All that jazz: Historic Folsom gets into the swing with inaugural California Championships

David Hamilton was cycling through Historic Folsom last Friday when he heard the sound of music, not by Rodgers and Hammerstein but by Victor Lopez – a catchy funk/R&B tune with a splash of Tower of Power called "The Chicken." Cordova High School's jazz band, directed by Kevin Sims, provided the music, with solos to go around, including Mackenzi Fisher ad-libbing on trombone. "I came down to a bike shop and heard the music so I rode on over," said Hamilton, who lives close by. "I've never seen this before. It was awesome – very beautiful music, lots of talent. I saw it's two days; I'll be around." Hamilton spoke as Cordova cleared stage 2 on Sutter Street in Historic Folsom to make room for the next band. The Lancers provided a hot sound on a hot afternoon under a brilliant sunny sky as people wandered by, not all of them parents and grandparents of the band members but everyday people. Cordova was one of 40 groups competing in the inaugural California Jazz Championships, the brainchild of Curtis Gaesser, who shared his idea after directing Folsom High School's second jazz band. He said the better bands used to attend the Monterey Jazz Festival, which went away during the pandemic. The Reno Jazz Festival went non-competitive. Folsom already hosts the largest jazz festival in California – 140 high school and junior high bands in one day in late January – but Gaesser saw a need for an event at the end of the school year. "I've been trying to think of something different at the end of the year, a kind of allure for kids to have a good time," Gaesser said. "Two years ago, my assistant and myself said we gotta come up with something." And they did, a European-style festival where, "You just play out in the city," he said. "We're just the passing-by entertainment, and yet make it competitive." Gaesser started meeting with city officials in an effort to launch the festival this year, and "started getting word out." He said the city "has been great," and the festival received big help from donors. There were bugs to work out, for sure – regarding laws, the fire marshal, you know, little things – but walking up to the event, Gaesser said, "A lot of pieces have fallen into place." "It's pretty surreal," he said. "We still have a lot of work to do. The people that have surrounded me and helped me with this, I knew that with their help this was going to be able to be pulled off. I'm not surprised, but I'm still kind of pinching myself when I'm walking from three stages all playing at once and everyone is enjoying it and the kids are having a ball. And it's for the kids." There were 40 groups among the 20-plus schools because some brought more than one band. They came to Folsom from as far northwest as Seattle Academy to Southern California, including Esperanza and Azusa Pacific. "Those are friends who I begged," Gaesser said. "I wanted the whole state represented." Sacramento State also competed, as did Granite Bay and Woodcreek. Professional musicians held clinics. Gaesser hopes the field doubles in 2024. That each band gets to perform twice makes it more inviting. "I've never performed like this before. Having the whole street is pretty cool," said Trevor Armbrust, a junior who plays fourth trumpet in Woodcreek's A band. "It's been a lot of fun. I'm really enjoying it. There's a lot of good music around. "It's definitely a very different experience, and that's kinda cool. It's a similar feeling if you were to go into a city, set up shop on the corner and just play. … There's just people walking by. They can stop, hear some good music, then be on their merry way." Sims seconded Armbrust's thought of seldom playing in the center of town, and he echoed another popular opinion: The kids get a day off from school. "It's nice to be able to visit up here, our neighbor, and perform with them," Sims said. "This festival is so well-organized. I think there's going to be a lot more people next year. The sound guys are great. It's nice to have a biker drive by and hear a tune."