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Columbia gets a 'Jazz Hero'

Jon Poses

Over thirty-five years ago, Jon Poses came to Columbia for a journalism degree. He's long since got that degree. Today, for consistent advocacy of live jazz in Columbia, Jon Poses was recently named a 2014 Jazz Journalists Association 'Jazz Hero.'

Each year, the Jazz Journalists Association names as jazz heroes those

advocates, altruists, aiders and abettors of jazz who have had significant impact in their local communities. The 'Jazz Hero' awards, made annually on the basis of nominations from community members, are presented in conjunction with the JJA's annual Jazz Awards honoring significant achievements in jazz music and journalism and with the month-long celebration of jazz.

That month-long celebration takes place each April. Locally, the We Always Swing Jazz Series celebrates the conclusion of Smithsonian co-sponsored Jazz Appreciation Month today. During April the Jazz Series hosted fifteen events including jazz concerts, public events, a film and talks on jazz. JazzApril concludes tomorrow with an open house at the Jazz Series' offices. It is at that open house that Jon Poses will accept on behalf of his organization his 'Jazz Hero' award.

In a recent KBIA interview, Poses talked about how he came to Columbia to get a degree then move on. While in Journalism School, Poses continued to write about the jazz he had grown up loving and seeking out while in Queens, New York. Recognized for his jazz journalism in publications such as the venerable jazz monthly Downbeat, Poses was soon being asked by bands he was writing about to help them find venues in the Midwest. In time, he had a business booking acts across the United States. To bring jazz to Columbia, Poses created The We Always Swing Jazz Series, which will launch its 20th season this August. Poses is an associate member of the Jazz Journalists Association.

The We Always Swing Jazz Series hosts an open house on International Jazz Day today from 1:00 until 8:00 p.m. at their offices located at 21 South Tenth Street in Downtown Columbia. Jon Poses will accept his Jazz Hero award from the Jazz Journalists Association at 5:00 p.m.

Listen for the sounds of Mid-Missouri's local colors each Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. on KBIA's Thinking Out Loud.

Trevor serves as KBIA’s weekday morning host for classical music. He has been involved with local radio since 1990, when he began volunteering as a music and news programmer at KOPN, Columbia's community radio station. Before joining KBIA, Trevor studied social work at Mizzou and earned a masters degree in geography at the University of Alabama. He has worked in community development and in urban and bicycle/pedestrian planning, and recently served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Zambia with his wife, Lisa Groshong. An avid bicycle commuter and jazz fan, Trevor has cycled as far as Colorado and pawed through record bins in three continents.