When Melissa Walker flung open the doors to Jazz House Kids—a Montclair-based nonprofit promoting jazz education—she had no way of knowing how many youngsters would fit under its roof.
Almost a decade later, Jazz House Kids has reached thousands of students throughout New Jersey with its workshops and musical ensembles. “We want to put jazz in the hands of as many people as possible,” says Walker, a jazz vocalist and executive director of Jazz House.
The multifaceted Jazz House Kids (jazzhousekids.org) is sometimes hard to define. It is a collective of traveling music pros willing to donate their time and talents to teach in Jersey schools short on music-education funds. But it also is a place for trumpet-tooting kids to come after school for band practice. And it’s a vehicle for helping educators strengthen their music curriculum and teaching skills. This summer, Jazz House Kids will launch a camp program. It’s going beyond kids, too. It recently instituted an adult jazz ensemble and a plan for a seniors group is in the works.
But of all the programs Walker has masterminded, the one jazz insiders anticipate most is “Jazz for Generations,” which this year features Esperanza Spalding, a highly touted 25-year-old bassist/vocalist. On June 3, Spalding will teach an afternoon master class to students from more than twenty public high school bands at the South Orange Performing Arts Center. That night, she will talk about her art and perform. Tickets are available through JHK’s and SOPAC’s websites. (Guitarist Pat Metheny was the guest teacher/performer in 2008, and trumpeter Chris Botti in 2009.)
A not-so-secret weapon for Walker is her famous husband, Grammy-winning bassist Christian McBride, who serves on the Jazz House board, and frequently takes part in its programs. Walker, 45, has a music career of her own; her latest album, In the Middle of It All, was released last year by Sunnyside Records.
Ringleted, smiling, and ever-ready to tap her toe to the sounds issuing from the Jazz House studio in Montclair, Walker is clear on her organization’s mission: “We’re a net for the next generation of jazz musicians. Take that net away, and they fall through.”
Jazz House Kids has the worst employees in the world. Tedd Chubb
and Laura Montgue don’t have professionalism or kindness to anyone that needs
help with a situation. When they realized, I was an African American woman,
they made some derogatory statements. Do not allow your children to participate
in any activities. Jazz House of Kids are accepting money without offering
proper services. They are very problematic people that worsen the situation. I
am letting every person and sponsor know, not donate towards Jazz House Kids.