Article by Todd Matthews

If you visit one of the clubs, bars, or art galleries that feature jazz in Bellingham, chances are Jud Sherwood and the Jazz Project had a hand in presenting that music. Sherwood is a professional drummer and Bellingham native whose roots in music and concert promotion date back to the early-1990s, when he co-founded the Pacific Northwest Jazz Alliance (PNWJA) with David Keller. The non-profit organization brought musicians such as Diana Krall, Mel Brown, Herb Ellis, and Buddy Collette to the small town just 25 miles south of the Canadian border. Keller and Sherwood parted ways in 1996 -- Sherwood formed the Jazz Project, and Keller continued on with PNWJA -- but their respect for one another continued, as well as their shared love of music.

"Jud had quite the ability as an organizer," recalls Keller, from his home in Los Angeles. "He knew how to get things done, which was great for the Pacific Northwest Jazz Alliance at the time. To his credit, he's done very well to present music in a more intimate setting."

Today, Sherwood presents both international jazz artists and regional favorites through an annual schedule of live concerts promoted by the Jazz Project. Those concerts include the Art of Jazz (trio and quartet performances held the last Sunday of each month at the Lucia Douglas Gallery), the Traveling Organ Donor Tour (a monthly series that brings Hammond B-3 organ players to town for performances), and a Feature Series for national and international touring artists. The Jazz Project also promotes the Bellingham Youth Jazz Band, a group of 25-30 middle school students who perform 30 plus annual gigs around town for community events.

I recently visited Sherwood to discuss the Jazz Project's early association with PNWJA, the music environment in Bellingham, and the organization's role in promoting and presenting jazz in the Pacific Northwest.

TODD MATTHEWS: The Jazz Project came about through your founding of the Pacific Northwest Jazz Alliance with David Keller, right?

JUD SHERWOOD: Yes. My association with David dates back to the 1970s when he took classes from my dad during college. He moved up here with his family from Los Angeles, where he worked as an agent for a lot of West Coast players: Bud Shank, the late Bill Perkins, Teddy Edwards, Buddy De Franco, and the late Horace Tapscott. When he moved up here, I had come back from college after graduating in 1989 from the University of Rochester, and he was up here to earn an Archival Science degree at Western Washington University. His long-term goal, I think, was to create a West Coast jazz archive. It was a great project, and one that I hope he eventually pursues. There's the Northwest Center for Archival Science right here at Western. He was back at his home stomping grounds. I was a jazz drummer. He was an agent. He said, "Hey Jud, what's going on for jazz in Bellingham? What do you think about bringing up some talent from my roster?" At the time, nobody had done that in Bellingham. Our first concert was in December of 1992, when we brought Horace Tapscott up here. We opened with local players, and we had a full house. Horace was playing this really nice piano. We had a great review in Coda magazine. Everyone said, "Wow! We've never seen anything like this. You have to keep doing this." For the next concert, we brought David Friesen and Bud Shank. We had close to 200 people in a venue that could almost seat 120. It was still sort of a novelty for Bellingham. There weren't a lot of shows going on. We did two years of private concerts before we decided to incorporate and present concerts as a non-profit organization. This way, we could think about block-booking a series, rather than trying to break even on individual concerts. We formed our non-profit in 1995 and presented Herb Ellis, Leroy Vinegar, Charles Owens, Dee Daniels, and Buddy Collette. The next year, we brought in Diana Krall, James Cotton, The 493 Reunion Band, John Stowell and Nancy King, Mel Brown, Buddy DeFranco, and New Stories. Diana Krall came up with a trio and did a workshop.

MATTHEWS: What year did you form the Jazz Project?

SHERWOOD: I formed the Jazz Project in 1997. By the time I received my IRS determination letter, it was sometime in 1998. My first concert series with The Jazz Project was in 1999. I did the Art of Jazz Series, which is still happening. And I did a concert series called "Two Approaches." I brought in two of the same instruments and backed them with a rhythm section. It was fun. I recorded all the shows. They included John Stowell and Dan Faehnle on guitars, John Hansen and Randy Porter on pianos, Chuck Stentz and Bert Wilson on tenor saxophones. I had a few sponsors at that point. Membership to come to every Art of Jazz show was 15 bucks.

MATTHEWS: At the point you started the Jazz Project, the Pacific Northwest Jazz Alliance was operating at the same time, correct?

SHERWOOD: Yes. Before the Jazz Alliance filed its dissolution papers, I was frequently asked the question, "Well, how are you different than the Jazz Alliance?" I always said that they were complementary. I wasn't trying to compete with them, but offer services and programming that bolstered the jazz scene in Bellingham and the Pacific Northwest, much the way Earshot does with the Seattle jazz scene. I was trying to do something they weren't doing, which was to provide more of a focus for regional and local players to compliment what was happening on a national scene. I wanted to keep regional players working. I wanted to show how they fit into the more national acts that the Jazz Alliance wanted to bring in four times each year. I was bringing other regional acts in 60 times each year. David ended up completing his degree in Archival Sciences, then later took a job in Los Angeles as an archivist.

