting in election of Ryan Baker, Chris Blando, Bart diBartolo, Tom Hall, Judy Tarte, Mimi Williams and Sheila Wingfield. In order to reestablish the regulation for the staggered terms required by the LVJS Bylaws, these Board members voted for 3 members for a 1-year term (Chris, Mimi & Ryan) and 4 members for a 2-year term (Bart, Judy, Sheila & Tom) with the option of the 1-year term members to be eligible for reelection. That election time has arrived.

Below is the plan:

Step 1- Nomination forms will be email/mailed or available on the LVJS web site to members in good standing the week of October 4, 2021. They MUST BE submitted no later than October 15th, 2021, in one of the following ways

a. US MAIL – LVJS,  P.O. Box 60396, Las Vegas, NV  89160

b. E-MAIL: election@lvjs.org  

Step 2 -The Governance Committee will review the nominees to ensure the candidates’ eligibility. A ballot will be prepared and available at the October 24th annual picnic OR you can get a ballot at LVJS web site.

Step 3 – Mail your ballot to LVJS   P.O. Box 60396, Las Vegas, NV  89160 by November 5th, 2021.

Step 4 – We will count the votes on November 9th, 2021 and announce the winners at the November 14th, , 2021 Bootlegger event.

August, 2021

Attending:  Ryan Baker, Christine Blando, Bart diBartolo, Tom Hall, Judy Tarte, Mimi Williams, Sheila Wingfield and Advisory Board members: Thom Pastor and Carl Saunders

Las Vegas is opening up and We’ve Been Busy!

Great News – Sunday Jazz at the Bootlegger Bistro is BACK. (In compliance with the NV Roadmap to Recovery guidelines)   Great food, great LIVE music and a chance to see our wonderful JAZZ friends again!

On Sunday September 12, from 2-4 pm, Carl Saunders, Trumpeter extraordinaire is scheduled to perform at the Bootlegger.  Get your tickets on line at www.lvjs.org. A reminder:  there is limited capacity  so it’s “Jazz seating” on a 1st come, 1st serve basis.

On October 24th from 1-5 our Annual Community Jazz Picnic will be back at Winchester Park.  More great music…outdoors at the park. Food will be available for purchase OR bring your own food and beverages.

Back at the Bootlegger Bistro on Sunday,  November 14th will be Patrick Hogan, our UNLV Jazz Studies Award winner, and his trio will be appearing. Watch for further details on our lvjs.org website.

One of the most exciting things we’ve been working on is our partnership with the Nevada School of the Arts (NSA), School of Jazz.  As explained in our July update we’ve been working with the NSA as part of our Educational commitment to bring a more hands on approach to working with students and community members at large. Unfortunately the launching of the new big band, Desert Heat, has been postponed until January because of covid restrictions. Volunteers, however,  are working on getting the charts together, printed, assembled, and catalogued.  If you’re interested in working on this project please contact our Education coordinator Bart diBartolo at verdiltd@gmail.com

With the generous donation from LVJS member, Alan Fox, of an Eb alto saxophone and two clarinets plus their refurbishment, students at Del Sol Academy of the Performing Arts will be assisted on the development of their musical skills. We’ll follow the progress of this band and keep you up to date.

The proceeds from the sale of the vintage Conn New Wonder II, ‘Chu Berry’ saxophone, also donated by Mr. Fox was sold for $1,500 to an Australian collector, and the proceeds donated to the NSA, School of Jazz for scholarships.

 Our Community Involvement and JAZZ AWARENESS are over the top this year!

Be on the lookout for an updated letter concerning your Membership Status.There has  been quit a bit of confusion about whether your membership is current and/or when your dues need to be paid (be assured you are not alone!) These letters should reach you by mid-September.   If you have any questions, please call our Membership coordinator, Sheila Wingfield at (702) 468-8732.

GET INVOLVED:  As you know, the Las Vegas Jazz Society activities are organized by people that volunteer their time. You, too, can join this fun loving, jazz loving, dedicated group of crazies!  We need folks to make phone calls, assemble mailings, distribute flyers and any number of other functions to keep our organization alive.  Just let us know you’re interested and we guarantee we can find a place for you!  Cash contributions are also helpful!

