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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 2018)
Page 4 March 7, 2018 School Band on a Lifeline C ontinued froM f ront Find Local and National News at www.portlandobserver.com 3rd Annual Awards Luncheon & 2018 DATI E. J. Holifield Scholarship Award Fundraiser Event to Support SW Washington and Portland High Schools Black Student Unions Education and Career Goals “Women Leading the Way to Success” Woman of Faith Bishop Grace Osborne, Pastor, Grace Covenant Fellowship Church Woman in Labor Unions Patricia Daniels, Executive Director, Constructing Hope Woman in Education Dr. Karin Edwards, President, Portland Community College Cascade Campus lack of funding. The Sounds of Jefferson had about 14 mem- bers last year, but this year the number has dropped to five. Little hopes that more funding can get more kids to join up and encourage more parental and staff support. But there’s more to the sto- ry. After several years at Jef- ferson, Little went on to head the music program at Portland Community College’s Cas- cade Campus. He then moved to California to work in the music industry and started a performing band for young people, the Heatwave Jazz and Show Band, which toured reg- ularly and in 2016, and even performed at the Newport Jazz Festival. The Heatwave band per- formed at Jefferson about four years ago at the invitation of Vice Principal Ricky Allen, and about a year later Little started a Portland chapter, the Pacific Northwest Heatwave Show Band, based at Jefferson. Then he re-started the Sounds of Jefferson at the school. The 15 members of Heat- wave come from all over the Portland metro area, and al- though the Heatwave organi- zation is nonprofit, there is still a $75 monthly charge for high school students. Graduates are welcome for free. But Little wants to keep the Sounds of Jefferson free for all kids. The problem is lack of mon- ey. Fundraisers and a gofund- me campaign last year raised only about half the $10,000 needed annually, so Heatwave has been underwriting Sounds of Jefferson. But Heatwave is going into debt as a result even though re- sources are shared, said Sounds of Jefferson Director Estefania Tapia. To raise funds to help keep both programs alive, a gofundme account has been set up at gofundme.com/heat- wavemusicproject. “We feel like if we get the funding it would get the Jeffer- son band off the ground,” she said. “And if we had a general startup to fund both bands, it would benefit everyone.” Money raised would be used for instruments and repairs, in- structor’s salaries, funding for Pacific Northwest Heatwave to go on tour this spring, and to start funding for Sounds of Jef- ferson to tour in 2019, she said. The program is also good for students because they can learn and perform music as an ex- tracurricular without affecting their academic standards. Little said many who went through the earlier Jefferson music program went on to suc- cessful careers in music, and two members of last year’s Sounds of Jefferson band are now majoring in music at the University of Oregon. Tyler Barcos, who graduated from the Vancouver School of Arts and Academics last year, said being involved with both Sounds of Jefferson and Heat- wave is also helping him pur- sue his dreams. He has a little studio in his room where he composes and records, he plays trombone and trumpet, and he like jazz and funk. “I’m one of the more senior people, so I can help others,” he said. “My ultimate goal is to start working on the technical side of the music industry, pro- ducing and being a sound tech- nician, and still composing,” Subscribe ! 503-288-0033 Fill Out & Send To: Woman in Communications Angela Jenkins, Executive Director, KBMS - AM 1480 Radio Station Saturday, March 24, 2018 12:00pm to 2:00pm Parkrose High School Community Center 12003 NE Shaver St. Portland, OR 97220 Admission $25.00 Contact: draudreyterrell@datinstitute.org or eventbrite.com or 313-510-9968 for tickets and information. “Making Life Challenges the Keys To Your Accomplishments” Attn: Subscriptions, PO Box 3137, Portland OR 97208 $45.00 for 3 months • $80.00 for 6 mo. • $125.00 for 1 year (please include check with this subscription form) Name: Telephone: Address: or email subscriptions@portlandobserver.com he said. Jefferson High junior Daria Stallions, who plays flute and saxophone, came out of a clas- sical music background at Hos- ford Middle School in north Portland and is a member of Sounds of Jefferson. Although she’s not planning a career in music, she said the benefits are far reaching for other fields. “Just the experience of per- forming and gigs and setting things up and taking them apart, you develop skills to know how to do that, and it helps you in life,” she said. Little said the experience the kids get performing and practicing can have similar end results to that all-time favor- ite extracurricular activity — sports. “It’s like athletics. If you want to get any kind of base- ball scholarship, or basket- ball, or girls’ volleyball ball or swimming, you have to be on a traveling team,” he said. “I’ve seen other (after school) music programs that are unbe- lievable successful, throughout the country.” The gofundme campaign is just part of fundraising, and Heatwave will present a show- case fundraiser at Jefferson on Saturday, March 10. A dress rehearsal at the school auditorium proved that the band is performance ready. As an R&B cover band, the flawless performance rivaled any Las Vegas show band, with Tapia belting it out as one of the vocalists. There were only a dozen or so folks in the audience, but if the performance had been before a packed auditorium, the applause would have been deafening for outstanding ren- ditions of classics like “Proud Mary” and “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” as well songs from Bruno Mars and Tower of Power. When Pacific Northwest Heatwave hits the road next month for a March 29 through April 3 tour, they’ll perform mostly in schools, but will also have a recording session at EastWest Studio in Holly- wood. Their biggest event will be a performance at the famed Whisky A Go Go in Los Ange- les, Little said. “It’s a huge rock and roll venue and we’re a R&B cover band, so we’re really excited to get that gig,” he said.