AUGUST NEWSLETTER.
Dear fellow jazz guitarists,
SEE BELOW RE GEAR FOR SALE. SOME NEW ITEMS INCLUDING A NICE GIBSON SUPER 400, TWO HANDMADE STEFAN SONNTAG GUITARS AND A LOOP STATION.
REPORT ON THURSDAY 29th JULY.
The whole session was captured on video.
A busy night at the jazz guitar club with more variation than usual. The evening began with our favourite luthier Ged Green playing Lullaby of Birdland accompanying himself with a loop station. He first recorded the chords with a Samba rhythm and then the set the loop going whilst playing the melody and then improvising. Brian Lewis followed with a new Fender amp and a nice mix of standards played Chet style. Then to everyone's amazement, he played some great jazz rock style lines to backing tracks he had downloaded into his amp from the net. Amazing technology!
Andy Hulme and I were up next playing an arrangement for two guitars, Laura. This was followed by Masquerade and Time After Time. We heard two standards from the solo guitar of Ray Brooker, playing his beautiful 1950's Guild. The varied evening continued with with a very special guest, Howard Shepard from Shep's Banjo Boys ably accompanied by Mike Dexter on guitar. A truly wonderful set of banjo evergreens! I hope you were all watching Shep's right hand technique!!!
The evening continued with Dave Carter and Andy Hulme playing Black Orpheus (Manha De Carneval) and a Stevie Wonder tune You are the Sunshine of My Life. Andy was joined by Gary Taylor and they played Like Someone in Love and Summertime. Up next were Bennet Longman and Kevin Taylor-Cox playing Blue Bossa and Green Dolphin Street.
The very busy Andy was joined by Keith Eagling and played Here's That Rainy Day. The solo guitar of Malcolm McGregor gave us a rendition of Scarlet Ribbons. The workshop session followed with Ian Weir accompanied by me playing a Blues. Sadly no acoustic set this month but Tony Cordes, on of the members of the acoustic set, played two standards, Don't Get Around Anymore and I Thought About You with Tony Pollington and Mike Dexter, this time on double bass. A very interesting evening full of surprises concluded with Andy and me playing I'm Old Fashioned and Beautiful Love.
TREFOR OWEN.
VOLUNTEERS TO WRITE FUTURE JAZZ GUITAR CLUB REPORTS WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.
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VENUE NEWS.
Unfortunately venues are closing far too often these days. The Coach and Four are no longer interested in jazz, they prefer female vocalists with backing tapes. The City Bar in Chester has closed. Arts Councils are withdrawing funding to some venue. So it's mostly bad news all around. However, there is some good news. Graham Brook is still going at Wilmslow Conservative Club http://www.myspace.com/grahambrookjazz
Every Friday 8.30pm - The White Swan, Green Street, Ladybarn, Manchester, M14 6TL continue their programme in September. Some of the bands will feature jazz guitar club members Gary Taylor with his band, and Trefor Owen and Andy Hulme. See creativespaceinfo.blogspot.com for full programme.
Guitarist Alan Stander, is featured at the Railway Hotel, Wellington Road, Stockport August 29th with a strong line-up - Rob Turner (bass) and Mike Dale (saxes/flute). Commencing 9pm.
Another new monthly venue starting 16 September - 8.30pm - OLD BULL, 102, Church Street, Old Glossop Derbyshire SK13 7RN - TREFOR OWEN & ANDY HULME - JAZZ GUITAR DUO with SITTERS IN.
For further Info phone 07746 784949. For directions see http://www.bulls-head.co.uk
Try and support these venues as often as you can. Remember: SUPPORT THE VENUE AND THE VENUE WILL SUPPORT YOU.
NEWS OF UPCOMING JAZZ GUITAR WEEKENDS.
BORDERS JAZZ GUITAR WORKSHOP
Saturday/Sunday 11 - 12 September.
TREFOR OWEN will be performing a two day masterclass for all levels of ability.
For more info. click here
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14th NORTH WALES INTERNATIONAL JAZZ GUITAR WEEKEND.
22 to 24 October 2010.
GLYNDWR UNIVERSITY, WREXHAM.
IMPROVE YOUR JAZZ GUITAR SKILLS
AT THIS GREAT VALUE EVENT!
(To enrol and for further information please telephone 01745 812260. Or see www.northwalesjazz.org.uk click on Jazz Guitar Weekend and print the enrolment form.
Five 2 hour workshops with internationally renowned tutors.
Guest tutor, from New York, JOE GIGLIO. http://www.joegiglio.com/news/
Resident tutor TREFOR OWEN. www.treforowen.com
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REMINDERS.
