STRAUSS-KAHN: OUT IN THE COLD

You heard it here first, folks. Back in August 2011, when sexual assault charges against former IMF President Dominique Strauss-Kahn were dropped, I predicted that his stand-by-her-man wife Anne Sinclair would give him his walking papers after dumping millions on his legal defense and living expenses in New York. (http://tomsancton.blogspot.fr/2011/08/dsk-off-hook-but-still-in-doghouse.html)  It took her almost a year, but that is apparently what has happened according to French news reports. Sinclair, recently named the editor of a new French edition of the Huffington Post, has reportedly kicked the disgraced former presidential hopeful out of their conjugal apartment on the Place des Vosges. (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/world/europe/strauss-kahn-and-sinclair-separate-french-tabloid-reports.html) Strauss-Kahn may be out in the cold, but not out of hot water: he still faces charges in connection with his alleged involvement in a prostitution ring based in the northern French city of Lille.

"SONG" SHOW AT TENNESSEE WILLIAMS FESTIVAL, MARCH 21

[from Tennessee Williams Festival website]

Song for My Fathers

A unique multimedia stage production based on Tom Sancton’s critically acclaimed New Orleans memoir featuring Tom Sancton and the Preservation Hall All-Stars. Directed by Ron Rona and produced by Ben Jaffe.

Hailed as a “newly minted classic” by The Times-Picayune, this heartwarming story about a boy growing up in the 60s and learning to play jazz from the veteran musicians at Preservation Hall comes to life in the form of Sancton’s narrations, audio-visual projections, dramatizations and musical interludes provided by the onstage band. The Song For My Fathers stage show debuted at Tulane’s Dixon Hall in 2010 and played to packed houses at the Chat Noir in 2011. Now it comes to the new state-of-the-art performance hall at the Old U.S. Mint, which is currently hosting a year-long exhibit celebrating the 50th anniversary of Preservation Hall’s founding.

Come view the exhibit as part of an intimate cocktail reception before experiencing Sancton’s guided musical tour in this unique multimedia stage production that blurs the lines between personal journey and historic account. It’s a history lesson that will have you dancing in the aisles.

For booking see TWF site: http://www.tennesseewilliams.net/festival/schedule

Susan Larson’s Q&A with Tom Sancton

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Posted on February 14, 2012 in Arts & Letters, Enews

Another one of the great pleasures of working on the Tennessee Williams Festival is the chance to catch up with old friends. It’s been a pleasure to know Tom Sancton and a delight to see his wonderful memoir, Song for My Fathers: A New Orleans Story in Black and White, metamorphose from page to stage. He’ll be performing with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band at the Festival’s gala Wednesday night at the Mint.

Here’s a glimpse into his life on and off stage.

Performing in the musical adaptation of your book, Song for My Fathers, must be a little bit like walking around in your own past, isn’t it?

That’s exactly what it is like. As with any memoir, the process of writing the book required a long, deep plunge into my past. That was a mental process of memory, imagination, reconstruction. The stage show is a different way of reliving the past in that I don’t just tell the story; I must evoke it physically and visually. The presence of the band, the young man who represents me as a teenager, and the audiovisual elements, bring the story to life onstage in real time. So being in the middle of that is not merely relating the past but re-enacting it. At times, it is almost like an out-of-body experience, especially when I watch Zach Young play little Tommy Sancton taking a clarinet lesson from George Lewis and sitting in with the band.

Has the experience of this book been transformative for you?

Absolutely. The writing itself was a transformative experience. But the really significant transformations are the ones that followed the publication of Song For My Fathers in 2006. In a very real sense, it was the book that brought me back to New Orleans after living away for 40 years, much of that time in Paris. In the wake of Katrina, I had wanted to come back here to re-connect with my roots and be closer to my family. The book was the vector that brought me home. Here’s how it happened: Tulane University chose it for their Fall Reading Program that year and invited me to come give a lecture in October 2006. That led to discussions about coming to teach at Tulane and resulted in my being named the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities for the 2007-08 academic year. My teaching role at Tulane was subsequently extended for three years beyond that. In the meantime, I became active as a musician and writer, re-connected with old friends and made new ones, and became thoroughly anchored again in my home town.

