Keeping Jazz Alive in Our Schools

The Alex Acuna Story

Bob Barboza has just completed a ten-part interview of Alex Acuna the drummer and percussionist of the world famous group “Weather Report”.  This is a part of a new jazz series of interviews that is all about keeping “Jazz Alive in the School”.  The interviews will give you an inside look into the king of Latin percussion Alex Acuna.  As a special treat we have included a special video so that you can get a feel of Alex’s playing.

Alex Acuna Interview

Keeping Jazz Alive in Our K-12 Schools
And Interview with Alex Acuna
By Bob Barboza



I do a column for PNN The Personal News Network called Where in the World is Bob Barboza.  Right now I am working on my jazz project.  I am traveling to see the legends of jazz in person.  This week I went to visit Alex Acuna drummer for the group "weather Report".  Alex is such a great guy that you would want to see him even if he was not one of the top drummers/percussionists in the world.  It was such a treat to spend the day with Alex.


I am on a mission to see what I can do to keep jazz alive in the minds of your children.  Jazz is an American art form and we need to keep it alive. 

We have to start somewhere.  I love fusion jazz so I wanted to explore the original group Weather Report.  



Photo:  This is the "Fusion Jazz Group Weather Report" from left to right.  Joe Zawinal, Joco Pastorius, Alex Acuna, Wayne Shorter and Marolo Badrena


Kid's Talk Radio wanted to do a live interview with Alex Acuna.  We contacted Alex and he agreed.  The group was magical we they were together.  When they improved music they were at their best.

What are kids doing talking to old school fusion jazz musicians? They are learning about the roots of jazz from the masters themselves.  The piano player and bass player have died.  Their recordings live on.  Kid's Talk Radio has decided to start with Alex Acuna.  We explored the family man, the musician, and person who is on a mission to help the people of Peru.  We invite you to listen to our Kid's Talk Radio Jazz Mini Series featuring Alex Acuna.

Alejandro Neciosup Acua aka Alex Acua (born December 12, 1944) is a Peruvian Afro-Cuban jazz drummer and percussionist.

Born in Pativilca, Peru, Acua played in local bands from the age of ten, and moved to Lima as a teenager. At the age of eighteen he joined the band of Perez Prado, and in 1967 he moved to Puerto Rico. In 1974 Acua moved to Las Vegas, working with artists such as Elvis Presley and Diana Ross, and the following year he joined the jazz-fusion group Weather Report, appearing on the albums Black Market and Heavy Weather. Acua left Weather Report in 1978, and became a session musician in California, recording and playing live with (amongst many others) Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell, Ella Fitzgerald, Chick Corea, Whitney Houston, Plcido Domingo, Phil Keaggy, Sam Phillips, former Weather Report bandmates Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul, Herbie Hancock, Carlos Santana, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Beck, Roberta Flack, U2, and Al Jarreau. He can be found on recordings by musicians as culturally diverse as Lee Ritenour, Peter Gabriel, Johnny Clegg, Robbie Robertson & Jackson Browne.

In the 1980s Acuna also recorded and toured with the Christian jazz band Koinonia, which featured session musicians Abraham Laboriel, Justo Almario, Hadley Hockensmith, Harland Rogers, and Bill Maxwell. He played on Willy DeVille's Crow Jane Alley album.

He has also worked as an educator at University of California, Los Angeles and Berklee College of Music.

Alex lives in Southern California and he is the first call for major motion pictures.  Bob Barboza did an exclusive interview of Alex Acuna and then they spent some time running over odd time signatures from Bob Barboza visual jazz opera Cabo Verde Dreams.

I invite you to listen to ten audio and 1 video segments of Alex Acuna One-On-One.   Visit: http://KidsTalkRadio.PNN.com.

Try the Alex Acuna Video Below! Just click the play button.

Alex Acuna Interview Video

We invite you to take a look at our Alex Acuna Video Interview.

"Where in the World is Herbie Hancock?"

Jazz in the Schools

We want to ask Herbie about what ideas he might have to keep jazz alive in the schools.

Jazz is an American art form.  Where are the jazz musicians coming from?  

Herbie Hancock is a jazz musician and much more.  We are trying very hard to get an interview with Herbie.  We saw him at the 2008 NAMM  Show and there was a big line of people around the block waiting to shake his hand.  At the time we did not know that he was going to the 2008 Grammy for best contemporary Jazz Album.  Can you believe that Herbie Hancock played a Mozart Piano Concerto with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the age of 11.  This means that Herbie can really play the piano.   

What was Herbie Hancock like when he was in elementary school?

What kind of a high school student was Herbie Hancock?

In 1958, Herbie Hancock had a double major in college.  He studied music and electrical engineering at Grinnell College.  It would be a good idea that we listen to his music and if we get lucky, we might just get to interview Herbie Hancock.

Kid's Are Voting for Kenny G Saxophones

Kenny G Is Turning Heads With A New CD and a New Line of Saxophones

The Spanish community is going to love Kenny G's new CD.


We just about all know who Kenny G is at this point.  But what you don't know is that Kenny G is turning heads with his new CD and Saxophones.  I had the pleasure of hearing Kenny G play songs from his new CD on his new soprano saxophone from about three feet away from where I was sitting.


