International Jazz Banjo Newsletter

It’s been an interesting year for me so far. On August 20, I had the honour of playing my banjo with one of Europe’s best known band leaders, Chris Barber. He made a rare appearance in Canada, without his big band, and accepted an invitation to perform with Toronto jazz guitarist, Jeff Healey, and his band, the Jazz Wizards. Having played with these musicians before, I was also invited to perform. You can hear a 7 minute clip of Chris Barber, who is 75 years old, and the band, on my website: www.timallan.com . What a good night! This was the same weekend as the F.I.G.A. gathering in the U.S.A , which was a shame to miss, but I was certainly glad to be Toronto, instead, for this musical event.
Earlier this year, at the end of May, I performed on banjo and guitar in Sinsheim and Pforzheim, Germany. While in Germany, I borrowed a nice B&D #9 tenor from Dr. Dierk Frerichs, who also arranged the Sinsheim show for me, and for his band. The Pforzheim concert was arranged by Rainer Daub, also a tenor banjoist. I actually met Rainer a few years ago in Florida at an entertainment spot where I perform weekly, called “Snook Haven”. Rainer joined me for a couple of numbers on the Pforzheim stage. I was also delighted to have Juergen and Susanne Kulus in the Pforzheim audience, so I invited him up to the stage to play on his plectrum. At the end of the night, I invited Juergen and Rainer and Dierk up to the stage for a fun finale. Thanks again to them for sharing their talents.
This was the third year that I performed in southern Germany along with giving workshops. However, this time I gave a guitar workshop at the Steinbrecher music store, arranged by the store owner, Frank Steinbrecher. Usually I have given banjo workshops, so this was a change of pace. Next spring, I’ll return to perform in Pforzheim and I’ll be giving two workshops, one for banjo and the other for guitar, since it was so well received. If you know of any banjo or guitar students interested in these workshops, please have them contact me at www.timallan.com.
My wife, Nida, and I drove around Italy for two weeks, then returned by way of Zurich, Switzerland, where we visited a banjo collector friend, Hellmuth Fischer. He is in the process of cataloguing his instruments on his new website with the intent of selling some of them. You will be in for a treat looking through his collection when he finally has it online. We missed seeing 2 other friends, unfortunately, Chris Mitchell and Ruedi Bleuer, but hopefully next year there will be more time.
For the last two Januaries, I have performed on the Holland America Jazzsea Cruise ship, playing a solo concert, giving banjo instruction and workshops, as well as conducting a 50 or 60 piece “pickup” banjo band. This coming January, I’ll be on the cruise again, conducting the amateur banjo band which we call “Banjos Aweigh”. Anyone can join this band, but it is predominantly a banjo band. At the end of the cruise, we all perform in the ship’s main lounge, all without sheet music. That’s why we rehearse the show everyday for an hour or so. The rest of the time you can watch the six other Jazz bands playing in various venues, or take tours on the Caribbean islands. If this cruise interests you, you could email www.jazzsea.com for information or contact me at www.timallan.com for the Banjos Aweigh show repertoire. After the cruise, I’ll be back performing weekly at that intriguing restaurant by the river, in Florida, called Snook Haven. If you are visiting Florida in the winter, you should try to come by this place. The Gulf Coast Banjo Society uses this location for their weekly rehearsal/performances at lunchtime every Thursday. I play there Tuesday nights, and there is other similar entertainment every day. Drop me an email if you are visiting the Sarasota , Florida area, or the Toronto area in Canada.
Tim Allan