Until next time:  LVJS BOARD….keeping JAZZ ALIVE!

July, 2021

Coming Events. Preparations are now underway to reinstate Sunday jazz events beginning in September. We are also considering inviting out-of-town jazz players to join us in these events. In addition, we plan to resume the annual October picnic at either at Winchester Park or at Richie’s place. Stay tuned for further information.

Membership. As of July 1, we have just 85 active (paid) members. Our roster includes over 250 members who are not currently active. This may be due to the breakdown of the automatic renewal notice system which we had put in place in 2019. To remedy this, a renewal request letter will be sent out to all those who have not renewed since 2018 to ask that they bring their dues up to date.

After letters are sent, Sheila (Membership Director) will be responsible for sending out reminders via email/USPS until an automatic reminder system is restored.

LVJS – School of Jazz @ NSA Affiliation

Scholarship Fund. LVJS completed a donation of $1,500.00 to the School of Jazz Scholarship Fund that is designed to support students who would otherwise not be able to attend the program. Scholarship recipients will be selected by School of Jazz faculty.

Desert Heat Jazz Ensemble. We are in the process of setting up a jazz ensemble that will be open to any member of the broader Las Vegas community. The mission of the ensemble is to ‘encourage active engagement and promote musical growth among the diverse Las Vegas area community.’ The band will begin rehearsals in August 2021 and all area professional, amateur, student, and developing musicians are invited. This project will provide not only an opportunity to play in a big band setting but also a chance to help developing musicians and students as they progress toward their goals.

Eligibility requirements and all pertinent information will be sent out in late July via various media. At this point, Bart di Bartolo is the administrator, and Thom Pastor and Adam Schroeder, music directors.

NSA Summer Jazz Intensive. The School of Jazz presented its annual Summer Jazz Intensive at the Historic 5th Street School from 16-18 June. In addition to School of the Arts faculty, renowned guest artists/clinicians, Justin Di Cioccio, Michael Rodriguez and Donny McCaslin, conducted rehearsals, classes, workshops and performances. LVJS provided volunteers to assist with administrative tasks and a small number of LVJS members observed or participated in some the rehearsals and activities.

June, 2021

This is the fourth of a series of updates that we send out periodically to keep LVJS membership informed of all activities of the Las Vegas Jazz Society throughout the year.

Woody Woods Quartet Performance

After a long year of forced inactivity due to Covid-19, the Las Vegas Jazz Society presented a performance by the Woody Woods quintet at Richie’s Place on May 16th, 2021. Many thanks to member, Richie Rich, who has graciously provided this outdoor venue, not only for this event, but also for our annual picnic last October. The performance was attended by about 60 jazz lovers who enjoyed the music and gathering of friends on a beautiful May afternoon. Woody’s group consisted of LVJS members, Woody Woods, Bill King, Tom Hall, Ken Seifert, Bob Chmel, and special guest, singer Genevieve. As an introduction to the Society’s close affiliation with School of Jazz @ NSA (Nevada School of the Arts), faculty members performed an introductory set that had everyone jumping. This great group included Charles McNeal (LVJS Advisory Group member), Lara Smith, Uli Geissendoerfer. Steve Flora and Larry Aberman. It was a great afternoon, and we look forward to our next sponsored event in late summer or early fall. A donation of $200 was made to the School of Jazz in appreciation of their participation in our event.

LVJS School of Jazz @ NSA Affiliation

Scholarship. As part of our affiliation with the School of Jazz @ NSA, we have been able to provide

$1,500 for use as scholarships for the school. This was made possible by a donation of instruments and cash by LVJS member, Alan Fox, including a 1930 Conn ‘Chu Berry’ tenor saxophone. The entire proceeds from the sale of this horn comprised the donation. Thanks to Mr. Fox for the donation and to Anson Ko, lead instrument technician at Family Music Centers, for making repairs and adjustment prior to sale.

