This year’s Jazzmouth Festival provided ample evidence of Portsmouth’s strong artistic community—from the wide range of events held in various downtown locations, to the performers and fans who came together to participate in this  annual celebration of spoken word and improvised music.

In turn, Jazzmouth embraces this community. That’s part of the vision of festival founder and chief guru Larry Simon. “There is an artistic integrity that has been there from the beginning,” Simon told me after the Saturday evening performance at The Music Hall. This integrity, he continued, was essential to developing the festival’s community spirit.

One way Jazzmouth embraces comunity is by booking shows at various locales. The festival kicked off late Thursday afternoon, April 23, in the newly renovated lobby of The Music Hall. The venue’s blue, red and gold lighting enhanced the soft, swinging strains of standards and blues from guitarist Chris O’Neill and bassist Keith Foley. O’Neill and Foley, both of the Amorphous Band, displayed a sublime sense of musical empathy, the kind that comes from years of making music together in a variety of settings.

After the short set, Festival emcee John-Michael Albert offered an enthused introduction to the event. Albert has served as emcee since the festival’s inception in 2005, and his sunny personality and self-deprecating humor are as vital to the festival as any other aspect.

Albert soon turned the microphone over to Simon, the festival’s artistic director, who spoke of the main theme for the fifth annual event: the influence of Latin music and poetry on American culture. Simon then introduced world renowned composer, multi-instrumentalist and poet David Amram, as well as local poets Ayanna Gallant and Tammi Truax.

Amram has been an enthusiastic Jazzmouth participant from the beginning and is, each year, a ubiquitous presence at all the events. His enthusiastic demeanor, enormous level of creativity and genial personality help give Jazzmouth the positive image it enjoys.

“This is such a great event,” Amram told those in attendance. “It’s always a joy for me to come back and be a part of something that is so special.”
Over the course of the next hour, Amram offered thoughtful, unobtrusive and spontaneous accompaniment as Truax read selections from “These Are Not Sweet Girls,” a collection of writings from women poets from Latin America. Gallant chose selections from “Out Loud,” a collection of Nuyorican poetry. Amram improvised a slyly sophisticated blues behind her reading of Joes-Angel Figueroa’s “Satin Lady Blues.”

Amram then took over, reading from his latest book, “Upbeat,” which details his involvement in a 1977 jazz cruise to Havana, Cuba, along with Dizzy Gillespie, Earl Hines and Stan Getz, and their interactions with Cuban musicians such as Arturo Sandoval and Paquito D’Rivera. He finished the show by having the crowd clap out the Clave rhythm at the heart of Latin music as he improvised on the drum and piano. The audience members then headed up to the main theater to view Andy Garcia’s performance documentary “Cachao: Uno Más,” about the great Cuban bassist.

On Friday morning, I caught the last few minutes of a poetry reading at Breaking New Grounds, one of the regular events at Jazzmouth. Hosted by talented local poet Tim Veillieux, this event gives local poets of all ages a chance to present their material to peers. As always, it was a superb event that shows how much creative talent there is in the area.

On Friday evening, the festival shifted to The Press Room for the annual Jazzmouth Night of Jazz, headlined by legendary pianist and singer-songwriter Bob Dorough and his trio. Also performing were Larry Simon’s Seacoast All-Stars and the Portsmouth Music & Art Center Student Jazz Ensemble, directed by Matt Langley.

Among the highlights were stellar solo moments from Don Davis and Matt Langley on saxophones, Simon’s inspired guitar work, the propulsive grooves put down by drummer Mike Barron and percussionists Frank Laurino and Sean Russell, and some explosive trombone and vocal work from Ayanna Gallant. Mike Albert distributed bananas during the band’s rendition of “Banana Freakout.” And Amram composed a spontaneous rap that acknowledged the beauty of Protsmouth.

Bob Dorough, kicked off his performance by saying, “Man…I’ve been introduced!” Joined by Steve Berger on guitar and Tony Marino on bass, he offered a set of inspired jazz, blending unique arrangements of standards like “Moon River,” “Midnight Sun” and “The Sweetest Sounds” with his lively and provocative originals, including “Better than Anything,” “Small Day Tomorrow,” “Devil May Care” and the humorous “Webster’s Definition of Love.”

