Pasta, Sauce, Meatballs and Music

6th grader Julian Paskel, ready to play.

And this girl, was ready to eat.

Another year, another Jazz and Spaghetti Dinner at Goodwill Fire Company.

As always, organizers, headed up by Kevin Owens, President of the Pottstown School Music Association, did a bang-up job.

Food was cooked; tables were set up; chairs were placed; tablecloths; balloons (news this year); trash taken out; sauce ladled; music performed. It was, in other words, a smashing success.

The event raises money to pay for music education in Pottstown, including performances outside the area, spreading the word about Pottstown musicians.

Mike Vought, John Armato and Kevin Owens.

Of particular note this year, to this seasoned veteran anyway, was the quality of the younger bands.

The elementary jazz band was excellent. Unfortunately, they played first and, as the official ladler of sauce, I was unable to escape my duties and get a recording.

But trust me, they were good.

I know the high school jazz band gets a lot of ink from me. That's because my son plays with them and I am at most of their performances.

I was going to try to scale back, but they unveiled a new number yesterday and it is one of my all-time favorites -- "Birdland," which I was introduced to through the version by the jazz fusion band Weather Report. (Click here for a link to a live performance video with the great Wayne Shorter, Joe Zawinul and the always mighty Jaco Pastorius.)

So here it is the Pottstown High School Jazz band's version of the classic (I'm told they only practiced it twice, maybe three times.):

Jo Ann Bathurst and her mom,
Florence Schumacher, 103

And really stepping up their game was the middle school jazz band, which was remarked upon by many, not just myself. In fact, I would say to the high school jazz band, you had better watch your back, those middle school kids are gaining on you.

Also noteworthy was the presence of four generations of the Bathhurst/ Schumacher/ Francis genome.

Florence Schumacher, 103,  was there, as she was last year. She is the mother of Jo Ann Bathurst, who is the mother of School Board member Amy Francis, who was there with her husband Julian, who are the parents of Gabe and Chloe Francis, both of whom are jazz band members.

So, good-on-ya I say.

Anyhoo, a good time was had by all, and there were lots of willing hands to help with the clean-up, including School Board member Kim Stillwell and her retinue.

This video gives a quickie over-view of the fun, and is followed by the Tweets and photos I managed to sneak in between lading sauce and spooning meatballs.




And here are the Tweets:

Dinner AND a Show for $8? Wow!

One of my duties as a father/ blogger is the shameless promotion of activities with which my son is involved and this is one of those times.

The Pottstown Schools Music Association is holding its first Jazz and; Spaghetti Dinner on Saturday, April 20, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Goodwill Fire Station on High St.

Proceeds from this event will benefit ALL district music students.

Posted here is a copy of the ticket order form that was also sent home with most students.

If you don't have a student in Pottstown schools but would love to come, you can print out this page or, better yet, click on this link and you can print out a clean copy of the form to turn in to a music teacher in any Pottstown school.

Tickets are $8 for adult, $5 for ages 6-10, and 5 and under are free.

Please return your order form by Friday, April 5, which will help the volunteers prepare in advance.

The dinner includes: spaghetti, meatballs, bread and butter, coffee, tea, iced tea, lemonade and dessert.

I have not yet heard the high school jazz band perform this year, so I'm  looking forward to it. Plus, as some of you who may have seen me lumbering down the street can attest, I love pasta.

And, if you want a taste of what kind of entertainment you will enjoy, here is a video of the Pottstown Middle School Jazz Band performing "Smackwater Jack" at Arcola Middle School during a recent competition there.

They received a rating of "excellent" as I recall, as well as being named the best trombone section.

And, if that wasn't enough to whet your appetite, for both more jazz and a delicious spaghetti dinner (did we mention they've got meatballs?!?) here is another taste of the entertainment.

This is "I've Got Rhythm," again from the middle schoolers.




So come on down. Enjoy some dinner, see a show and help promote music education in Pottstown. It's a win/win/win!