BRATTLEBORO — The Vermont Jazz Center presents an evening dedicated to the memory of former board president, trumpeter, and educator Howard “Dr. Bebop” Brofsky on Saturday, April 19, at 8 p.m.
This tribute includes performances by Brofsky's family and close musical colleagues.
VJC's next event is May 17: Eugene Uman's Convergence Project hosting a CD release party.
Organizers say, “In every community that Brofsky settled, be it Queens College, the Louis Armstrong House, the Vermont Jazz Center, or Brattleboro, people have benefited from his wisdom, charm and generosity, and his spirit lives on through the actions of his family, colleagues, students and friends who continue to channel his enthusiasm and his dedication to the spreading of jazz.”
The Saturday evening concert celebrates Brofsky's life through music. Performers include New York-based musicians Jay Clayton, Cordelia Tapping (voice), Alex Brofsky (horn), Tim Armacost (saxophones), Ray Gallon, Jorn Swart, (piano), and Curtis Ostle (bass).
Local musicians include Scott Mullett, Sherm Fox (saxophone), Draa Hobbs (guitar), Eugene Uman (piano), George Kaye (bass), and Jon Fisher and Claire Arenius (drums).
“It is likely that surprise guests will appear at the last minute,” reads a program announcement. The event is limited to two hours.
Brofsky died Oct. 17, 2013, at 86. One of Dr. Bebop's favorite endeavors was to turn friends and students on to the exciting world of bebop, which he did through informal listening sessions wherein he would carefully select seminal recordings by the musicians who influenced him in his own development.
Charlie Parker, Lester Young, Dexter Young, and Louis Armstrong were artists who epitomized the essence of swing and nuance. Brofsky had listened to all of them live on numerous occasions and was intimately familiar with their work.
Brofsky heard Bird on 52nd Street; he'd been key representative of Queens College responsible for the establishment of the Louis Armstrong House; and he even jammed with Dexter Gordon at the session studio he built in an old barn here in Vermont.
Tribute organizers explain Brofsky assimilated and presented the authentic bebop essence; “he embraced and imparted it un-distilled, always teaching by example. Bebop was at the core of his own sound; he relished sharing its real meaning with peers and students.”
The annual concerts that Dr. Bebop offered at the Vermont Jazz Center around his birth month, May, were celebrations of jazz. They became an outlet for him to express his soul with a carefully handpicked band. For those in attendance, they were not only listening experiences, but also joyful lessons in swing, tasteful restraint, and melodic invention.
This event is open to all. There is no fee, but donations are gratefully accepted. All funds raised will go to the Vermont Jazz Center's Scholarship Fund in Howard Brofsky's name.