Dan Johnson from Foulds Music is building up a stock of jazz guitar CD's to sell and trade from the shop and website so if any of you would be interested in trading then please contact Dan: 01332 344842. For more information see: http://www.fouldsmusic.co.uk/jazz-guitars-and-accessories/jazz-guitar-cds/
The myspace site for the Jazz Guitar Club is at www.myspace.com/jazzguitarclub If you wish to contribute some sound tracks, photos or anything else, contact David Briddock, e-mail address david.briddock@talk21.com Many thanks to David for creating the site.
NEWS ABOUT CLUB MEMBERSHIP:
Membership cards for the JGC are now available, see Tony Cordes or Charles Howorth at the next meeting.
Being a member will give you concessionary rates at all JGC events and discounts on selected items at the following musical instrument shops: Frailers, Runcorn, http://www.frailers.com Foulds Music, Derby, www.fouldsmusic.co.uk Sounds Great, www.soundsgreatmusic.com Also, with the kind agreement of Maureen Hopkins, director of the North Wales Jazz Society, concessionary rates will be available at NWJS concerts, (not jazz guitar weekends, etc).
VENUE
Bijou is situated just off Cheadle High St. The address: 9, Massie St. Cheadle Village, SK8 1BW, (directions below). Telephone Number: 0161 428 7177. It is warm and intimate, and has a great menu & bar.
DIRECTIONS
Find Cheadle Village High St. and look for CARPHONE WAREHOUSE, which is on the corner of Massie St. Bijou is a few yards up Massie St, just before the main car park. Plenty of free parking, (after 6pm), a few yards from the venue. If you need any further directions please contact me. Trefor Owen on 07746 784949, or e-mail jazzgtrschoolfes@aol.com
SETTING GOALS
The importance of the guitar club is to have something to aim for. Less experienced players can get together and form a duo or trio, learn two or three tunes and perform them, then learn another two or three tunes, and before you know it, you have a lengthy repertoire.
Here are a few tips:
Jazz has to be prepared for! Learn tunes that have an interesting harmonic sequence. Learn the melody and the chords well - It's ok to have the music in front of you as a reminder. If you are an inexperienced player - do not dive into the fake book and pick a tune you are not familiar with - I've seen it happen so many times in jam sessions and it always ends in disaster. Remember: The improviser is only as good as his accompanist. Work on your accompaniment skills. Be well prepared. Improvisation wise you should have a base to build from which also acts as your safety net.
COST
For CLUB NIGHTS (last Thursday of the month) the cost will be relative to how many turn up, so if twenty five turn up it will be £3 a head. If it's less than twenty five, it could be £4 or £5 a head. The breakdown of the cost is £1 for the club, to build up funds to pay guest guitarists, and the rest goes to the restaurant owner to cover his overheads. For SPECIAL GUEST nights the cost is £3 for members and £5 for non-members. Annual Jazz Guitar Club membership is £10.
A REMINDER OF THE FORMAT:
WORKSHOP SESSIONS.
Occasional workshop session will be introduced at some point during the evening where the less experienced players, who are not used to performing in public, play within a workshop situation in front of a friendly audience.
EXPERIENCED PLAYERS.
The club welcomes more experienced players performing in a mixture of styles. So come along and perform, play solo, duo or bring your band.
PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS.
As it is a jazz guitar club, to perform you must be able to play a jazz standard, e.g. Autumn Leaves, Satin Doll, Minor Swing, Nuages, I'll Remember April, Girl From Ipanema, etc.
GEAR FOR SALE.
Gibson Super 400. Electric, two pick ups - 1999 - in sunburst - £4k. (They are round the £8k mark new). Contact Steve Buckley at billybuck71@yahoo.co.uk
Stefan Sonntag guitar with a laminated top. Sold with options - the guitar which is in mint condition can be sold without a P/U and pick guard £1,500. The customer can then chose the P/U and get it fitted himself, or I can sort it for the extra cost. There is also the option of controls in the body or in the pick guard. Please contact me for further details - Trefor Owen tel. 07746 784949 or e-mail tojazzgtr@aol.com
Stefan Sonntag Augusta guitar, with the Charlie Christian P/U which has been made with original parts. The guitar has my anti feedback device installed. Mint condition £3,500 Please contact me for further details - Trefor Owen tel. 07746 784949 or e-mail tojazzgtr@aol.com
Loop Station. RC-20 Phrase recorder £120 ONO. Contact Charles Howorth at charles.howorth@greenbee.net
Evans AE100 amp. Contact me, Trefor Owen, if you are interested and I'll put you in touch.
Marshall Acoustic ASR50 amp for sale excellent condition, has twin channels 2 speakers has spring reverb and Chorus plus anti feedback control and all the usual inputs, PA Efx, Mic etc it comes with a brand new stand/power lead. £150 or VNO, Contact Alan Wain e-mail alan.wain4@ntlworld.com
FLAT TOP GUITARS
Taylor 914 CE Electro-acoustic for sale at £2500.00 (Cost £3100.00 current new price £4250.00). Contact Malcolm mrm47@tesco.net.
