Tracking Series #2: Wealth, Equity, and 21st-Century Jazz

Jazz has become big business in the US. The art form once called “neighborhood music” (Miles Davis) has expanded and evolved to become prevalent throughout the music industry, from festival and club stages to concert halls, conservatories, and online playlists.
All of this growth has brought jazz artists and organizations into the spotlight, for both their accomplishments and transgressions. The National Endowment for the Arts began honoring “Jazz Masters” in 1982. Major awards from the MacArthur, Alpert, Hewlett, and Doris Duke Foundations have increasingly been granted to jazz artists in this century. At the same time, many Bay Area artists continue to feel unsupported by our leading west coast presenter, SFJAZZ. And this spring, the Center for New Music signed on to We Have Voice Collective’s Code of Conduct—one small action in response to the many articles, essays, and media coverage that have been coming out about sexual violence and gender discrimination in the industry.
Join our second Tracking Series event, a roundtable discussion on wealth, equity, and 21st-Century jazz. We’ll react to recent talks, including the SFJAZZ Town Hall, on the needs of the Bay Area’s jazz community with Andy Gilbert (SF Classical Voice), Cory Combs (bass, composition, Executive Director of InterMusicSF), and Darren Johnston (trumpet); dig into data on recent commissions and the programs of major arts organizations compiled by C4NM co-founder Adam Fong (bass); and, with help from local leaders Lisa Mezzacappa (bass), Destiny Muhammad (harp), and others, examine the structures that support the Bay Area scene to help identify what is working, and where more work is needed.
Discussion will run from 5:30 to 7:00 PM. Light refreshments provided.
The Tracking Series is organized by the Center for New Music. These quarterly events catalyze and build a community of new music researchers to demonstrably improve gender and racial equity within the field of new music. Each event is designed to include action, feedback, and discussion.
Tracking Series #1: Going Public