Noce celebrates Des Moines' 2022 Jazz Hall of Fame inductees this weekend
Jazz is rarely the first thing that comes to mind when pondering the city of Des Moines, yet the city's Community Jazz Center created formative memories for John Krantz.
"I grew up looking at these older musicians," said Krantz, the Hall of Fame organizer for the Des Moines Community Jazz Center. "Speck Redd was a famous piano player here in town in the ❜40s, ❜50s and ❜60s. When I was a kid my dad used to take me to a restaurant called Vic's Tally-Ho to hear Speck Redd... I grew up listening to this jazz, I'd go out and I'd listen to this music and somehow it became part of my DNA."
Krantz's memory and love of these local jazz musicians led him to help create a hall of fame. The annual tradition of naming new members has persisted for 20 years and returns once again this weekend with two new inductees.
This Sunday, Des Moines' CJC Jazz Hall of Fame welcomes area musicians Tanner Taylor and John Morgan. The event will take place at Noce jazz club, 1326 Walnut St., with doors opening at 5 p.m. and performances starting an hour later.
"All of the musicians that are being recognized... they're all going to play through the night," Krantz said. "We'll probably have them play together with a jam session at the very end of it. It's a combination of live music and spoken tributes."
Who is John Morgan?
Morgan, who grew up in Clinton, is a saxophonist and a graduate of Drake University. Over the years he's played on national tours with the Russ Morgan Orchestra and the Columbia Artist Tours. Here in Des Moines he's not only been a performer at three Iowa Governors' Inaugural Balls but also performed when artists such as Aretha Franklin, Bernadette Peters and The Temptations made appearances in recent years.
Who is Tanner Taylor?
Taylor, the other inductee of the night, is a jazz pianist who grew up in Jefferson and, after doing student jam sessions in Des Moines, moved to the Twin Cities in 2001, where he played at venues such as the Dakota and the Icehouse. He played with visiting jazz icons such as Clark Terry and Marilyn Maye.
Both Taylor and Morgan, will join dozens of historically noteworthy names such as pianist Earnest "Speck" Redd, singer and pianist Rose Marie Webster and pianist Julius Brooks.
The evening will also include acknowledgments for musicians Nick Rueckert, the assistant band director at Urbandale High School; Zane Gedler, a drummer, pianist, producer, and audio editor from West Des Moines; and guitarist David Harper as well as honors for local organizations such as natural wine bar The Cave DSM and Franklin Junior High, noting their contributions to the local jazz scene.
Last year, pianist Jason Danielson and trombonist Paul Bridson joined the hall of fame.
"Des Moines has a great jazz legacy and it's important that these people are appreciated in this great American art form," Krantz said. "We just want to keep it going and give them the respect they deserve."
Tickets in advance are $20 and tickets at the door are $25, with an optional dinner for an additional $20.
More information about this year's Jazz Hall of Fame ceremony, as well as other CJC events, can be found at cjc-dsm.org or by calling 515-279-6452.
Isaac Hamlet covers arts, entertainment and culture at the Des Moines Register. Reach him at ihamlet@gannett.com or 319-600-2124, follow him on Twitter @IsaacHamlet.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: John Morgan, Tanner Taylor join the Des Moines jazz hall of fame
