Ruth Ramos May 24, 2014 MUL 5209
The Sunshine Jazz Contact

In my life music plays a very significant role which makes it a bit more colorful. I have always enjoyed listening to sounds which calm me down and maintain positive emotions. Although jazz has never been my biggest interest after I started learning about it in class and I began to wonder about Jazz. Surprisingly I found it to really capture my attention and made me feel warm inside. I attended “The Sunshine Jazz Concert” and I definitely realized that there is a big difference between seeing a live performance and listening to it on the radio or on CD. Listening to live music is definitely a wonderful way to spend a Sunday night. The experience was beautiful which lead me to think about the way it was back where television was only black and white. The Avenue D Jazz and Blues Lounge was a very pleasant place. They stated the history of this particular lounge was kept best by Al Capone who did his best to keep the city as leaky as possible. This was a fancy type of environment where you see finely dress man and beautiful woman. Big Sam from Memphis has performed the rhythm of delta blues. The Avenue D Jazz and Blues has been recreated in 10,000 square feet of the Macy’s building at 1st Flagler street or what was known in the 20’s as Flagler and Avenue D, the exact epicenter of Miami. It is not likely to think that Jazz lounge as such will be located right in the city where you live because Miami is a place to be known as a “party city” instead of old school jazz and gin gimlets. I would not be surprise if Al Capone visit or if Duke Ellington once lead the band. Charles Vaslles is the President of the Sunshine Jazz Concert Organization and began his musical career as a road manager for saxophonist in Illinois. Valles arrived in South Florida in 1962 to head an upstart Jazz radio station, and eventually graced the airwaves including WBUS, WTMI and WDNA continuously until not too many years ago. Jazz is alive in South Florida and Jesse Jones Jr. is here to prove it. The Miami native is a saxophonist extraordinaire and continues to be on the forefront of a burgeoning jazz renaissance in South Florida. Jesse and his brother, Melton Mustafa, who is one of the great trumpet players of our time has been a running force in music for many years. Jesse Jones Jr. is one of those hidden treasures that you can’t help but to share with the world. Jesse overwhelms you with his infectious positive attitude and dynamic stage presence. Jesse Jones Jr. attended Mississippi Valley State University where he excelled in music, but his journey actually started in Miami where as a young kid he would listen to a neighbor practice his sax while playing along with Cannonball Adderley albums. “I loved that sound and knew right then I was going to be a musician for the rest of my life” he quoted. After college Jones joined the military and became a member of the US Navy Show Band. He traveled throughout North and South America where he was given the opportunity to develop his showmanship skills. Besides playing the sax, clarinet and flute, Jesse sang, tap dance and did comedy skits, and found that he had a natural gift for getting the crowd to become part of him. He perform one of his songs called “Having you is a blessing”. A piano and saxophone alternated the melody of the song. The song heated up and I notice that the texture changed within the song as the saxophone took the melody and piano and other instruments within the ensemble were in accompaniment. They rhythm was continuously steady and seem to beat fast by the climax of the song. It was also the dynamics of the song that were increasingly getting louder until all instruments met and changed dynamics again to a moderated level of the song and saxophone, trumpet and guitar took turns at the melody. I found listening to this song a