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A Moment with the Great Jazz Performer - Betty Carter, 1982

In 1980, as a senior in college, I interned at the Kennedy Center in Arts Administration. The concept of studying at the Kennedy Center (KC) under some of the finest arts administrators seemed almost foreign to a young man who went to high school in Wolf Point, MT, on the Sioux and Assiniboine - Fort Peck Reservation.

After my internship, I landed another job that fall in Washington, DC. In the early spring of 1982, Kool Cigarettes (part of the Brown and Williamson Tobacco Company) was sponsoring a one-day jazz festival at the Kennedy Center. I was asked to assist with the festival participants because I knew the entire building, including the intricate back hallways not known by the public and some of the staff. I had also served as an assistant backstage manager for the American College Theatre Festival, which held several performances at the KC yearly.
Kool Jazz Festival
Backstage Pass and Working Credentials
I arrived early on the day of the Jazz Festival and received my backstage pass along with my working credentials. I walked into a large rehearsal room and before me was a group of the most famous jazz performers visiting with each other. It was clear they all knew each other but hadn't had the chance to enjoy each other’s company for years. The first person I noticed was one of my dad’s favorites, Benny Goodman. There was Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Dave Brubeck, Herbie Hancock, and Wynton Marsalis, plus numerous others that I can’t remember. It was certainly the largest collection of major jazz talent under one Washington roof. It was reported that there were at least another 40 musical artists who were only known within the esoteric jazz community.

The women vocalists were the who’s who of jazz: Sarah Vaughn, Shirley Horn, and Carmen McRae. I was assigned to care for and escort Betty Carter (1929-1998). I still remember getting her ready for her performance and escorting her backstage. We jumped onto a backstage freight elevator, big enough for a concert grand piano. It was just the two of us. The steel walls provided a great place for a quick rehearsal, and it was the only time I ever received a short private concert by a jazz great. She erupted into a passionate warmup with scats, vibrant vocal twists, and quickly summarized with a little melody, then we were backstage.

Betty Carter was raised in Detroit by a father who was a church musical director. Additionally, Detroit was a hotbed of jazz during her teen years, providing opportunities to work with noted jazz musicians of the time. Her resume references that it was Dizzy Gillespie who was instrumental in her unique singing style.

It was the only time that the Kennedy Center was totally taken over by just one musical/performing style, and I am sure that it has not happened since. As one journalist pointed out at the time, if an unsuspecting visitor entered the Kennedy Center on March 20th, 1982, they might think they had just strayed onto the corner of Bourbon and 52nd Street in New Orleans.
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Marcus J. Moore, a New York Times journalist, reminded us once again since Betty Carter's death in 1998 about her wonderful skills and abilities. In his October 2, 2024 column, he stated: "We’re taking time to highlight Betty Carter, the transcendent vocalist whose intricate phrasing and live improvisational skills made her a prominent figure in jazz, and whose mentorship of younger musicians fostered a new generation of like-minded singers and instrumentalists to craft music in her image. An entrepreneur, she started her own label, Bet-Car Records, in 1969 because of frustrations with the music business amid diminished interest in jazz, and released some of her most revered work through the imprint. Case in point: Four contributors this month chose songs from ‘The Audience With Betty Carter,’ her epic 1980 album that properly showcased her mastery of performance and is considered one of the best jazz LPs of all time."
                                                        _____________________________
©2024. Waller-Yoblonsky Fine Art is a research collaborative, working to track artists that got lost and overlooked due to time, changing styles, race, gender and/or sexual orientation. Our frequent blogs highlight artists and art movements that need renewed attention with improved information for the researcher and art collectors. The photos and blog was created by Mr. Waller and all written materials were obtained by the Fair Use Section 107, of The Copyright Act. #BettyCarter  #BettyCarterJazz
#JazzFestival #KennedyCenter 








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