International Jazz Banjo Newsletter

2011 JazzSea Panama Cruise with Tim Allan and his “Banjos Aweigh”




On January 2, 2011, we all boarded the Celebrity Constellation in San Diego, California, for a 13 day Panama Canal JazzSea Cruise, ending up in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Banjo players and a variety of Jazz musicians and enthusiasts prepared for a fun 2 weeks of music as well as touring some interesting ports-of-call. We had stops in: Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas, and Huatulco, Mexico, then Puntarenas, Costa Rica, the Panama Canal, then Cartagena, Columbia, and finally up to Ft. Lauderdale.




Since the ship left from California, there were more folks from the west coast onboard. It was good to see a fresh assortment of faces in the “Banjos Aweigh” band because of this. One half of this band consisted of banjo players, but we had a tuba, clarinet, violin, mandolin, ukulele, washboards, gut bucket , singers, and even dancers joining in the fun. Anyone was welcome to play, no matter how proficient they were on their instrument because it all sounded good as an ensemble. Everyone started together and ended together, right from the first day of our practicing. By the time we performed our final concert, all 27 people felt comfortable and put on a great show. You can see a few excerpts on my Youtube channel: www.youtube.com/user/timallanstrings.




Next January 2, 2012, the JazzSea Cruise will leave on Holland America’s Maasdam, from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, for an 11- day Caribbean Cruise to 7 different islands. If you are interested in listening to 3 wonderful jazz bands or playing with the “Banjos Aweigh” band which I will conduct, please check out www.jazzsea.com. You can email me with any questions at: tim@timallan.com.



TIM ALLAN IN PFORZHEIM MAY 23 and 24

I will be back in Germany to perform on banjo and guitar at the Ratskeller in downtown Pforzheim on May 23 and 24 at 20:00h each night. If you have any questions, please email me at: tim@timallan.com.