Jul 9, 2024 11:35 AM
Trumpeter, Educator Jim Rotondi Dies at 61
Jim Rotondi, a renowned hard-bop trumpeter, composer and educator, died suddenly on July 7 at a hospital in France. He…
Amirtha Kidambi is among the artists who have signed the “Public Letter of Concern by Working Artists for Ethical Cancellations.”
(Photo: Chris Weiss)As initiatives to assist musicians during a time of lost and postponed gigs due to the coronavirus pandemic continue to roll out—including the Louis Armstrong Emergency Relief Fund for Jazz Musicians and COVID-19 Arts Aid PHL—a public letter asks that cultural institutions work with performers on finding a solution.
Vocalist and bandleader Amirtha Kidambi said that about 400 musicians, including Vijay Iyer, Mary Halvorson, Matana Roberts and Marc Ribot, have signed on to the “Public Letter of Concern by Working Artists for Ethical Cancellations.”
“I started this initiative particularly because I’m a bandleader, and saw a path forward for immediately getting money to pay out to my band, which they expected before April 1. ... This is one particular short term solution, that will only deal with previously contracted gigs that were scheduled to take place in the near future,” Kidambi wrote in an email to DownBeat. “[The letter] does not address the government or other potentially initiatives. While the response [to economic concerns has been] diffuse, I think it is important to work on every possible front, as the timeline to get money from a grant or from the city/state/federal government would be much further out. We have to work on multiple fronts. Not everyone will be able to apply for emergency grants, unemployment or other funding, so there needs to be other ways to get folks money.”
The letter, which initially was posted March 31 and has no deadline to sign on, outlines three main objectives: artists garnering a percentage of fees for previously arranged performances, renegotiating postponed events and the development of alternative performance models.
The letter can be read in full here. DB
Jim Rotondi was acclaimed for his wide, round trumpet tone, remarkable virtuosity and assured swing.
Jul 9, 2024 11:35 AM
Jim Rotondi, a renowned hard-bop trumpeter, composer and educator, died suddenly on July 7 at a hospital in France. He…
Charles Lloyd, seen here at the 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, makes DownBeat Poll history!
Jul 11, 2024 12:23 PM
The incomparable Charles Lloyd swept the 72nd Annual DownBeat Critics Poll, becoming the first artist ever to earn…
“Being president of Blue Note has been one of the coolest things that ever happened to me,” Was said. “It’s a gas to serve as one of the caretakers of that legacy.”
Jun 4, 2024 12:21 PM
Sitting with Don Was is a comfortable and unhurried exercise. He may seem slightly reserved at first, but ideas and…
The Century Room in downtown Tucson, Arizona, was born in 2021.
May 21, 2024 12:58 PM
Players got to play. It’s long been a part of jazz history: When there’s a venue vacuum, when there are fewer…
“She reminds me of my childhood and makes we want to cry,” Cécile McLorin Salvant, pictured here with writer Ashley Kahn, said of Dianne Reeves.
Jun 11, 2024 12:31 PM
Italy’s Umbria Jazz Winter is one of those rare annual festivals that not only coincides with a major holiday —…
