Never Resting on One’s Laurels!

The Learning Curve, one of our local Adult Education programs focusing on Arts, Humanities, Music, Literature & History, held its spring music class with Conductor and Musician Khris Dodge. This is the fifth class we have taken with him and always enjoy the experience. The spring class was about the musicians of Laurel Canyon just a five minute drive up the hills from Hollywood and Sunset Strip. In the 60’s and 70’s this area attracted a multitude of talented young musicians such as Joni Mitchell, Carole King, James Taylor, the artists with Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Jim Morrison, The Mamas & The Papas, The Eagles, and Tucson’s own Linda Ronstadt. What a fantastic group that offered creative encouragement and somewhat unique living arrangements to vocalists and musicians able to originate tunes and lyrics reflecting the era of Peace and Love. Hippies? Talented musicians? Unique characters? Yes, Yes and Yes!

The Canyon Country Store not only sold items used daily by these musicians, but was also a gathering place for them and a central meeting location. It was a convenient location, close by and a somewhat source of inspiration for many lyrics of the era. Although I lived through that era, I wasn’t very familiar with many of their works (ever the Armstrong and trad jazz lover!) but the sold-out class had fun reminiscing as certain tunes were discussed, the origins of some of the lyrics defined and the noted collaborations of the Laurel Canyon residents remembered.

The four week class had three local vocalists giving their interpretations of some of the most well-known pieces: Katherine Byrnes, Sarah Tolar, and Mindy Ronstadt. Mindy spent some time telling stories of her famous aunt and some personal family anecdotes from her musical background. No casual dinner went without someone grabbing one of the many guitars along the wall and starting a song. Harmonies and melodies were served alongside the entrees! Our classes were held at the iconic Arizona Inn and it turns out Linda often visited and stayed in one of the larger accommodations on the manicured grounds where she recorded and created many of her most famous numbers. Linda was a well-known and respected member of the Laurel Canyon denizens and certainly made her way to the top of the music charts.

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Richard Bogen, leader of Yourchestra, in Phoenix, Arizona, publishes a monthly newsletter – The Red Bean Rag – covering traditional jazz and roots music in Tempe and the greater Phoenix area. Local musicians Cheryl Thurston (p/v), Steve Means (cl) and Howard Alden (gtr/bj) are part of that group and we would see them often at the Arizona Classic Jazz Festivals in Chandler. If you live in the Phoenix area or plan to visit any time, send Richard an email to get a copy of the latest issue or be on the mailing list: rbogen@gmail.com.

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…and this is what local drummer, bandleader and educator Pete Swan has been up to in both Tucson and Italy and what he’ll be doing in May:

Soriano Nel Cimino, Italy: The Soriano Jazz Institute (SJI), a non-profit cultural association based in Soriano nel Cimino in the province of Viterbo, is proud to announce two milestones that mark a new chapter in the organization’s mission to bring world-class jazz education to young musicians in central Italy: the Second Annual Soriano Youth Jazz Band Concert on May 9, 2026, and the launch of auditions for the newly formed SJI Ellington Band, a high school-level advanced jazz ensemble targeting the internationally prestigious Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City.

SJI’s story began in the autumn of 2023, when American jazz musician and educator Pete Swan visited Soriano nel Cimino and began giving weekly drum lessons over Zoom to the children of local friends. A few months later, an impromptu display of drumming skills at a restaurant lunch prompted Executive Producer Bill Dell to declare:“With a few more instruments, we could form a jazz band.” That idea quickly became a formal proposal, and in the spring of 2024, in partnership with the middle school in Soriano nel Cimino, Istituto Comprensivo “Ernesto Monaci,” the Soriano Youth JazzBand was born.

On May 10, 2025, the ensemble made its public debut with the Inaugural Soriano YouthJazz Band Concert at the Teatro Florida, Piazza Guglielmo Marconi — a vibrant evening of jazz that introduced eighteen middle school students to an audience of community members, educators, and local officials. The concert featured guest artists Pete Swan (drums, bandleader), Enrico Mianulli (double bass), Francesco Desiato (flute), Marcello Balena (saxophone), and Alessandro Bravo (piano), performing alongside the students on a program ranging from blues standards to Herbie Hancock’s “Chameleon.”

Since its inaugural concert, SJI has formally registered as a non-profit association (Organizzazioni Associative Culturali e Ricreative) and deepened its partnership with the “Ernesto Monaci” Comprehensive Institute. In their second year, Youth Jazz Band students have been working on more demanding material under Pete Swan’s direction (including Charlie Parker’s “Now’s the Time,” a Latin jazz standard, and a Thelonious Monk composition) with a focus on melody memorization, bebop scales, and improvisation. The Second Annual Soriano Youth Jazz Band Concert will take place on Saturday, May 9, 2026 at the Teatro Florida.

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The Essentially Ellington competition is one of the most prestigious jazz education events in the world, drawing high school bands from across the globe for a week of immersive workshops, masterclasses, and performances with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and Wynton Marsalis. SJI’s five-year goal is to bring the first Italian high school big band to compete on that stage—a historic achievement for Italian jazz education.

Students selected for the Ellington Band will receive:

♫ Free world-class jazz training and masterclasses with renowned musicians and educators

♫ Performance opportunities at concerts and festivals

♫ International exchange with the Tucson Jazz Institute (TJI) in Arizona, USA

♫ Access to the Essentially Ellington library of professional transcriptions of Duke Ellington’s original recordings

♫ A clear pathway toward competing at the Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival at Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York City.

Pete Swan, a Tucson, Arizona-based bandleader, drummer, and educator with over 40 years of performance experience, serves as Music Director and a board member. Swan is a recipient of the National Jazz Journalists Award (2018) and the Tucson Jazz Society Lifetime Award, and has been inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame. (courtesy of the SJI announcement)

And guess what city has won the Essentially Ellington High School Band award in the recent past? Why, Tucson of course!!!