Does doing the musical version somehow complete the book in a new way for you? (I know many poets who say that the poem isn’t finished until it’s read aloud and heard.)

Yes. Relating the story out loud, re-enacting the events with the audiovisual elements and live music, connects it to an audience in a way that goes far beyond words on a printed page. As with my music, I feel like it doesn’t really exist until an audience hears it.

Do you have a new book in the works?

I am putting the finishing touches on a novel set in a little fishing village in Normandy. It takes place in the contemporary time frame with flashbacks to the Nazi Occupation during World War II. The story has elements of a thriller, a detective story, a historical novel and a literary novel, through the story of a young couple that moves to this town and is confronted with a dramatic series of events that transform — and threaten — their lives.

You’ll also be moderating a panel about books about music at the Festival. Is that something you read for pleasure?

Actually, I don’t read a lot of music books. This may seem paradoxical, since Song For My Fathers is to a large extent a book about music and musicians in addition to being a coming-of-age memoir. But music is something I experience most intensely through my playing, and through listening to other musicians play. When I happen to read music books, as I am doing in preparation for this panel, I do enjoy them as they tend to tell great stories about musicians and their lives — and all good writing, after all, is about storytelling.

And are you here to stay now? Still spending summers in France?

Yes, I am here to stay — but with one foot still planted in France. My French wife Sylvaine, a sculptor, painter and photographer, has made a place for herself in the New Orleans art world. I have picked up an active life here with my music and writing. But France still occupies a big place in our hearts. We are fortunate enough to have a house over there, so we can return periodically — especially during the scorching New Orleans summers. In short, we enjoy the best of both worlds.

NEW ORLEANS MAGAZINE FEATURE ON "SONG FOR MY FATHERS" STAGE SHOW

From the March 2012 edition of New Orleans Magazine:

SPOTLIGHT
Memories of Music

Playwright Tennessee Williams wrote in The Glass Menagerie, “In memory everything seems to happen to music.” This year at the annual Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival, local musician, writer and educator Tom Sancton will kick off the celebration on March 21 at The Old U.S. Mint with “Song for My Fathers,” a multimedia autobiographical performance that celebrates the city’s music and pays a heartfelt tribute to those who taught it to him. Based on his memoir, “Song For My Fathers” weaves live music from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band with Sancton’s personal experiences, offering glimpses into an era that remains a powerful influence on our culture.

What is this performance about? “Song for My Fathers” is the story of a young white middle-class kid’s encounter with a group of elderly black jazz musicians at the tail end of the segregation era in the 1960s. The boy learns to play their music and gets a privileged lesson on life, culture and humanity from his willing mentors. That is the central theme of both the book and the stage show version.

Who’s involved? Ben Jaffe [of Preservation Hall] is the overall producer. Staging and direction were handled by Ron Rona of Preservation Hall; he was also the one who put together the terrific audio-visual package. I am present as the narrator. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band is on stage and provides live music, and we have a young man, Zach Young, who plays me as a teenager.

How does it tie in with the festival? It ties in with the festival in several ways. First, it’s theater – not an actual play, but certainly a theatrical presentation. Secondly, it’s based on a literary work, my coming-of-age memoir. Thirdly, it celebrates New Orleans culture and musical history. I have been involved in the festival in various capacities for the past few years and like to consider myself part of the Tennessee Williams Festival “family.”

The Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival takes place March 21-25, featuring plays, staged readings, lectures, panel discussions, parties and more, at various locations throughout downtown. Information,TennesseeWilliams.net.

TREME COMES TO PRESERVATION HALL

Playing at Preservation Hall has been a thrill for me ever since I first sat in with George Lewis in 1962. But yesterday's taping for the HBO Treme series was especially exciting—even if we had to play the same tune ten times.