Kenny's new CD Rhythm and Romance is a unique combination of rich Samba, Salsa and Bossa Nova love songs anchored by Kenny's intoxicating and signature saxophone melodies. From the classic ballad "Sabor a Mi" to the romantic "Besame Mucho," Kenny has created a tantalizing album unlike any other in his catalogue. On this seductive album, Kenny performs with some of the best Latin musicians including Alex Acuna of Weather Report (drums), Ramon Stagnaro (guitar), John Pena (bass), Michito Sanchez (percussion) Enrique Martinez (accordion), Nathan East (bass), Paulino Da Costa (percussion) and producer Walter Afanasieff (piano) to create a truly infectious rhythmic style. The album also features guest vocals by rising Chilean star Barbara Munoz and Spanish-speaking pop/rock sensation, Camila.  This new CD is a different side of Kenny G that both kids and adults can enjoy.  I wish we could get Kenny G in all of our schools.  Kenny G is a fantastic motivational speaker who was a straight "A" student in high school.  Kid's Talk Radio is going to do everything in our power to see that kids get an opportunity to get some of his saxophones and CD's into the school.  

The Kenny G Dream Team

You can't build a great saxophone for kids and professionals without a great team behind you.

First of all, it is not easy to enter the saxophone world with a new line of saxophones.  However, if anyone can do it, Kenny G can.  He has a secret weapon called Rheuben.   Rheuben is arguably the best saxophone repairman on the west coast of the United States.  This is the person that helped Kenny G to realize a dream.  That dream was to build a line of Saxophones based on his own personal super sax.  I my opinion, Kenny G has built a super line of saxophones that will be affordable for kids.  These horns will be much easier for kids to play.  The new student and professional line of saxophones will be built in China.  Rubin will be standing at the end of the assembly line to make sure that every saxophone that ships out of the factor is a super sax for both kids and professional.  After all, if you can sound anywhere close to Kenny G sound, you are having a great day.   Be sure to listen to our exclusive Kenny G interviews.


Kenny GTM Educational-SeriesTM Alto Saxophones

KGAS10L Educational Alto Saxophone

The alto is designed by Kenny for the young student of the saxophone and provides great intonation, response and a very friendly finger board.
Kenny chose a facing for his mouthpiece provided with the instrument that make it easier for the student produce a good tone from the first few times they play the instrument.

Retail: $ 1,495.00

This alto features a thumb rest design that will help the saxophonist keep the correct hand position in the right hand and help prevent tension in the right hand.





You can find out more information about Kenny G and listen to some of our interviews at the following websites:

www.KidsTalkRadioLA.com

Http://kidstalkradio.pnn.com

www.PNN.com

Great Women in Music

The Wonderful Musical Women Kids Should Know About

This is one in a series of articles and podcast about women in music.


Evelyn Glennie is a wonderful woman you should know about.  When I first started to do my research about Evelyn I was intrigued right from the start.  She had performed with so many great musicians.  She was horned by her country with the title of Dame Evelyn Glennie for playing music.  Now that is something different.  Could you image president George Bush giving you a national tile for playing your musical instrument?  The more I read about Evelyn the more I liked her.  I had a chance to interview Evelyn in person and I blew it.  I got too busy doing things that in retrospect, were not that important.  The last time she was at Royce Hall at UCLA was ten years ago.  Kid's Talk Radio  sent two people to Royce Hall to hear Evelyn Glennie play live.  She is a fantastic speaker and her solo percussion concert was a treat.  We invite you to visit Google and to type in her name for more important details about this super star.  We have an audiotape, which is a conversation between Ronnie Ciago and Barboza sharing their impression of the UCLA Royce Hall Concert featuring Evelyn Glennie.  

Evelyn Glennie spent some quality time with students in the Los Angeles Unified Students and Kid's Talk Radio LA is going to report on what she did with the kids.  We will get back to you with more news on Evelyn.  We hope that she does not wait ten years to return back to the United States.  It is important that more kids learn about this wonderful woman of music and the world.

Bob Barboza
Kid's Talk Radio

We need a NAMM Show for kids.

The NAMM Show is a musicians dream.  Kid's Talk Radio will be at the NAMM Show all week.  We will start off with a special interview of Kenny G.  Kenny has invented a new line of saxophones that are easy for kids to play.  We will be posting photos all week to help to keep you informed as to who is attending the NAMM Show and what they are playing and wearing.  You will be able to keep up with all of the latest styles.  Some of the photos will be from all corners of the music world.  Kid's Talk Radio will bring you the news as it happens.

Musicians You Must Learn About

Dom Famulardo and Vic Firth are great friends and great musicians.  We want all of the kids at Kid's Talk Radio to learn all about these great human beings.  In fact, you will receive 1000 points for writing a Kid's Talk Radio Story about Dom and Vic.  These are musical stories that need to be told.  We bumped into Dom Famularo and Vic Firth at the 2008 NAMM Show.  This is a show that has a sign, "No Kids Allowed'.  I met Dom for only two seconds and I felt like I had known him all of my life.  He called Vic Firth over and we took some classic photos.  Vic Firth is the king of the drumsticks.  Dom Famulardo is the king of the drums.  Check them out on Google and earn 1000 points.