Desert Heat Jazz Ensemble. We are in the process of setting up a jazz ensemble that will be open to any member of the broader Las Vegas community. The mission of the ensemble is to ‘encourage active engagement and promote musical growth for persons of all ages within the diverse Las Vegas community.’ The band will begin rehearsals in August 2021 and all area professional, amateur, student, and developing musicians are invited. More information will be forthcoming in the next months through LVJS and NSA sources.

NSA Summer Jazz Intensive, 16-18 June 2021. The School of Jazz will present its annual Summer Jazz Intensive at the Historic 5th Street School, 401 S. 4th Street, Las Vegas, NV 89101. In addition to School of the Arts faculty, renowned guest artists/clinicians, Justin Di Cioccio, Michael Rodriguez and Donny McCaslin, will conduct rehearsals, classes and workshops. LVJS members are invited to attend all activities and performances free of charge upon proof of membership. Should you wish to donate to the school in support of the Intensive, it would be greatly appreciated. LVJS will provide volunteers to assist in administrative tasks and other duties, as needed. Should you wish to volunteer, please call Sheila Wingfield at 702-468-8732. Further information will be provided via email and Facebook announcements.

April-May, 2021

  • The LVJS’s Next Sponsored Event: “Groove Al Fresco” @ Richie’s Place

In celebration of May as “Jazz Month in Nevada”, the Las Vegas Jazz Society is thrilled to be sponsoring a live event on Sunday, May 16th, its first since the Annual Picnic last fall.   The featured group will be pianist Woody Woods and his Quintet, which will include Tom Hall on alto sax, Bill King on trumpet, Ken Seiffert on bass, and Bob Chmel on drums, while also featuring Genevieve Dew on vocals. Also, as part of our partnership program with the Education arm of LVJS As an added treat, the NSA Jazzers, a group of young musicians from the School of Jazz at the Nevada School of the Arts, will open the festivities with a 30-minute set. 

Needless to say, the LVJS is excited to get back into putting on live music events again as we begin to open up more fully after the pandemic lockdowns of the past year-plus. For more information on how members can get tickets, the performance schedule, and the venue, please see this lvjs.org which has all those details. In the meantime, we hope to dig the music with you there live on May 16th

  • The Education branch of the LVJS and the Nevada School of the Arts, School of Jazz have united in a partnership project and have many exciting ideas in the works.  The first will be this guest appearance from the NSA School of Jazz at the May 16 Groove Al Fresco.

  • A NEW 2021 LVJS T-SHIRT design is coming your way…we’ll have them on sale at the May 16 Groove Al Fresco.

  • Many THANKS and CONGRATULATIONS  go out to CURT MILLER and the BONEHEADS for their outstanding performance on behalf of the Las Vegas Jazz Society at the International Jazz Day celebration on April 30. It was a wonderful day of music in which Jazz performers from around the world came together and filled with airwaves with the universal language of music.

  • We extend CONGRATULATIONS to UNLVs School of Music, Division of Jazz and Commercial Music. They are the recipients of NINE prestigious DownBeat Student Music Awards for 2021, a record for their program.  This marks a total of 33 DownBeat Student Music Awards they have garnered since 2010.   

March, 2021

This is the second of periodic updates that we will be sending to the membership as we continue our recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. These updates will continue until the resumption of digital and printed copies of the LVJS publication, Jazz Notes, later in the year.

Events. We are pleased to announce that the Jazz Society will be sponsoring or conducting two events in April and May. The first is our involvement in International Jazz Day on 30 April. On this day, jazz artists and groups from around the world will participate in a virtual global concert that may be seen on the site, https://jazzday.com. The Las Vegas Boneheads, under the direction of Curt Miller, will perform as representatives of the Las Vegas jazz community. For more information, please refer to the International Jazz Day site, listed above.

The second sponsored event will occur on Sunday, 16 May, 2:00pm, at Richie Rich’s performance venue. This is our first live event of the year, and will feature the Woody Woods Quartet. Tickets for LVJS members are $15 each, and for non-members, $20. More information will be forthcoming soon.

