Letter from the Editor: “A Jerry Jazz Musician Experience”

December 10th, 2025

Dear Readers:

…..I thought I would share a bit of what I’ve been up to of late, and make you aware of a new endeavor of mine.

…..In addition to the work editing Jerry Jazz Musician, I have begun publishing books and producing live events under the name “A Jerry Jazz Musician Experience.”

…..The experiences have thus far included:

* The poetry anthology titled Kinds of Cool: An Interactive Collection of Jazz Poetry, in which readers can scan QR codes printed in the book with their smart technology devices to hear poets read their work and to listen to and view select historic recorded musical performances relevant to the poems. The result is a unique experience with the culture of jazz music. Volume I was published in January, and Vol II (featuring women poets) will be published in the very near future. While not exactly a New York Times bestseller, it is a creative accomplishment I am quite proud of, and intend to build on.

*New poetry anthologies under the umbrella of “A Jerry Jazz Musician Experience” are in development, including one titled “Black History in Poetry,” an interactive collection that aims to give readers a way to visualize Black history from a fresh perspective. I am very proudly co-editing this collection with the prominent poet Connie Johnson. (Deadline for submissions is January 9, 2026, so there is still time to have your work considered. Click here for details).

*In-home salons featuring conversations with noted local (Portland, OR) musicians and personalities. For example, I have hosted events in my home that include 1) the bassist Chuck Israels talking about his experience playing bass in the Bill Evans Trio during the 1960’s; 2) the legendary Portland drummer Mel Brown and his son Christopher (also a top drummer in Portland) in conversation about the dynamics of their relationship (as father, son, mentor, protégé, etc), their careers as musicians, and Portland’s jazz past, present and future; and 3) local blues giant Curtis Salgado in conversation with Terry Currier – the owner of Music Millennium, an important, nationally recognized independent record store for well over 50 years.

The purpose of these salons is to build community and friendships around attendees’ mutual love for jazz music. They have been wildly successful in doing so.

…..Now, I have embarked on a larger scale project, a live event called “The Weary Blues: Celebrating the Harlem Renaissance and Langston Hughes” that features the local spoken word poet Emmett Wheatfall (who I have published on Jerry Jazz Musician several times over the recent years), as well as a local band led by the drummer Christopher Brown that includes the internationally known pianist and educator Darrell Grant, and two sensational talents, the trumpeter Noah Simpson and the bassist Garrett Baxter.

…..Emmett will be performing poetry from Hughes’ 1926 (and first) collection of poetry The Weary Blues, which includes his classic poems “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” “The Weary Blues,” “I, Too, Sing America,” and “The Dream Keeper.” My fiscal sponsoring (non-profit) partner is the Oregon Music Hall of Fame. (If you’d like to make a tax-deductible contribution to help me with the expenses of this event – which I would of course appreciate – you can do so by clicking here). I will post the press release for this event on Jerry Jazz Musician in the very near future.

…..I am considering producing other projects for 2026, and will keep you posted.

…..I am so grateful to host this wonderful community of creative people, and I appreciate the time you took to read this update. Feel free to reach out to me if you’d like more information.

…..Meanwhile…have a wonderful holiday season. Good health and happiness to all.

Joe Maita

Editor/Publisher

The poster for “The Weary Blues” event

Listen to the 1958 recording of Langston Hughes performing “Blues Montage, Pt. 2” (which includes his poem “The Weary Blues.”) Among he musicians in the band are Red Allen (trumpet); Vic Dickenson (trombone); and Milt Hinton (bass). [Universal Music Group]