Jazz History Collections - A Digital Museum of Jazz History

COLLECTIONS

Richard and Paul enjoyed recording concerts in various venues using professional quality recording equipment (always with the permission of the artists). Through the generous contribution of Paul Holmberg, the Jazz History Database is able to offer these many audio recordings by Richard Bowen...

Paul Holmberg

In high school I was digging Louis Armstrong until Fred Murphy moved to town. From that point on we went everywhere. The Celebrity Club in Providence, Storyville, Jazz Workshop in Boston, Melody Club in Lynn, McGann's in Leominster and others.

Gene Perla

Gene Perla was raised in New Jersey where he studied classical piano and trombone. “I began collecting recordings in the late 1960s using a Uher tape machine. Many captures resulted from jam sessions at my two New York City lofts and on the road with multiple artists.

Jeremy Esposito

Jeremy Octavius Esposito was born October 8th, 1972 and raised in Oxford Connecticut. By the age of two, Jeremy already showed great interest in music. His father's record and reel-to-reel collectin exposed him to "classic rock". Jeremy's first record was 'The Yes Album'.

Ed Williams

Ed was born and raised in the Detroit area where he had an early interest in both jazz and technology. He received his Engineering degree from the University of Detroit. During World War II, He served in the United States Navy in the Radar program at Harvard University and Massachusetts Institution of Technology.

Ed Bride

Edward Bride is president and founder of Berkshires Jazz, Inc., whose mission is to present jazz performances and encourage jazz education in Berkshire County, Massachusetts.

In Their Own Hand

In Their Own Hand is a collection of original manuscripts and compositions written by musicians of the Central New England area. Here you will find handwritten pieces by such esteemed artists as Jaki Byard, Barbara Carroll, Tony Zano, Steve Davis, Gary Valente, and Boots Mussulli.

In Their Own Voice

These audio interviews were made for radio rebroadcasts and print distribution. Largely culled from interviews conducted by Joe Zupan and Chet Williamson, the collection includes conversations with such historic figures as Sonny Rollins, Eartha Kitt, and Charles Lloyd.

Rhode Island Jazz Scene

This collection examines Jazz within Rhode Island, and feaures excerpts from Who's Who in Rhode Island Jazz as well as video interviews from local musicians.

Scrapbook

This section features classic memorabilia, ephemera, and vintage photographs of Worcester's storied jazz past. Collected from local musicians, history museums, libraries and newspaper clippings, the page is highlighted by classic shots of early Worcester bands from Mammie Moffit's 5 Jazz Hounds to the Zaleski Brothers.

Visual Arts: Jazz

Included here are original works by Linda Dagnello, Peter DeVeber, George Fayard, AJ Juarez, Ruth Williams, among others. It is a stunning collection of sketches, paintings, photography, and other forms of visual art that have been created by jazz musicians.

Jazz Poetry

Here is an excerpt from Tom Ewart's poem Pitch Pipe: "She is round and burnished, a once tarnished silver / now polished by my fingertips / to a luminescent sheen; I hold her gently to my lips, tip my tongue against her reed, and breathe; the sound she makes / is for all my world / the whisper of life awakening in the silence of my room.

Writer's Corner

This section features authors talking about the art and craft of the writing � from A.J. Juarez discussion on line breaks of his poetry to Prof. Eunmi Shim's talking in detail about her critically acclaimed biography of Lennie Tristano.

Venues

For nearly a century there has been many a venue to play host to jazz sessions throughout Worcester-- from the Saxtrum Club to the Kitty Kat Lounge, the Hungry Eye to the Hottentotte, Amberly Crossing to Circe's, the Worcester Artist Group to Sakura Tokyo, from Gilrein's to the Java Hut--not to mention the many jam sessions held in basements, living rooms, garages, and empty warehouses throughout the city.

Web Links

A compendium of related links to enhance web research and enjoyment about everything from specific jazz societies, festivals and schools to notable biographies, media contacts and more.

Research at WPI

Prof. Falco talks about the Jazz History Database and the importance of preservation

The Holy Trinity of Milford, MA

Lecture by Steve Minichiello regarding Boots Mussulli, Ziggy Minichiello (Kelly), & Bob Varney

Jazzed

The official magazine of the Jazz Education Network (JEN)

Studio 3

Performances and interviews from the nationally-acclaimed TV series

"How Can You Research Jazz and Its History?"

A lecture delivered at WPI on Sunday April 15, 2012 by Dr. Lewis Porter

Jazz Poetry

Audio, video, and written poetry inspired by jazz

ABOUT US

The Jazz History Database is an active and growing library of materials focused on the preservation and education of the History of Jazz in New England. We invite jazz historians, musicians, family members, educators and students to contribute materials!

The Jazz History Database is a service of the Massachusetts Association for Jazz Education. All materials have been processed and edited by faculty and students of Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, MA. All items are used with the permission of contributors and are edited to remove copyrighted content for which permission is not explicitly provided.

The content in this site is provided for non-profit personal or scholarly use. No content may be resold, republished, or otherwise used for profit without the express permission of its respective copyright owner.