Jazz enthusiasts look for a ‘turnaround’ in Durham

Posted: Thursday, August 1, 2013 12:03 am
Grant Golden, Staff Writer

When it comes to North Carolina’s music scene, many people think of the burgeoning indie-rock scene that erupted in the ‘90s. Bands like Superchunk, Ben Folds Five and Squirrel Nut Zippers heralded in a new age of North Carolina music, but long before the state received that indie acclaim it was home to iconic jazz musicians like John Coltrane, Nina Simone and Thelonius Monk.

It’s not clear where along the road the Triangle lost its flair for jazz, but projects like The Art of Cool are trying to reignite that spark. The Art of Cool Project is a non-profit group based in Durham that has been providing intimate jazz concerts for the past two years. Now Durham’s jazz scene is bustling, and The Art of Cool has found itself on the verge of something big.

Cicely Mitchell and trumpeter Al Strong, two jazz enthusiasts bound and determined to shine a light upon the untapped resources of North Carolina’s jazz scene, founded the Art of Cool. The two recently started a Kickstarter campaign to help fund a large-scale jazz festival to be held in Durham in April of 2014.

The festival plans to bring in internationally acclaimed artists such as Maceo Parker, a saxophonist from Kinston best known for his work with James Brown and Parliament. Mitchell and Strong believe a big-name festival could help shed the negative stigma some North Carolinians associate with Durham.

“What you see on TV and what they’d like to say about Durham is ‘You’ll get shot’ or ‘Someone will hurt you if you go downtown,’ but I’ve been here for over 10 years and never had an incident.” Mitchell said. “We feel like there’s a need for something like Hopscotch that’s more Durham-centric.”

But Art of Cool didn’t begin around the massive jazz fest, the Art of Cool comes from humble beginnings at Durham’s LabourLove art gallery.

“Al was looking for an intimate venue that he could play at that wasn’t a restaurant, somewhere without the pressure of packing it out. So we got creative and decided to do these pop-up shows at art galleries.”  Mitchell said.

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