Kid's Talk at the United Nations

The Kid's Talk Radio reporters were covering the Jane Barboza solo flute concert at the United Nations Association-Orange County, California meeting.  We had the opportunity to listen to the keynote speaker Dr. Paula Garb, Associate Director International Studies Department at UC Irvine.  Her special topic was: "Action Towards a Peaceful World". 

UNA-USA   Informs, Educates, & Mobilizes

The United Nations Association of the United States of America (UNA-USA) is a not-for-profit, nonpartisan organization that supports the work of the United Nations and encourages active civic participation in the most important social and economic issues facing the world today. As the nation's largest grassroots foreign policy organization and the leading center of policy research on the UN and global issues, UNA-USA offers Americans the opportunity to connect with issues confronted by the UN-from global health and human rights to the spread of democracy, equitable development and international justice.

Through its work, UNA-USA educates Americans about the work of the United Nations, and encourages public support for strong US leadership in the U.N

Let's teach harmonica in the schools.

Where did all the harmonic players come from?


At Kid's Talk Radio we had the pleasure of interviewing Harmonica Super Star Magic Li and his star student 11th grader Megan Lewis.  We are planning to features their interview and some of there fine harmonica playing in the days and weeks to come.

We want to do all that we can to support music in the schools.  One of my special projects is to keep jazz alive, by encouraging young people to give jazz a chance.  Megan has been introduced to blues harmonica playing and the relation to jazz.  Megan was fun to interview and you are going to learn a lot.
 

Magic Li answers the flowing questions and much more:

1.    Whats with harmonic music?
2.    What is going on with elementary school music?
3.    What is involved in playing the harmonica?
4.    What is the downside of not having music in our schools?
5.    What is the history of the harmonic?
6.    What about jazz in the schools?
7.    What is it like playing harmonica in high school?


For those of you that are new to the harmonic, here is a little definition.

A harmonica is a free reed wind instrument. It has multiple, variably-tuned brass or bronze reeds which are secured at one end over an airway slot in which they can freely vibrate. The vibrating reeds repeatedly interrupt the airstream to produce sound.

Unlike most free reed instruments (such as reed organs, accordions, and melodicas), the harmonica lacks a keyboard - instead, the player selects the notes to be played by placing the mouth over the proper airways, usually discrete holes in the front of the instrument. Each hole communicates with one or more reeds, depending on the type of harmonica. Because a reed mounted above a slot is made to vibrate more easily by air from above, reeds accessed by a mouthpiece hole often may be selected further by choice of breath direction (blowing, drawing). Some harmonicas, primarily the chromatic harmonica, also include a spring-loaded button-actuated slide that, when depressed, redirects the airflow.

The harmonica is most commonly used in blues and American folk music, but is also used in jazz, classical music, country music, rock and roll, and pop music. Increasingly, the harmonica is finding its place in more electronically generated music, such as dance and hip-hop, as well as funk and acid jazz.


Questions about the harmonica?


If you are thinking about playing the harmonic and have questions for Megan or Magic Li, send them to Kid's Talk Radio.

Where can I find more information?

Super School University
Kid's Talk Radio Los Angeles

The Wind Stick

The Didjeridu(Didgeridoo)

Kid's Talk Radio Aboriginal Didgeridoo's for Kids

At Kid's Talk Radio we find very exciting ways to get kids excited about music and reading. Our visual jazz operas are designed for spoken word, music, art, and language arts. We take creativity to a whole new level. Our online Didgeridoo class takes the cake for creativity. This class will soon be ready for some of gifted and talented programs in Long Beach, California. We are working hard to get the new distrance learning program ready for 2008. For more information send your e-mail to Suprschool@aol.com.

Visit a didgeridoo workshop and

paint or burn your own didgeridoo

If you rather paint or burn your own didgeridoo, you have to visit this didgeridoo workshop at Cairns Australia -what a good excuse to jump on the first plane! - and spend a whole day with Judy, Mat, Keisha and Sani.

For $180 you will get a termite hollowed didgeridoo you can finish to your liking, didgeridoo playing lesson, transport and a family meal, plus swimming in a rainforest waterhole. You will get unlimited tea or coffee and a warm hug, as well, from this friendly family.

When visiting Tropical North Queensland, it is a worthwhile adventure to undertake and if your painting is not very "aboriginal" you can buy anoriginal aboriginal didgeridoo on the spot or in our on-line boutique.
Plus, you can learn first hand in this didgeridoo workshop how the termite hollowed eucalyptus stick can be transformed into a didgeridoo, what didgeridoo construction involves. You will find out that didgeridoo making is not a very attractive trade to follow; it is very hard work in dust and heat. But if you fall in love with the trade, nonetheless, one problem will persist, you have to find out yourself how to import the termites to your country and teach them to hollow the branches of your didgeridoo producing trees (and not your floor boards). You can make a didgeridoo without the hard work of the termites, but then your "didgeridoo" will lack an essential property - its spirit.