MATTHEWS: How do you book the Jazz Project season?

SHERWOOD: It changes every year, but typically I have about five major presenting projects, and then dedicated funds for different pet projects. The concert series includes The Art of Jazz, which occurs the last Sunday of every month at the Lucia Douglas Gallery. The Feature Series is focused more on touring groups and larger ensembles that wouldn't fit at the Art of Jazz concerts. The Feature Series varies from three to five shows each year, and draws up to 350 people. It just depends on the touring bands and their fees. The artist is usually somebody who is doing a West Coast tour, or has more than one or two anchor dates. Somebody might be booked at The Triple Door on Friday, come to Bellingham for a Saturday show, then head to Vancouver, BC. Aside from a couple key people who have been very helpful and instrumental with the Jazz Project, I try not to repeat lead players one year to the next, unless they are sidemen who are backing the various groups. Every presenter is faced with the challenge: how do you not reach into your own pocket to pay the players, still have the support from the public, and still make it a worthwhile venture? I've also been doing a lot of underwriting projects that people are willing to support. Kids get into concerts for free. We have a medical fund for uninsured jazz musicians. If something serious comes up and a musician can't work, we have some funds to help pay for expenses. When kids can't afford music lessons, we have a scholarship. I'm not just trying to present professional concerts. Jazz is more than about seeing the friends I like to work with. It's also about the students coming up who are going to be professional performers. It's about kids getting exposure to see professional players. And it's also about helping families who want their kids to be exposed to jazz, but don't have the resources. It's a conduit for people of all backgrounds to find a place and be supportive. My most recent project is placing 18 pianos that have been donated to the Jazz Project through our instrument donation program to children and families who can't afford to purchase instruments, yet harbor creative capacities.

MATTHEWS: You perform at a lot of these concerts, too.

SHERWOOD: A lot of times -- especially if it's a lead player who isn't touring a whole band. I draw from Portland, Seattle and Vancouver, BC for bass players and drummers and pianists. When it's someone I've worked with before, I often end up playing on the concert dates.

MATTHEWS: One of the things that I was drawn to about the jazz scene in Bellingham, and the Jazz Project in particular, was that it seems that jazz musicians are having some level of success in this town, in terms of finding gigs and drawing audiences. Would you agree with that?

SHERWOOD: I would agree with that. I rarely have to leave town to make a living playing music. But it's taken 10 years of building something here -- first through the Jazz Alliance, and later the Jazz Project. It's a slow process. I think around here, everyone sort of learns their niche -- whether it's teaching privately or through a school, gigging, going out on a cruise ship, or a combination of touring, teaching, and the like -- most musicians seem to find their way around here. The first year of the Jazz Project, when I had 30 members, I might bring in 300 dollars at a jazz concert at the gallery. But I always managed to find local sponsors who have subsidized it for years. At this point, our membership pays for the Art of Jazz series, as well as other targeted projects. I can afford to bring in whatever group at our current level, without having to think, "How am I going to pay for this?" Some members come every month. Some members pick and choose. People say, "Wow! This was great! I can't believe I got in for nine bucks. We drank beer, they fed us, we had two sets of great music. Where do you get these guys?" These are people that wouldn't ordinarily travel to Seattle to see Randy Halberstadt, Jeff Johnson, or any group that works regularly in Seattle. I just worked out a system where I can transport those musicians to people who wouldn't see them perform at the local jam session every week here in Bellingham. I provide a situation where the musicians get a good venue, and the audience is respectful and listening -- and really wants to hear what's coming next.

MATTHEWS: Has putting together a non-profit jazz organization been an education for you? I'm thinking back to your earlier days, when you might have just been interested in being a drummer.

SHERWOOD: I think it evolved from my interest in wanting to be a musician first. There are plenty of players who want to be musicians, go to college, attend music school, move back to their hometown, and say, "Well, I can't do anything here." That's particularly true for jazz. It's pretty easy to get stuck where you are, versus what's really out there. Moving back to Bellingham after college, I thought, "Well, if I'm going to do anything here, I'm going to have to create it myself. If I'm going to create it myself, I'm going to need to know how to fund it -- not as a hobbyist, but as a professional." I created the Jazz Project so I could do that, and not minimize the efforts of jazz musicians, but maximize what they do and treat them like professionals.

For more information, visit jazzproject.org.

This article originally appeared in Earshot Jazz