Jazz Caravan gains momentum

Published: Thursday, December 5, 1996

Thursday, December 5, 1996

CONCERTS:

Event allows fans to sample broad range of L.A. clubsBy Claudia Castro

Daily Bruin Contributor

Club-hopping in L.A. seems to be a marathon limited to those who have the bucks and the nerves. The long distances between the clubs, the cover charges, the $5-minimum parking fees and the hassle to fight the traffic are not exactly what one would call encouraging. But with the Jazz Caravan, sponsored by jazz station KLON (88.1 FM), this marathon can become a pleasant reality.

The Fourth Annual Los Angeles Holiday Jazz Club Caravan takes place Dec. 12. One ticket gives jazz lovers access to as many as 19 clubs, with unlimited transportation from club to club via shuttles.

It is possible to go to several clubs even three or four. "But it's quite impossible to do them all," says Gary Chiachi of KLON's concert production department.

The Jazz Caravan gives many an opportunity to hear music and visit places they ordinarily would not, such as the clubs in the Crenshaw area of South Central Los Angeles, which was once a "hot bed for jazz."

In Crenshaw's Leimert Park, jazz is a daily phenomenon, not reserved just for Caravans. On Caravan nights, though, there are hundreds of people of all ethnicities around clubs like 5th Dick's, World Stage, Shabazz and Gainsville.

"It's a real opportunity for people to go to an area like this, which might not be done on their own," says Chiachi. "The area really embraces it. Record stores stay open, the whole area (stays open)."

To many, the Jazz Caravan is still unknown, but its history goes back to 1993. KLON concert director Ken Poston brought the idea from Kansas City, where he organized a similar event called "Club Crawl." In 1993, there were two Blues Caravans (in Los Angeles and Long Beach) during the summer and the first Los Angeles Holiday Jazz Club Caravan made its debut in winter.

The next two years followed with two Jazz Caravans (Holiday and Spring) and two Blues Caravans. This year, a new event, the Los Angeles Latin Jazz Caravan, was added in the fall in response to the large Latin American listening audience. People constantly called the station suggesting the idea, and the event brought in close to 3,000 people.

Now there is a total of five events. Will there be more in the future?

"Five is plenty," answers Chiachi. "They take a while to put together." Chiachi gets calls from all over the U.S. asking about the Caravans. Some want him to produce them in other cities, some are entrepreneur types who want to produce them themselves. "They think you just get a bunch of clubs and add a bunch of buses," Chiachi says. "There's a lot more to it."

Everybody gains with the Caravans the station, the musicians, the clubs and the audience.

Charlie Chiarenza, manager of Miceli's on North Las Palmas Avenue in Hollywood, is looking forward to this Caravan. Ten musicians will be playing at the two rooms of the Italian restaurant and club, among them cornetist Bill Berry. Chiarenza says the customers that come during the Caravans are not the usual customers.

"People who have never been here get impressed with the restaurant," he says. "Buses come from other clubs with more people. Those already in our club miss their buses to stay here longer and we keep piling up. We get 200 (or) 300 people. They're like sardines."

Club owners smile at the potential profit, but that is not the ultimate goal of the Caravan.

"To give people access to jazz, that's very much what it's all about," Chiachi says. "The more people we can expose to music, the more people will listen to the station."

In fact, the audience of the jazz caravans has changed drastically throughout the years. While blues music has a much wider audience, jazz is a niche that tends to be filled by older people. But the range is becoming younger 21 to 50.

But Chiachi also says there is a higher purpose in mind for the event. "It's to get a lot of people out, to get together for a common thread, which is music. It crosses the boundaries between colors, races and economic classes," he says.

MUSIC: KLON's Jazz Caravan is Dec. 12 from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. Tickets are $12 in advance, $15 at the door and $10 for KLON members. For more information call KLON's Caravan hotline at (310) 985-1686.