Photo courtesy of Nunez family collection
By Reference Librarian Jolee Hamlin
Jazz is a unique genre of American music with roots in both African and European traditions. This month, the Capital Area District Library is pleased to offer “A Night of Jazz,” a free concert featuring music from the Jazz Age.
Join us on Thursday, Oct. 13 at 7:00 p.m., when the MSU Student Jazz Ensemble will play music from the 1920s and 30s. The concert will be held in the historic Mill Supplies Building at the corner of Michigan Ave. and Museum Drive in downtown Lansing, with seating on a first come basis. Our partner for the event is Traction, with refreshments courtesy of the Greater Lansing Historical Society.
CADL is presenting “A Night of Jazz” in support of The Great Michigan Read, a statewide project sponsored by the Michigan Humanities Council. Find details about the project and other related events-including an author visit-at cadl.org.
A great online resource for jazz lovers is the Smithsonian Institute. Since 2002, they have led a nationwide effort to recognize America’s great creative contribution to the genre. Visit smithsonianjazz.org for a “this day in Jazz history” calendar, oral histories and more. They even provide school activities, songs and lesson plans on jazz immortals like Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, and Benny Carter.
CADL offers a diverse collection of jazz CDs and DVDs, as well as books that highlight the glories of both jazz and blues. Some of our newer titles include:
The Jazz Loft Project: Photographs and Tapes of W. Eugene Smith from 821 Sixth Avenue, 1957-1965 by Sam Stephenson
This magnificent effort highlights the work of photo-essayist W. Eugene Smith (Life) during a frazzled and pill-popping stage in his life. Smith’s 6th Avenue home was a late-night haunt in which he kept company with the likes of Charles Mingus, Zoot Sims, Thelonious Monk and others. A moment in jazz is brought to life as perhaps no work in any other medium ever has.
I Walked with Giants: The Autobiography of Jimmy Heath by Jimmy Heath and Joseph McLaren
This engaging and thorough autobiography comes from one of jazz’s true treasures.
Blues & Chaos: The Music Writing of Robert Palmer by Robert Palmer; edited by Anthony DeCurtis
Robert Palmer is a former critic and journalist for the New York Times, Rolling Stone and other magazines. His reviews and essays are as relevant today as when they first were published.
Find these titles and many more by visiting the online catalog cadl.org.
The Capital Area District Library Reference Department is located at 401 S. Capitol Avenue in Lansing, MI. Contact them at 517-367-6346 or by e-mail at reference@cadl.org.
