On July 16 at 7:30 PM, Flushing Town Hall will celebrate Louis Armstrong’s jazz legacy with its second annual Jazz Jam All-Stars Concert. Featuring the high-caliber musicians from all ages, they will be backed by the Jazz jam house band led by Carol Sudhalter, with Joe Vincent Tranchina, Scott Neumann and Eric Lemon.
Flushing Town Hall (FTH), a Smithsonian affiliate, presents multi-disciplinary global arts and supports local, immigrant, national, and international artists to advocate of arts equity. FTH celebrates the history of Queens as the home of Jazz, by presenting the finest in Jazz performance. They are committed to arts education and hands-on learning, for the arts-curious, arts enthusiasts, and professional artists.
The concert will begin at 7:30 PM, opening with a Louis Armstrong tune played by the jazz house band led by Carol Sudhalter. After that, each All-Star will perform two tunes with the band. The evening will close with a finale with everyone on stage to perform another Armstrong tune.
In 2016, Carol Sudhalter took over the monthly jam as leader of Flushing Town Hall’s house band. In 2019, Flushing Town Hall hosted its first-ever Jazz Jam All-Stars concert. However, due to the pandamic, Sudhalter led virtual jams, attracting more than 7,000 viewers and 200 musicians Zooming in from over a dozen countries worldwide, including New Zealand, Italy, and South Africa.
“When we held our first Jazz Jam All-Stars concert in 2019, we were excited to make this an annual celebration of our wonderful and faithful jammers who show up month after month and really keep this alive! We are so thrilled to finally be able to host our second annual All-Stars concert, especially after such a long break due to Covid. The musicians joining us on July 16th are all incredibly talented, dedicated, and part of our wonderful community. I am honored to share the stage with them to celebrate Louis Armstrong’s legacy.”
Carol Sudhalter
Sudhalter has selected a stellar lineup of ten musicians to perform at the July 16th concert—including one as young as 15 years old—who were chosen for their high-caliber musicianship, cooperative spirit, and dedicated participation in the Louis Armstrong Legacy Monthly Jazz Jams.
Young musicians are also actively participating in Jazz Jams. The youngest All-Star began participating in the jam since 12 and grew his musical talents with the support of the community of musicians and aficionados. The 15-year-old All-Star drummer Ezra Kessler said that he is still learning from this incredible house band. And he had showcase with the saxophonist Jeff Coffin (DMB, Bela Fleck) at a virtual jazz jam last year.
In contrast to the regular Louis Armstrong Legacy Monthly Jazz Jam, participation in the Jazz Jam All-Stars concert is by invitation only. Audiences are invited to listen to the honorary jammers in-person or virtually on Saturday, July 16 at 7:30 PM ET. Cost for general in-person audience is $25, $20 for members and $15 for students. Those unable to attend the All-Stars concert in person can still join the livestream and tune in for free on YouTube or Facebook.
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