Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble: Young, professional
The strains of Latin jazz will heat up the city streets when the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble plays this Sunday in Union Square as part of the ongoing free Jewels in the Square performances. Far from a kiddie show, this group of about 15 young musicians, who range in age from 10 to 18 years old, display a serious professionalism.
Founded in 2001 by Bay Area bandleader and San Francisco State University faculty member John Calloway along with Arturo Riera and Sylvia Ramirez, the ensemble boasts a resume that any professional would envy, including opening for jazz greats such as the Cuban bassist Israel "Cachao" López, and jamming with the likes of noted pianist Chuchito Valdés.
"It's quite an opportunity for a student musician," Ramirez says. "We are really unique - we've been around since 2001 and have never charged the students to participate. We recruit from all over the community, especially public schools, where kids may have a lot of natural talent and some training, but they might never have had access to private instruction in music."
But while its ensemble (for advanced musicians) and LJYE workshop (for intermediate students) give the kids access to training with Calloway in everything from playing to composing and arranging music, Ramirez is quick to note that they're not really like an official educational program with a schedule of classes. She prefers to describe the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble as a grassroots band.
"John isn't teaching them how to play an instrument," she explains. "These kids all come to the group already knowing how to play. He teaches them how to play the style, how to find the right feel for the music, how to be stronger in soloing, and improvisation skills. I'm a television producer, so I work with them on stage presence and how they present themselves. We're not a nonprofit, but we provide free musical instruction for the kids."
Although the group keeps the kind of erratic rehearsal schedule any working Bay Area musician would recognize, the members meet most Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings, and managing director Riera books the group for enough gigs to pay for its programs and for its upcoming CD - featuring several original compositions from the young ensemble members - scheduled for release next January.
"Our group is very much a family," Ramirez says warmly. "I love these kids - they walk in shy and nervous and see all these other kids who seem so much older and more accomplished, but we help them develop. I don't want people to see a bunch of kids, I want people to see a professional band playing good music at a high level."
Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble of San Francisco: Reviews
(Regarding the CD, "LJYE Live at Yoshi's") "From the first bars of the opening track...you know you are in for a special treat of succulent Latin jazz...Dramatic arrangements and phenomenal improvisations prevail throughout this recording."
(English translation follows) "Este grupo puede tocar en cualquier club de jazz mundial. Me gustaron sus arreglos originales y su balance harmónico y la percusión sigue la marcha bien. La flauta tiene un concepto harmónico muy avanzado. Este grupo me impresiono mucho musicalmente y por su juventud."
"This group can play in any jazz club in the world. I enjoyed their original compositions and their harmonic balance and the good time kept by the rhythm section. The flute player shows advanced harmonic concepts. This group impressed me very much with their musicality and their youth."
Armando Peraza - Latin Music Legend (Jan 20, 2006)
(Scroll down for complete article) "...an incubator for the future of Afro-Caribbean jazz and popular music in the SF Bay."
"We saw these guys at the San Jose Jazz Festival in 2004 and were very impressed-the most entertaining group we saw there! They are great! We remain impressed with the tight quality that the band exhibits. Keep the good stuff coming.....we'd love to hear some more of your upbeat Latino selections!!
"A pleasure to listen to even without being impressed by the young age of the musicians. The music provides such a pleasureable and joyful listening experience that it made me even more astonished at what these relatively young musicians have accomplished. The music reflects a technical profiency and soulful maturity that belies the ages of the performers."
GENERATION NOW. A wave of young musicians is splashing onto the SF Bay Area enriching the Latin music diaspora. In this edition of Desde La Bahia we profile instrumentalists, singers and bandleaders, from teens to young adults, who are contributing their energies to the future of this music.
THE LATIN JAZZ YOUTH ENSEMBLE OF SAN FRANCISCO. Ranging in ages from 10 to 18, the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble of SF is directed by musician/composer/arranger John Calloway. Working with Arturo and Sylvia Riera (whose son Daniel plays flute in the band) they maintain a self-sustaining performance group whose mission is to motivate young people to play Latin jazz and act as role models for young musicians.
In late May of 2004, Carnaval San Francisco selected them as the Best Youth Music Group in the annual parade. August found them swinging at the San José Jazz Festival. In October, they performed at the San Francisco Latín Jazz Festival at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.
