Wichita State University - Parnassus Yearbook (Wichita, KS)

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jazz Festival Hits Wichita By Storm It's as if the city becomes one dispersed nightclub. Every year come springtime, the wail of the saxophones complements the wail of the tornado sirens. The Wichita jazz Festival, a three-day event rated one of the top educational festivals in the world, moves through Wichita by storm. The festival is one of the few in the coun- try to be sanctioned by the National Associa- tion of jazz Educators. To be sanctioned, the adjudicators must be NAJE members, judging must follow specific guidelines, the awards must fall within NAJE allowances, as well as other requirements. 'I think the founding fathers of this festival had it in mind as an educational experience for high school and college students,' Tom Fowler, assistant professor of music educa- tion, said. The festival begins at Wichita State University with jazz groups throughout the region performing before a panel of judges. Along with the college big bands and com- bos that are entered in the competitions are other groups that come to be critiqued by the festival judges. Traditionally, WSU's jazz bands and com- bos have not been judged. Fowler said this was because, as the host school which hires the judges and pro- I vides the facilities, it was impor- tant that WSU avoid the ap- pearance of a conflict of interest in the competition. The judging is subjective, said Fowler, just like a gymnastics competition. It's an aspect I'm not particularly thrilled about, per- sonally, he said. 'But the feeling is the competition is really what keeps people coming to the festival. If we didn't have that competition I don't think we'd have as many bands coming in. In 1984, Wichita State Univer- sity's Jazz Arts I, directed by Fowler, led off Sunday's main concert at Century II. In addition, WSU's combo won its competition and played on Sunday's con- cert. While Sunday's concert draws the biggest crowd of people, the heart of the festival is the competition and clinics. It is at this time that the passing of the torch from the established artists to student musicians takes place. The jazz clinics on Saturday is where the patriarchs instill the almost intuitive sense of rhythm and style which goes into making music, as opposed to simply playing the cor- rect notes. The afternoon closes with a concert by the clinicians, a scheduled impromptu jam ses- sion, that offers a taste of what is still to come. The festival then begins its gradual march to encompass the city. In 1984, the Kick-Off Party was held on the other side of town at the Cotillion. Whereas many of the festival goers earlier in the day were college age, the crowd at the Cotillion was middle age, for the most part. Their tastes in music seemed less eclectic - the more straight-ahead, big-band sound characterized by the All Stars. They had liv- ed through the grand experiment which gave jazz its roots and were content to settle for an established style. Traditionally the best and most honest and hottest jazz played during the festival has been on Saturday night,' Fowler said. The Saturday night event basically started out as a more relaxed jam session where the All Star group could stretch out and play what most of us know as honest-to-goodness jazz, where they're not limited to a 40-minute time slot and then quit because there's another group coming on. If it runs late, itis okay. People can relax, drink a little bit. The opening group for the XIII jazz Festival, the Pan America Steel Orchestra, seemed to test the crowd's tolerance of how far the definition of jazz could be pushed. The group played a vast array of styles rang- ing from Irish folk tunes to classical to the more modern, studio style of jazz. This isn't exactly what I came for and I wonder how long they will play,' one woman said. But the band was called back for an en- core after first receiving a cool reception. They chose to play Johann Sebastian Bach's Little Fugue in g minor. A man at a table directly across the aisle from the woman was en- thralled with the group. He kept laughing, tapping his hand on the table and saying how he thought the band was great. It was a hit M a risk. The group was harebf three months old and it was performing before a crowd W' hardened jazz aficionados. H that wasn't enough, members of the Pan America Steel Orchestra were not planning on performing what is infor- malb known as jazz, instead, Wer- ing a mixture dfolh, elassieal and cahfpso musie.

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I vgdiwl CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: A single hot air balloon silently rises over the launch site. 5!12!84 As the sun rises, nylon balloons are filled with hot air in a clearing in Sims Park. 5!l2!84 Michelle Peaden wears the River Festival button and a promotional paper hat, common at all the festival's events. 5!14!84 From the waterfall bridge in A. Price Woodard park, spectators dodge the only rain to fall during the weeklong festival. 5f14f84

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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Jazz vocal group Rare Silk receive applause after their afternoon per- formance in Century ll. 4!29f84 The solo trumpet player for the Jazz Commodores is silhouetted against the glowing arches of the Cotillion's stage. 4!28f84 Clark Terry, ajazz festival regular, helps get things started at the kick- off party Saturday night. 4!28!84 Herb Ellis, one of the Jazz All- Stars, plays along with Clark Terry and the Jazz Commodores. 4!28!84 Carol Baldwin, a fine arts major, stretches out during the 14-hour main concert at Century Il. 4!29!84