Save the date: WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2021 at 7pm for our next Virtual Jazz Jam!  Led by Carol Sudhalter and our wonderful house band, the jam welcomes musicians including our jazz jammers from Queens/Long Island, as well as newcomers from around the world, to share their music, lift our spirits and honor those we have lost. January 13th theme is "MLK celebration: jazz musicians and music calling for racial justice"

If you'd like to watch this session LIVE, simply tune in to our Facebook page or ZOOM.
 

To participate, musicians should email education@flushingtownhall.org and identify a three- to four-minute tune they intend to play (live or pre-recorded). Only 15 musicians will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis. Anyone is invited to tune in to the LIVE VIRTUAL jam and listen on Facebook or Zoom.  

This program is supported in part by a grant from The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation.

AUDIENCE- HOW TO PARTICIPATE (see below more for musicians):

Tune in to our Facebook page: Facebook Live stream will allow anyone to watch the jam, WITHOUT having to download the zoom app. Leave comments and we will share with jamming musicians during the jam session!

The Zoom webinar will allow everyone to interact directly with the players and house band through live chat. You can log on using the Zoom app on your mobile device or desktop computer. You can also log on without downloading the app by choosing to “open in your browser”. Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device. 

FOR MUSICIANS: The platform will be ZOOM, so to tune in, you just need to log into the ZOOM meeting. Through ZOOM all players and audience can log in and we will watch each participant as they take center screen and present their recorded piece.  FTH will send the specific ZOOM MUSIC settings to everyone in advance, in order to get the best sound quality. Microphones must be muted for ZOOM to work right (except for the person presenting). At the end of the jam, we can all unmute our microphones and greet each other!

Because we are virtual, we don't have 3 hours at our disposal as we usually do.  Therefore 15 players per jam will be able to share with us what they've pre-recorded. Sign-up instructions are below. The next 15 players on the sign-up list can be featured the following month, if this one works out!

Please prepare a home-recorded version of a tune you might otherwise have brought to play at the jam. Record your version on any device you have at home, either as a solo performance, or accompanying yourself, however you like.  Pre-recording is only suggested in order to save setup time. Please do NOT play a cut from your top CD, your YouTube video or your last concert. Imagine that you are going to the jam and preparing a new tune.  But instead of bringing it to the jam live, you have recorded it to share with us, from your home, complete with freckles and glitches!

You’re probably thinking, why can’t I just play live into the Zoom meeting on Wednesday? Well maybe by next month you can; at present we aren’t sure if the sound quality will permit this.

In order to sign up to participate, please email: education@flushingtownhall.org as soon as possible and mention the name of your tune!  In the meantime, here are some tips for successful audio and video home recordings. 

Tips on getting the best audio recording (for those without studio space or audio gear):

• Avoid acoustically “live” spaces (i.e. bathroom, or a room without carpets, furniture or bare walls. Smaller spaces tend to be better.
• Try to keep a distance of no more than 2 feet from your microphone to cut down on “room” noise or reverberations.
• If you’re recording to a track, record a test take to make sure there’s a good balance between your instrument and the track you’re performing with.
• If you need any help setting up for your recording, please contact our Director of Production Steve  at smecca@flushingtownhall.org

Tips for Video Recordings:  

• If you can record video, please do! It helps to capture your true artistic nature as a player and will make for a more interesting experience for all of those who will be attending the virtual jam!
• Avoid backlight and fluorescent lights. 

See you all soon! Tell your friends! And if you are one of the first 15 jam participants, look for an instructional email to come shortly.