In this week’s feature, Gavin Bade dives into the District’s jazz scene, from Columbia Heights to U Street, and Duke Ellington to H Street NE:

Even if it is a smaller, less prestigious scene, D.C. has certain elements that New York lacks. “There is a lot of truth to the idea that in New York people are just playing chops all the time, and trying to sound all wild and out and on the next thing when they’re really sort of on their own thing,” Russonello said. “Whereas in D.C., it’s like, ‘Alright, what can everyone get together around? What can we all connect with?’” New York may have a reputation for more innovation in the music, but the D.C. scene offers “music that is both for the musicians and the audience.”

On the editorials page, the ed board hopes the University community uses Saturday’s planned conferral of an honorary degree on D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson (SFS ’92, G ’07) as an opportunity to examine her complex record of education reform in the district.

In News, Connor Jones reports on student-led efforts to convince the University to influence Adidas to pay severance to 2,800 workers recently laid off from an Indonesian factory that supplied the apparel company.

In Sports, Tim Shine writes about basketball.

For Leisure, Mary Borowiec profiles the glitter-based art of Julien Isaacs (SFS ’12), whose new exhibit Divine Chaos is on display at the Adams Morgan coffeehouse Tryst until the end of May. “For me it has been about capturing that light in my art. Glitter does that. It is a little piece of heaven,” Isaacs said.

For his final issue as the secretive editor of Page 13, Rob Sapunor offers a campus plan that will satisfy zero of the neighbors (and only half of the campus’ bulldog population), just like any other proposed campus plan that does not include Georgetown relinquishing its status as a residential university.

And finally in Voices, Keaton Hoffman calls for 21st-century development and humanitarian efforts that harness the powerful optimism of youth voices and shrug off the cynicism of academic and media elites.

Concerts

While you really shouldn’t have time to see shows this weekend, we have the perfect guide to procrastinate. And if you promised yourself those days of putting off work are a thing of the past, just consider these concerts long study breaks.

Friday: See D.C. rockers U.S. Royalty perform at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage. It’s at 6 p.m., and admission is free.

Legendary sax player Benny Golson will be playing at the Bohemian Caverns on U Street Friday and Saturday at 8:30 and 10:30 both nights. Tickets are $35.

Saturday: Let the Choral Arts Society of Washington melt your heart with their family Christmas concert. It’s at 1 p.m. at the Kennedy Center, and tickets start at $15.

Sunday: At U Street Music Hall, catch Fat Trel’s Nightmare Before Christmas. Tickets are $15 in advance, and the show kicks off at 8:30 p.m.

Finally, the jazz duo the Jolley Brothers will be playing at Bohemian Caverns on U Street at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15.

Shopping

Get in on last-minute shopping specials at Georgetown’s 12 Days of Merriment, featuring all the deals you need to ensure everyone’s happy come Christmas morning.

And make sure to walk over to the Dr. Seuss art exhibit at P & C Gallery on M. Street.

The Sound of Proscrtination

The Madison Sounds of Deliverance play in Dupont Circle

Did you love Al Haddad’s article on jazz in DC in our most recent issue? Do you aspire to be just as booted and avoiding of clinkers? Al has generously offered to share his secrets:

1. Go to www.dcjazz.com and sign up for their weekly email newsletter. You would probably be horrified to discover how much my article owed to this single website.
2. Been to Adams Morgan? Good job. Now get down to U Street. For fans of live jazz and blues, U Street is to Adams Morgan as Bitches Brew is to Birth of the Cool. Just walk up and down a single block of U Street during the evening and you’re likely to come across three or four poorly-marked venues that are grooving right down to the foundations. You might have to sweet-talk some of the doormen, but believe me, it’s well worth the effort.
3. A lot of venues around DC have good websites: Wolf Trap, Blues Alley, Bohemian Caverns, Twins Jazz, HR57. Check these early and often.
4. Cheap is better, but free is best: The Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage has free performances every Friday night. It’s not always jazz, but the acoustics are great and the musicians are always top quality. Check the Kennedy Center website for weekly details.
5. John Hasse, the Smithsonian’s brilliant and innovative Curator of American Music, has since 2001 conducted a weekly concert series, held each Friday night at 6.30pm at the Smithsonian Jazz Café, located on the ground floor of the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. After a summer hiatus, performances start up again Friday, September 6th. The Smithsonian also has an extensive jazz program, as well as some internships for the really zealous among you: check it out at www.smithsonianjazz.org.

Flickr photo from user JamesCalder used under a Creative Commons license