With nine musical events featuring both visiting and local performers (including the widely heralded Knoxville Jazz Orchestra), all in honor of internationally known pianist and bassist Donald “Silk” Brown, who as a music teacher at UT’s vigorous jazz program has been Knoxville’s resident jazz avatar for 38 years. Much of what’s happening Sunday is the initiative of young Italian-born keyboardist Margherita Fava, a recording artist who has become known as a performer in recent years.
We’ll be there, in two roles; we’ll host a booth, emphasizing our live-music history initiatives, including our recent (and free) booklet, “Knoxville: A Walking Music Guide,” and information about our ongoing musical archive of great shows in Knoxville’s history. Plus, to kick off the festival, at 11 a.m., our Jack Neely will be on stage alongside honoree Donald Brown and jazz guitarist Ben Hall, sharing a panel discussion about jazz in Knoxville.
Market Square has its own jazz history, of course; it was the site of the St. James Hotel recording sessions of 1929-30, which included a few jazz bands, from the early Big Band Maynard Baird’s Southern Serenaders to the original Tennessee Chocolate Drops. Duke Ellington and his orchestra performed on the Square in 1934. Sunday’s conversation is not scripted, but it may even veer into jazz’s surprising influence on country music.
