Worcester Jazz

My musical partner, Rich Falco, got a gig for us playing jazz every other week in Oxford, at a place called Oxford's Casual Dining. Rich indulges me, perhaps because bassists are in short supply, so I'm happy to do the gig with him, since I learn more by playing with him, and we make some pretty good music. Click http://www.gigmasters.com/hear_audio.asp?rowid=20202&sequenceID=1 and listen.

Playing regularly anwhere is difficult, because any slow night might mean that the owner could cut you loose. So I do like to promote these gigs, andI post on Craigslist and Socialweb and hope to gain the attention of the local press.

It's the latter that's proved difficult. We can't really advertise; we're too poor. Tyra Penn has included us on WICN's club updates, bless her. But the Worcester press, which in most other instances stresses the local angle, tends to pay the most attention to jazz acts from out of town. Articles and items featuring local rock acts are common, too, most of whom aren't even paid musicians. But not jazz. And not us.It seems odd that more attention is paid to amateur musicians in rock clubs than experienced professionals who ALREADY know how to play. Call it the American Idol phenomenon.

I don't want to sound bitter. Rich is already well-known in the area's jazz community, so I can understand that local press might feel that he doesn't need more press, and people might not be interested in finding out more about him. But look at the "jazz scene" in Worcester right now. Java Hut closed, so there's no jam session there. There is no club in Worcester that features jazz, nor any restaurant that hires jazz musicians to play regularly. Oxfords Casual Dining is pretty much it, from what I can tell. Yet OCD (not a pretty acronym, but I'll use it) is not even in club listings, even though jazz is a regular feature there, and it's the ONLY JAZZ IN TOWN! You'd think that alone would be news.