APRIL 2010 NEWSLETTER.
Dear fellow jazz guitarists,
PLEASE NOTE!
This is a regular club night, but the two Dans from Foulds Music, Derby will be with us and they will be demonstrating the incredible new jazz guitar amp, ZT. (See below).
NEWS:
WE WILL BE HAVING ANOTHER SPECIAL GUEST NIGHT ON THURSDAY JUNE 10th, THIS TIME WITH JIM MULLEN. I DON'T THINK JIM NEEDS ANY INTRODUCTION AS HE IS ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR PLAYERS IN THE UK. HE WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY DAVE TURNER (DOUBLE BASS). JGC MEMBERS £3. NON-MEMBERS £5. IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY A MEMBER THEN WHY NOT JOIN - YOUR MEMBERSHIP HELPS TO ENSURE THE FUTURE OF THE CLUB AND ENABLES US TO HOLD MORE SPECIAL GUEST NIGHTS.
REPORT ON THE 13th NORTH WALES INTERNATIONAL JAZZ GUITAR WEEKEND AND HOWARD ALDEN TOUR.
The jazz guitar weekend was an excellent event! It was swinging from start to finish. Thirty plus students were very attentive and were treated to top quality tuition by Howard Alden and Trefor Owen, and the technical workshops by Trevor Jones of Barnes and Mullins. The student jam sessions were very popular and both the Saturday and Sunday sessions started with the B Group, having been prepared in the class by Trefor Owen, playing Satin Doll. They repeated the tune on Sunday which gave them greater confidence. The advanced group had some fine players who were very entertaining. The Saturday session was accompanied by Bill Coleman (double bass). The Sunday session was accompanied by Dave Turner (double bass) and Marek Dorcik (drums). In the foyer of the University alongside the Fellows Bar where the student jam sessions take place, we were treated to a wonderful display of guitars and associated goodies. Stefan Sonntag from Augsburg, Germany showed off a selection of his wonderful range of hand made archtops, www.sonntag-guitars.com/english The two Dans from Foulds Music, Derby displayed a selection of vintage and new archtops and also the ZT amplifier, www.fouldsmusic.co.uk Trevor Jones from Barnes & Mullins also displayed various goodies including the new range of Hofner guitars and did a roaring trade with Thomastik Infeld guitar strings.
The Saturday evening concert, which featured Howard Alden, Trefor Owen, Andy Hulme with Vic Blackwell (vibes) and Bill Coleman (double bass) was held at the Students' Guild Bar at Glyndwr University, which is an excellent concert venue. We had a good audience who enjoyed a mix of Latin and jazz standards. Howard Alden's spot included a George Van Eps solo and a duo with Bill Coleman. He also played a trio set with Vic Blackwell and Bill reminiscent of the Red Norvo trio, which Howard played with in the early eighties.
The Monday evening concert at Wilmslow Conservative Club organised by Graham Brook, www.myspace.com/grahambrookjazz had a packed house and featured Howard Alden and Trefor Owen (guitars), John Hallam (sax) and Dave Turner (double bass). This concert was of a more mainstream nature.
Tuesday morning saw Howard and Trefor performing a workshop at the Arts Centre, Liverpool Community College. The afternoon concert at the college included duos by Howard and Trefor, who later joined the college's jazz guitar ensemble which included six guitars bass and drums. Five of the guitars in the group played harmonised lines reminiscent of a sax section in a big band. The group leader is Les Bolger who also wrote the arrangements.
In the evening Howard and his partner Jeanne, who is an excellent vocalist, were guests at the North Wales Jazz Society jam session, which happens every six weeks or so, at the Royal British Legion, Llay.
The long standing jazz club at the Lescar Hotel, Sheffield, which is organised by jazz guitarist Chris Walker, had a packed house for Howard, Trefor and Bill Coleman (double bass). This concert had a more modern jazz flavour to it and included a few songs from Jeanne. The two Dans from Foulds music attended the concert and brought with them the new ZT jazz guitar amp. Trefor used the amp for the whole gig and said it was fantastic! It gives a true jazz guitar sound at a very affordable price! See http://www.fouldsmusic.co.uk and click on jazz guitars.
FURTHER REMINDERS.
Dan Johnston from Foulds Music is building up a stock of jazz guitar CD's to sell and trade from the shop and website so if any of you would be interested in trading then please contact Dan: 01332 344842. For more information see: http://www.fouldsmusic.co.uk/jazz-guitars-and-accessories/jazz-guitar-cds/
The myspace site for the Jazz Guitar Club is at www.myspace.com/jazzguitarclub If you wish to contribute some sound tracks, photos or anything else, contact David Briddock, e-mail address david.briddock@talk21.com Many thanks to David for creating the site.