Hi Jazz Lovers,

It's been awhile since I've updated you about Aaron and Anja.  And since
Aaron and Anja are heading to the Pacific Northwest for a series of
performances in May, I thought that this would be a good time to send out a
mailing.  Wonderful things have been going on over here, on the East Coast
of the country.  Aaron's been working hard at Manhattan School of Music and
doing well.  He's also been gigging around town quite a bit, usually about 8
times a month, playing as the Aaron Parks Trio with different sidemen.  He's
played at The Knitting Factory twice and at Kavehas a couple of times.  He
plays pretty regularly at The Blue Water Grill, The Metronome, and
Caviarteria.

Aaron went to Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival this year again, and won First
Place in the college division, Piano Soloist.  He finally got to play on the
main stage, something he had been looking forward to for awhile.  His trio
from the Manhattan School of Music was also accepted to perform at the North
Sea Jazz Festival this July.  That should be great fun.  Again this year, he
will play at The Hague Jazz Convention, which comes right before North Sea.
He's also excited about being accepted into the Banff International Jazz
Workshop, which is very difficult to get into.

The most exciting bit of news is that Aaron just won the 5th American Jazz
Piano Competition in Indiannapolis, Indiana, sponsored by the American
Pianists Association.  They selected 6 semi-finalists pianists from around
the country to compete on Friday, April 20.  They bent the rules a bit for
him to even be considered.  The rules state that you must be between 18 and
30 years of age.  But since he was turning 18 this year (October), they let
him send in a tape.  Everyone else was pretty close to the upper age limit.

The details are below, but in a snapshot, he won $10,000 in cash, the
production of a CD, and two years of professional assistance by the American
Pianists Association.  He's called a Cole Porter Jazz Fellow.  Click on the
link below to see the American Pianists Association press release:

    http://www.americanpianists.org/aparks.html

You may also want to see a related article from the Indianapolis Star:

    http://www.indystar.com/print/articles/avs/harvey25.html

In the Friday night preliminaries, he performed "Miss Otis Regrets (she is
unable to lunch today)" by Cole Porter, but in a very unusual solo
arrangement in mostly slow 7 with a lovely latin groove.  He also played
"Alone Together" in the first set.  In the second set on Friday night, he
opened with a reharmonized version of Chelsea Bridge on solo piano and
closed with a new latin tune of his, tentatively entitled The Barron (for
Kenny).  It was quite a night.

Saturday night, at the finals, he opened with his original blues, Greasy
Little Cookies, off of his just released CD, played Miss Otis Regrets again,
and closed with Voyage as an up-tempo latin that went into swing half-way
through the solo section.  If you ask me, it was Miss Otis Regrets that
really won him the competition.  It was very different from anything else,
and the audience seemed to adore it.  They also loved his crazy rhythmic
things that he did on the other tunes.

The judges were Terry Teachout (music critic & contributor to Time Magazine,
The Washington Post, the Sunday New York Times, and NPR).  Afro-Caribbean
pianist Hilton Ruiz, and a Polish pianist/composer, Wlodek Pawlik.  Eric
Reed was supposed to be a judge, but at the last minute he was replaced by
Hilton Ruiz.

Other news about Aaron is that his quintet album, The Wizard, with Jay
Thomas, Jeff Johnson, and members of the 1999 Grammy High School Jazz
Ensemble is now out and available on our website, www.KeynoteRecords.com.
It will also be available on Amazon.com in about a week, and at all of his
gigs.

Aaron will be performing at several venues in the Seattle area in mid-May.
His first performance is at the Seattle Art Museum on Thursday, May 10, as a
part of the Art of Jazz series put on by Earshot Jazz.  He'll be performing
with Clipper Anderson and Dean Hodges.  He will also be in Port Townsend at
The Upstage Restaurant on Friday, May 11, at the South Whidbey High School
for the Langley Jazz Festival Benefit Concert on Saturday, May 12, at Tula's
on Thursday, May 17, and at Bake's Place on Saturday, May 19.  Jay Thomas
will be on all of the gigs except the one at the Seattle Art Museum and the
one at The Upstage in Port Townsend.  Anja will be joining the group at The
Upstage and at South Whidbey High School.  While he's in town Aaron will be
recording a duo album with Jay Thomas.  The performance at Bake's Place will
also be a live recording performance.  Aaron and Anja will also be
interviewed and taped performing on "KCTS Connects (Channel 9)," which I
believe will air at 7:30 pm on Thursday night, May 10.

As for Anja, she's been making waves in the New York scene as well.
Probably the most exciting thing for her is that she has hooked up with Jon
Faddis and Lew Soloff, both of whom have taken her under their wings.  She
has now performed twice with the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band at Carnegie Hall,
first as a section player reading the Second Trumpet Book and soloing on a
blues, and most recently playing the head to "Some Day My Prince Will Come"
and then playing with the section in a tribute to Miles Davis.  The
all-female big band, Diva, has invited her to their big band rehearsals
also.  She also played at Radio City Music Hall a couple of months ago,
backing the Cadillacs!  That was fun for her, especially getting paid $150
for ten minutes of playing!  She's been asked to back up the Cadillacs again
in September, this time at the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem.  An
article just came out on her and the La Guardia High School Jazz Band, where
she goes to school, in the New York Post (Satuday, April 28 issue).

Other news is that La Guardia High School came in Third Place in the big
band and the combo divisions at the Monterey Jazz Festival High School
Competition.  This is quite an honor because only the top ten bands that
apply to the festival are even invited to perform there.  She plays lead in
the big band and was one of the soloists in the combo.  La Guardia High
School has been invited to perform at the Monterey Jazz Festival this
September.

Here's the schedule in Seattle this May.

Hope to see you at one of the performances.

Take care,

Judie

(Please call for cover charges and reservations)

Thursday, May 10    5:30-7:30

    Aaron Parks Trio with Clipper Anderson and Dean Hodges
    Art of Jazz Series
    Seattle Art Museum
    2nd Avenue & University
    Seattle (206) 654-3100

    (Tickets available at the door)

Friday, May 11        Sets at 8 9:30 10:30 pm $5 cover

    Aaron Parks Quartet with Anja Parks
    The Upstage Restaurant
    923 Washington Street
    Port Townsend, Washington
    (360) 385-2216

    (Reservations suggested)

Saturday, May 12    7 p.m.

    Aaron Parks Quintet with Jay Thomas and Anja Parks
    South Whidbey High School
    Maxwelton Road
    Langley, Washington
    (360) 221-6979

    (Tickets available at the door)

Thursday, May 17    8 p.m.

    Aaron Parks Quartet with Jay Thomas
    Tula's
    2214 2nd Avenue
    Seattle, Washington
    (206) 443-4221

    (Reservations suggested)

Friday, May 18        8 p.m.

    Aaron Parks & Jay Thomas Duo
    Live Recording Project
    Bake's Place
    5024 218th Avenue N.E.
    Redmond
    (425) 898-0311

    (Reservations suggested; small & intimate setting)

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