Mission Statement
The FJC's mission is to foster the creation and presentation new works for small jazz ensemble, and to make them accessible to the jazz community at large through an archive of sheet music and recorded performances.
About
The FJC was founded by veteran DC jazz performers/composers/educators united in the idea of honoring and advancing America's unique musical art form by creating, performing and sharing new jazz compositions. They have hosted a series of Jazz Composer's jam sessions where musicians are invited to bring lead sheets of their original tunes and perform them on the spot. They plan to host open rehearsals and composition workshops in addition to establishing a Jazz Composer's Union for members to access each others work.
The founding members of the collective are:
Born in Washington, DC, bassist Herman Burney, Jr. was raised in the arts-nurturing state of North Carolina, specifically Winston-Salem. Herman grew up in Church listening to Mahalia Jackson, Aretha Franklin, and James Cleveland; during these years, he played clarinet, drums, and tuba. “Music has always been an integral part of my life. Both my parents sing in their church choir, and my father sings bass in an all-male a Capella group.” Herman’s next major influences were Soul, R&B, and hard-core funk during high school; he played the electric bass during that time. “As a teenager, my friends and I started our own bands; we played in the garage, basement, or any place that we could. I even snuck out of the house at night to hear groups like Ramsey Lewis, Cameo, Parliament/Funkadelic, the Brother’s Johnson, and Graham Central Station!”
Herman was initiated into "Jazz" by Bill Bright in Winston-Salem, whose musical legacy lives through the many people he helped during his physical life here on earth. "Bill Bright personally took me under his wing, made me practice, allowed me (with my incredibly sad bass playing) to join the Bill Bright Quintet, gave me my first gigs on acoustic bass, taught me about chord changes, and loaned me Charles Mingus and Thelonius Monk albums to check out so we could play it together!! Make no mistake ... Bill Bright single-handedly started me on my Jazz journey ... I'm still figuring out what he showed me!" (read more)
Saxophonist/composer Peter Fraize is a distinct voice in the Washington, DC jazz community. Born in 1965 in Somerville, New Jersey, Peter was raised in northern Virginia where he took up the saxophone at age nine. At sixteen he formed the group Moment's Notice, with whom he played his first professional jobs in and around the northern Virginia area. The group was featured at the 1982 International Children's Festival at Wolf Trap. After graduating high school in 1983, Peter went on to attend the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, studying classical saxophone performance with Ken Radnofsky and playing in the Conservatory Big Band under the direction of bassist Miroslav Vitous. In 1985 he traveled to The Netherlands to study with noted Dutch saxophonist Leo van Oostrom at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, where he earned his Artist's Diploma in 1989. While in Holland he also studied with Ruud Brink, John Ruocco, and the late tenor legend Sal Nistico. He performed with a wide variety of bands including the avant-garde Waterland Ensemble, the Brazilian group Tanga, and his own quartet, appearing at such places as Amsterdam's Bimhuis, the North Sea Jazz festival, the Heineken and Gouda Jazz Festivals, and numerous other jazz venues throughout Holland, Belgium, and Germany. He was also an original member of the Dutch freebop quintet Scapes, first prize winners at the 1989 Middelzee Jazz Festival. (read more)
Drummer/percussionist Greg C. Holloway is a native of Washington, D.C. where he received an undergraduate degree in Music Education and Percussion Performance from Howard University (1980). He also participated in the Jazz Studies summer program at Eastman School of Music. Greg later pursued Masters in Education with an emphasis in Jazz Drumming/Percussion Methodology and Masters in Science (Counseling Psychology) from University of LaVerne in Southern California.
Greg has returned to the Metropolitan area after completing a career in various prestigious Air Force Field Bands. While in the Air Force, Greg advanced to percussion section leader, Musical Director and leader of Jazz Ensembles, Rock Bands and various trios. These groups have backed major performers that appeared on national television and radio shows. Before transitioning to the civilian sector, Greg was instrumental in developing the percussion-training standard for Air Force Field Band Percussion and produced the CD "Midnight Sun" which features Ellington alumnus Freda Payne. (read more)
Jon has been working in and around the DC area for twenty years as a performer, producer, composer, and arranger. He has produced and arranged recordings by local jazz artists Imani, Maryann Redmond, and Al Williams. Jon has performed extensively in the jazz and contemporary jazz fields, appearing on recordings with Buck Hill, David Yarborough, Origem, and Vinny Valentino. He has performed in concerts with Jon Faddis, Bobby Hutcherson, Al Jarreau, Ethel Ennis, Clark Terry, Frank Wess, Chuck Brown, and Larry Ridley, and has toured nationally with Marlena Shaw, Miki Howard, Kim Waters, and the Blackbyrds. Throughout ’97-’99 Jon toured the States and Europe with saxophonist Maceo Parker.
Jon has appeared on numerous recordings, and his compositions have been recorded by many of the above-named artists. He released his first original CD, “O3”, in 2000 featuring compositions for jazz trio. A second jazz CD, “Angles”, featuring compositions for trio, quartet, and quintet, was released on the PM label in Fall 2001. Currently he is composing for two new projects: Auto Looming, an electro-acoustic trio, and Mantra, a jazz/interactive improvisatory trio. Mantra has recorded a first CD, Intotheout, which was released in early 2002. He also appears on recordings by Matt Belzer and the current Buck Hill release, “Relax”. (read more)