Keeping jazz alive in Okla.
TULSA – With a trumpet playing in the background, Chuck Cissel said times have changed for the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame.
“When I came here nine years ago it literally was a one-note samba,” said Cissel, CEO of the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame. “It was not having the impact it should have.”
Since Cissel has taken over as CEO, the Jazz Hall has gone from having one main concert a year to sponsoring more than 80 events.
Recently the Jazz Hall moved into Tulsa’s Old Union Depot as one part of the Tulsa County Vision 2025 project. At 44,000 square feet, the renamed Jazz Depot features galleries, a music resource library and a performance hall.
Last year the Jazz Hall had about 40,000 visitors.
“We know we are the new kids on the block because other museums and art centers have been around for 50 years or so,” said Cissel. “We have been at it about 20 years and are forging a path.”
Cissel said the Jazz Hall is practically focused on educating youth about Oklahoma’s diverse music heritage by providing scholarships and seminars.
Committed to a mission of creating unity through music, the Jazz Hall sponsors an autumn and spring Jazz Concert Series.
The series features both in-state and out-of-state artists. Cissel said he thinks it’s important to bring in people from outside of Oklahoma to help spread the word about the Jazz Hall.
Famous jazz artists such as Chet Baker and Cecil McBee hailed from the Sooner State.
“We have such a rich jazz history here,” he said. “We want to spread the gospel of jazz from Oklahoma to different parts of the country.”
Earl Clark, trumpet performer and teacher at Central High School in Tulsa, is vocal about his opinion of the current Tulsa jazz scene.
“It sucks,” he said with a laugh. “But it’s getting better. Places like this help. Here we are in the middle of the country and are bringing music to the community.”
Clark said a key component in bringing more of a jazz scene to Tulsa is educating the youth. The Jazz Hall provides a safe venue to teach, he said.
“When I was growing up I had to go to the clubs to learn jazz,” he said. “But here at the Jazz Hall of Fame they can learn and watch people play.”
Back in the 1920s Tulsa was a hub for jazz music, said Cissel. But a divided community and urban development resulted in the demise of many buildings and the live music hot spots.
Cissel said it’s important to keep jazz alive because it’s an art form that originated in America.
“It’s as American as apple pie and the American flag,” he said. “The Oklahoma jazz experience is part of that.”
What: Spring Jazz Concert Series, Jazz: Born and Raised in America presented by the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Music Tulsa and the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame.
When: Jan. 16 at 7 p.m.
Where: Jazz Depot, 111 E. First St.
Who: The Donald Ryan Trio, Jambalaya Jazz Band and the Tulsa Symphony Strings. Featured performers include saxophonist and Jazz Hall of Fame inductee Earl Clark and trumpeter David Moore.
Cost: $15 adults; $10 seniors; $5 students
Info: (918) 596-7111
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