Invited by trumpeter Wendell Brunious to join his band for the occasion, I found myself surrounded by some of the city's—no, the world's—top traditional jazzmen: Don Vappie on banjo, Gerald French on drums, Thaddeus Richard on piano, and Richard Moten on bass. New Orleans-born actor Wendell Pierce rounded out the band, miming the trombone part while Rebirth Brass Band trombonist Stafford Agee did the real playing off camera. (Pierce is not in this photo, taken during a run-through.)

The taping of our five-minute sequence took seven hours, allowing for numerous camera, lighting, and microphone changes as we played and replayed "My Bucket's Got a Hole in it" and several dozen technicians scurried around doing their thing. Their seven production vans lined St. Peter Street from the corner of Bourbon all the way down to Royal. There was a lot of down time, which allowed us to talk musician-trash among ourselves and chat with some of the people behind the great HBO series. I enjoyed talking with actor Wendell Pierce and learned that he, like Treme writer Lolis Elie, were both alumni of my high school, Benjamin Franklin. Despite the difference in our generations, it turns out they had some of the same teachers I had back in the 60s. Also got the chance to meet Treme's executive producer, Eric Overmyer, an unconditional fan of New Orleans music and culture, which he has done so much to honor and preserve with this series. Our sequence should run some time next fall. Stay tuned...

BABY IT'S COLD INSIDE!

The Classic Jazz Trio had a great time playing in the new performance space at the Old U.S. Mint on Saturday despite an air conditioning malfunction that kept temperatures in the 50s. Outside on the it was 75º. Fortunately, our fans (we have fans?) were not deterred by the chill. The place was packed and the response was enthusiastic. The state of the art performance space was wonderful to play in—the acoustics, lighting and sound system were all tops as was the helpful staff of National Jazz Park rangers, who run the weekly concert series at the Mint.

THE CJT HOLDS UP THE U.S. MINT

The Classic Jazz Trio makes another rare live appearance on Saturday, Jan. 21, at the Old U.S. Mint, 400 Esplanade, 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm. For those who haven't checked out the new state-of-the-art performance space on the third floor, it's a good time to do so. Also a chance to visit the remarkable exhibit commemorating the 50th anniversary of Preservation Hall on the second floor. The CJT will be reprising tunes from our latest album (see photo) as well as a few new additions to the repertoire. The CD will be on sale, as well as copies of "Song For My Fathers."

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER!

The concert was billed as "Preservation Hall Jazz Band & Friends." Touted in advance in the New Yorker and the New York Times Magazine, the event, a benefit for the Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program, filled Carnegie's Isaac Stern Auditorium to its full 2204-seat capacity. The performing "friends" included a star-studded cast of musicians ranging from Allen Toussaint, Tombone Shorty and Mos Def to My Morning Jacket, the Del McCoury Bluegrass Band, the Trey McIntyre Dance Project and the Blind Boys of Alabama. And of course, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, headed by Ben Jaffe, son of the founders and organizer of this exceptional show.

What am I doing at Carnegie Hall, I asked myself more than once. Nonetheless, when the show started, there I was onstage with the legendary festival promoter and pianist George Wein seated at the Steinway behind me. I recited a passage from my memoir, Song for My Fathers, and played "Burgundy Street Blues" as a tribute to George Lewis and the other great jazzmen who played at the Hall when it was founded half a century ago. Wein and I were onstage for all of eight minutes, but it was for me an unforgettable occasion. (See photo by Michael Jurick, whose wonderful pictures of the show are well worth viewing on his blog http://goo.gl/DZZJY)

The good thing about getting my bit over early was that I could enjoy the rest of the show from the wings. High points for me included meeting and chatting with the legendary Pete Seeger (whose grandson Tao Seeger performed in the show), watching the Trey McIntyre dancers, reminiscing with my old friend trombonist Frank Demond, talking shop with PHJB clarinetist Charlie Gabriel, and hearing the indie rock group My Morning Jacket bend its sound to the beat of a New Orleans jazz band on "Saint James Infirmary" then do its own thing on a folk-rock ballad "I Feel Wonderful." The cast party afterwards at the trendy downtown cabaret club called "The Box" was a bit hard on the ears, but I had a chance to chat there with Morning Jacket's lead singer Jim James, who told me he's taking up the clarinet. That was good news: if rock stars popularize the instrument, guys like me might still have a shot at the big-time at last!

