Sharp!

Not this young man's playing -- he was in tune, as were his colleagues in the Bellingham Youth Jazz Band at the farmers' market this morning. What was "sharp" was their professional appearance (see more players here), and their level of attention to the music and each other!

The Bellingham Youth Jazz Band (BYJB), created and directed by Mark Kelly, has 24 students, ages 13-18 years old, who attend 12 different schools in our county. From the BYJG website: "The BYJB performs about 40 free community concerts [annually] throughout Whatcom County in local parks, theaters, schools, nursing homes, fairs, dances, and jazz festivals. The BYJB learns and recreates the classic American jazz repertoire of the 1920s-1970s, using a standard 18-piece big band format. In addition, selected students make up several smaller combos to perform at concerts, and individuals are featured on solos and vocal arrangements."

The youth band, created fourteen years ago, is one of several programs of The Jazz Project, which is now in its sixteenth year. This outstanding local nonprofit focuses on "making jazz accessible to... all ages and backgrounds" and "increasing performance opportunities for local, regional, and international jazz musicians" in a wide variety of venues. Great live music is among the many reasons I love living here!

In addition to enjoying the BYJB, I took 120 photos at the farmers' market, which included glowing root vegetables, interesting feet on the march -- and the Royal Family (William, Kate, and George) waving from the balcony!

(We also heard the Bellingham Youth Jazz Band yesterday evening; you can see some of them, as well as an attractive young photographer and her unusual subject, on Phil's journal.)

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