Saturday began with the Young Writers Beatnight at RiverRun Bookstore, featuring emerging talent from local schools accompanied by Larry Simon’s group and David Amram. The scheduled readers—Molly Hearn, Adam Dinirjian, Ezra Cohen, Izzi Hulzman, Sam Liechtenstein, Gage Kinney and Joe McMann—all displayed a maturity and talent that belied their youth. Simon later opened up the floor to other aspiring poets from the audience.

On Saturday afternoon, Bob Dorough held a workshop at the Seacoast Repertory Theatre to discuss his work composing music for the long-running and recently reconstituted television series “School House Rock.” A group of young people performed at the event, and Dorough joined them for a magical moment.

Afterward, Dorough and David Amram showed up at The Press Room for Larry Garland’s weekly Saturday afternoon jazz session. Both sat in with Garland, once again executing a spontaneous and inspiring performance as their creative intellects joined forces.

Saturday evening’s main event at The Music Hall kicked off with a stirring and swinging rendition of the standard “A Taste of Honey” by Larry Simon’s ensemble. Amram joined the group as it provided incisive accompaniment for featured poets Tim Veillieux, Manchester-based poet Cara Losier, and Rochester Poet Laureate Andrew Periale, who performed with the aid of a puppet and a dancer.

Amram then provided solo keyboard and percussion accompaniment while Bob Dorough, Dr. Audrey Sprenger and Bruce Pingree each read sections of Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road.” Afterward, Amram and Dorough collaborated in another superb scat/vocalese improvisation during a rendition of “Pull My Daisy.”

Following this segment, former U.S. and N.H. Poet Laureate Donald Hall took the stage and began his reading with the poem “Le Jazz.” Wise and witty at age 80, he enraptured the large audience with poems that reflected on various aspects of life through the years.

Headliner Mose Allison then took the stage, accompanied by Paul Del Nero on bass and Bob Gullotti on drums. Allison offered a rousing set of his provocative originals and arrangements of tunes by other writers. Allison’s tunes often offer wry observations about experiences he’s had. Such was the case on tunes like “Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde,” “Tell Me Something I Don’t Know” and “Your Mind Is on Vacation.” The tunes from other writers were equally imaginative, including a rendition of “You Are My Sunshine” and a stirring rendition of Muddy Waters’ “Rolling Stone.”

Allison’s idiosyncratic playing style shows a wide array of influences from Professor Longhair to Bud Powell, with a dash of Jerry Lee Lewis. His vocals are rendered in a casual offhand manner, enhancing the songs rather than dominating them. Del Nero and Guillotti offered the right amount of interplay and counterpoint to Allison’s robust playing.

After the performance on Saturday, Amram told me that “Jazzmouth has really gotten stronger in terms of its sense of community and stressing the cultural values of the community. I’m seeing more people who are enthusiastic about this event and who seem to be truly engaged in the performances.”

Audrey Sprenger, currently writing a biography of Jack Kerouac, was attending the event for the first time. “This is one of the best poetry events I’ve ever attended. It’s so completely integrated between the local and national performers, as well as between the pop culture side and the academic side,” Sprenger said.

Bruce Pingree, who is one of the founders of Jazzmouth, feels that this was one of the most successful so far. “Each year has been amazing. At the same time, the festival has had a cumulating effect. For instance, we’ve had three U.S. poet laureates in the festival so far. So, this is something that keeps building on itself,” Pingree said.

Much credit for the festival’s success should go to Larry Simon’s band members. Scip Gallant, Cynthia Chatis, Don Davis, Chris Stambaugh, Mike Barron, Frank Laurino and Sean Russell have been an integral part of this event from the beginning. Like Simon, they are all versatile, creative and committed musicians who also happen to be very good people. Their selfless “one for all—all for one” approach is what gives Jazzmouth and the monthly Beat Night sessions at The Press room their luster and energy. Their dedication to creativity and to community and music should not be overlooked.

Larry Simon believes that this year’s Jazzmouth Festival was, once again, a success. He noted that the festival has grown to truly encompass the entire community.

“It’s that sense of community that makes Jazzmouth so special,” Simon said.