Administration. The LVJS Board of Directors has been active in creating the infrastructure to guide LVJS activities during 2021 and beyond. The 2021 LVJS Business Plan was approved at the March meeting and various committee and task assignments determined. In addition, the Board continues its work in reviewing the by-laws and creating a policy and procedures manual. The LVJS Advisory Board, consisting of prominent jazz artists and supporters, has been expanded, and we look forward to the members’ guidance and counsel. The 2021 Board consists of continuing members, Pete Barbutti, Lorraine Hunt-Bono, Dave Loeb, Carl Saunders, and Gus Mancuso (emeritus), and new members, Gary Anderson, Dennis Bono, Charles McNeal, and Thom Pastor.

Donations. As mentioned in the previous update, we were fortunate to receive generous donations of musical instruments from members, Alan Fox and Sheila Wingfield. They have now been repaired/ adjusted, as necessary by Anson Ko at Family Music Centers, and distributed to local schools. A saxophone and clarinets have been donated to Del Sol Academy of the Arts and conga drums and digeridoos to the Jazz School of the Nevada School of the Arts. In addition, a valuable vintage tenor saxophone (Conn New Wonder II, ‘Chu Berry’) will be sold to fund scholarships for deserving students at the Nevada School of the Arts.

If any member has instruments to donate that would be appropriate for student use, please contact Bart di Bartolo at verdiltd@gmail.com or 702-292-7474 (voice message/text). We will take it from there.

Membership. During the past two years, we instituted a rolling membership plan whereby renewals would be due on the anniversary of payment of yearly fees. However, our system of automatic membership reminders was not working and is now under repair. So, please take note of your anniversary date, and if your membership is up for renewal, please submit your fee, $35 (individual) or $45 (family), via the LVJS website (www.lvjs.org) or by check to Las Vegas Jazz Society, Membership Coordinator, P.O. Box 60396, Las Vegas, NV 89160-0396.

February, 2021

This is the first of periodic updates that we will be sending to the membership as we start our recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. We do plan to resume publication of Jazz Notes on a quarterly basis later in the year. While no 2021 performances or activities are scheduled as yet, we are in the process of restructuring our organization/governance to support the renewal of activities as the situation allows.

After the LVJS operated under an interim board during 2020, a new seven-member board of directors was elected from a slate of 10 nominees. The new board consists of Ryan Baker, Chris Blando (Secretary), Bart di Bartolo (Treasurer; Lead: Education Committee), Tom Hall (Lead: Events Committee), Judy Tarte (President), Mimi Williams, and Sheila Wingfield (Membership Coordinator).

The board is now reviewing the by-laws, drafting the 2021 business plan and creating a policy and procedures manual. Once finalized, these documents will guide LVJS activities during 2021 and beyond. They will be available for review by the membership and we invite your commentary as the process continues.

The society is supported by an advisory board of prominent individuals in the music industry, including Pete Barbutti, Dave Loeb, Lorraine-Hunt-Bono, Gus Mancuso and Carl Saunders. Since the formation of this group in 2016, they have provided invaluable guidance as we seek to promote live jazz in the Las Vegas area. Valuable support is also provided by consultants, Frank Leone and Dave Rowell, and LVJS website creator and administrator, Susan Cramer.

Donations:

We are very thankful to recent new member, Alan Fox of Baltimore, MD, who has made a generous donation of saxes and clarinets to be distributed to deserving school music programs in our area. In addition, Mr. Fox has provided funds for repair of the instruments and operations of the society.

We also thank board member, Sheila Wingfield, for her donation of conga and African drums and didgeridoos. These are valuable specialized instruments that will be appreciated by young students as they develop their abilities.

These are incredible gestures of support for the development of young musicians and, again, we are most grateful for their generosity.

If any member has instruments to donate that would be appropriate for student use, please contact Bart di Bartolo at verdiltd@gmail.com or 702-292-7474 (voice message/text. We’ll take it from there.

Notes:

  1. Thanks to Susan Cramer for e-mailing a twice-weekly schedule of live music events in the area. If you have not received these emails, please let Sheila know and she will make sure that we have your correct email address. You may reach her at wingfield@me.com or 702-468-8732 (call/text).

  2. As of February 1, total membership is 345 individuals. As events and activities resume, we will be asking for volunteers to handle specific activities.