Where is Kansas City jazz headed, economically and artistically?
I then cornered three veteran Kansas City musicians for their takes on the subject. Mike Ning is a pianist, now retired from his Hallmark day job, who stays as busy as he wants, “mostly just to have fun.” He is an optimist. “There is plenty of work, depending on your instrument; except most of the jobs are not pure jazz. From an artistic standpoint, Kansas City jazz just keeps getting better. One of the reasons is that great musicians like (bassist) Bob Bowman and (guitarist) Danny Embrey have come back to town and have raised the general level of playing and musicianship. “I also find more and more young musicians playing further beyond the mainstream. They are certainly more advanced than I was when I was young. Musicians like (trombonist) Tim Perryman and (saxophonist) Gerald Dunn, as well as products of Paseo Academy and the UMKC Conservatory are taking the music to new levels.” Gerald Dunn handles the booking for what many consider this town’s finest jazz venue, the Blue Room at 1
