Creating a euphonious sound with their myriad instruments, the musicians of the Diablo Valley College Night Jazz Band and Jazz Ensemble performed for a large audience at the Diablo Valley College Performing Arts Center May 11.
The band treated those in attendance with performances of famous jazz tunes, incorporating beautiful solos, and an original composition written by Rolf Johnson, a musician in the band.
The performance was bittersweet. After over 40 years of attracting both aspiring and professional musicians to DVC, the DVC Night Jazz Band had its entire funding cut by the administration due to the state budget crisis. As a result, the iconic band will no longer be a class must cut ties with DVC, becoming the Diablo Valley Night Jazz Band.
“It felt like an advertisement for the college music program,” the lead trumpet player Dan Fava said. “We played at festivals, concerts and with other schools, promoting the performing arts and music program at DVC.”
The Night Jazz Band frequently plays at community events and twice a year at Yoshi’s, the prestigious jazz club, in Oakland.
Not only is the Night Jazz Band DVC’s most visible performing arts group, but it is also the longest running community college night jazz band in the state.
Fava joined the Night Jazz Band in 1972 when he was attending DVC full-time. When Fava was no longer a full-time student, he continued to enroll in the Night Jazz Band, while working as a mechanic and a professional musician.
For the past 16 years, the Night Jazz Band has brought famous jazz musicians to DVC to rehearse and perform with the band. Just a few of the notable musicians are Art Dougherty and Jim Hodge.
“I love the Night Jazz Band because it is a good opportunity to play with professional musicians,” Devin Dominguez said. Dominguez is pursuing a degree in music at California State University, East Bay, and is the lead woodwinds player in the Night Jazz Band.
The Night Jazz Band is not an essential course for transferring. The majority of musicians in the Night Jazz Band are not full-time students at DVC and stay in the class longer than two years. This puts the class first on the chopping block for budget cuts.
“The California Community Colleges are changing their mission statement,” Night Jazz Band Director Rory Snyder said. “The mission statement was ‘lifelong learning’ and due to the lack of lack of funding, that has changed.”
Because the class has lost funding for the fall 2011 Semester, the band will use a trust fund to pay for its expenses.
Each semester the new, unaffiliated Diablo Valley Night Jazz Band will place money earned from playing concerts and fundraisers into the trust fund to finance the next semester.
The Diablo Valley Night Jazz Band will continue to play at jazz clubs such as Yoshi’s, and hopes to attract professional musicians as long as the trust fund allows them to do so, but without attracting prospective musicians to DVC.
The Diablo Valley Night Jazz Band is working hard to maintain the prestige of their band and has found generous, grass roots support from the community. Wednesday’s concert served as a benefit concert. To contribute to their effort you can visit www.dvc.edu/foundation and make a tax deductable donation.