Playing a repertoire of Latin jazz, salsa and Cuban music, their cohesion as an ensemble is impressive, a credit to Calloway's teaching and direction. A perfect example is Paquito D'Rivera's Chucho. Like old pros, they take the piece at an uptempo pace and stretch it out with potent solos and tight execution on the Irakere-style ensemble parts. Pianist Samora Pinderhughes is a treat to listen to. Hearing him riff with technical ease and melodic facility leaves you breathless. Quoting tunes like Maria Cervantes in his solos demonstrates the depth and promise this young teen has.
Many exceptional young musicians have now gone through the band. Kyle Athayde, who plays trumpet, vibes and drums, is a present member of the National Grammy High School Jazz Ensemble and a three-time Down Beat winner in their Student Music Awards for Outstanding Soloist.
Their debut performance at the Cal Tjader Tribute at the Masonic Auditorium in SF, on Sept. 15, 2001, is still one of their best shows. That original band consisted of Daniel Riera (flute), Elizabeth Dorman (bass), Eric Méndez (drums/congas), Hans Stern (piano), Erik Stern (timbal), Kyle Athayde (trumpet), Sam Ferguson (vibes) and Samora Pinderhughes (piano).
John Calloway is renowned for his musical abilities as a flutist and pianist. He writes and arranges excellent music for John Santos & The Machete Ensemble and others, but it's his gift as an educator that will be his lasting contribution. A music educator in the San Francisco Unified District, and now teaching at SF State University, he has groomed this group into an incubator for the future of Afro-Caribbean jazz and popular music in the SF Bay.
The Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble of San Francisco allows young musicians to experience Latin jazz and salsa at a professional level. It's non-profit and fun. Much love and gratitude to Calloway, the Rieras and the rest of the parents of these neophyte performers.
When Music Director John Calloway talks about his students in the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble he doesn't use the word "kids." He prefers to call them "musicians."
"Even though part of the draw for the group is that they are young people, I don't see them differently from the professional musicians I work with," said Calloway. "They are talented artists who just need to rack up more experience. I have no doubt they will some day be the 'names' you hear about on the Latin music scene."
Calloway created the group with Arturo Riera and Sylvia Ramirez, whose son Daniel Riera played flute in the original group. The LJYE made it's debut on September 15, 2001, just days after the national tragedy of September 11th. Although it was the saddest of times, the decision was made to continue with their show at the Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco at "A Tribute to Cal Tjader," where they opened for Poncho Sanchez. The youth's exuberant performance embodied hope for the future and reverence for the past. These two sentiments provided much needed comfort to all who saw them perform that night. At that moment the LJYE was born and it has remained in the embrace of Bay Area Latin jazz enthusiasts.
Many of the LJYE members are on the road to becoming professional musicians having displayed the passion, talent and dedication needed to make it in the performing world. Several students have won prestigious national awards including Downbeat Student Awards; ASCAP Young Composer Awards; and National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts Awards.
The group is financially self-sustaining and receives no outside funding. Managing Director Riera keeps the band busy with paid performances at festivals and community events. The group also performs “pro bono” at various community benefits. Students accepted into the LJYE receive a full tuition scholarship which includes all training and performance opportunities.
In the fall of 2006 the directors started a new component to the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble called the LJYE Workshop. The Workshop is a program which prepares young musicians for the advanced performances required in the Ensemble. The training focuses on students with proficiency on their instrument and provides them with invaluable performance experience.
Calloway, Ramirez and Riera are committed to teaching Latin jazz and not solely focusing on performing. Based in San Francisco, the Ensemble and Workshop are open to all student musicians in the Bay Area by audition. Membership in the group fluctuates as the students mature and leave for college, so Calloway is always looking for talented young people interested in performing Latin music.
Creating the Ensemble with Riera and Ramirez has been a dream come true for Calloway, whose love of the music is outweighed only by his love of teaching. "Working with the group has allowed me to pass along the music, just as it was passed on to me. The music these students play is timeless. It's our contribution to keeping this art form alive in the years to come."
LJYE Opens for Grammy-winning Spanish Harlem Orchestra, 2005 Photography: Larry Gibbs