(See Jon Pareles's review in the New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/10/arts/music/preservation-hall-jazz-band-at-carnegie-hall-review.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=preservation%20hall%20pareles&st=cse)

CARNEGIE HALL AT LAST!

Guy walks into a midtown Manhattan bar and asks the bartender, "Say, can you tell me how I can get to Carnegie Hall?" The bartender answers: "Practice, man, practice!"

Seriously, one of my life's ambitions will be achieved on Saturday, January 7, when I appear as a guest performer with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band at their big 50th anniversary concert at Carnegie. The sold-out show is a fund raiser for the Preservation Hall Foundation and will feature a number of guest artists (including yours truly) in addition to the PHJB. Del McCoury's bluegrass group and the indie rock band My Morning Jacket will be on the bill, among others. Looking forward to this!

VANITY FAIR ARTICLE ON PRESERVATION HALL 50TH

[Here is the text of my "spotlight" piece as it appeared in the January 2012 print edition of Vanity Fair. This is only a teaser! The full 4600-word piece is on the VF website and iPad apps with music, photos, bells and whistles. Check the link at the end of this post.]

It is arguably the best-known address in New Orleans: 726 St. Peter Street, even better known as Preservation Hall. Since its opening day, June 10, 1961, more than two million people have walked through its gate, including presidents, prime ministers, movie stars, and rock idols. Every night, tourists and locals form long lines to pony up the $12 entrance fee and sit on rough wooden benches and threadbare cushions in a musty, un-air-conditioned, 31-by-20-foot room. The attraction? Three sets of traditional New Orleans jazz played by five to seven musicians in black suits, white shirts, and black ties. The place and the routine are exactly as they were in the 60s, but some things have changed: the all-black bands are now racially mixed; the average age of the players is considerably younger; the crowds are much bigger. The most amazing thing is that this music—rooted in blues, ragtime, and march- es from the turn of the 20th century—is still being played at all. Before the hall was launched, in a former art gallery, the aging ranks of the city’s black jazz musicians seemed headed for extinction. Under the skillful man- agement of Pennsylvania transplants Allan and Sandra Jaffe, Preservation Hall soon gave these old jazzmen and their music a new lease on life and ultimately turned the nickel-and-dime-kitty hall—where the band played for tips dropped into a wicker basket—into a thriving business. But as the end nears for this golden-anniversary year—marked by major exhibitions at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art and the old U.S. Mint museum, a spate of publications, and a series of high-profile concerts around the country—the current keepers of the flame face daunting questions: With all of the original musicians dead and gone, an aging audience base, and a popular culture invested more in hip-hop than in old-time jazz, what are you preserving? And how long can you keep it up? Ben Jaffe, 40, son of the founders, has an optimistic answer: “This anniversary is about the next 50 years.”

For the full-blown version, follow this link:

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2012/01/preservation-hall-201201

PIRATED "LONG DISTANCE BLUES" ON YOUTUBE

Among the rules at Preservation Hall are no video or sound recording of the band, and no flash photos. Drummer Shannon Powell does his best to enforce this by shouting loudly at patrons each time he sees a red light on a cell phone or camera. To no avail. Musicians are mercilessly pirated each night, and much of this low-quality fare winds up on YouTube. There doesn't seem to be much help for it, and it's not exactly like someone is going to make commercial CDs or DVDs from their cellphone recordings. So probably the best thing for us is to grin and bear it. And some folks might actually enjoy seeing these souvenirs of our performances, like this version of "Long Distance Blues" by my New Orleans Legacy Band, recorded on Novemer 26 and posted on YouTube less than 24 hours later: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLNboSEZUQI