The Night Jazz Band with guest lead tenor from Tower of Power: Tom Politzer at Yoshi's Oakland

The Night Jazz Band directed by Rory Snyder is considered as one of the top Community College evening jazz ensembles in California, and one of the longest running at 41+ years. The group has achieved a top-notch reputation by winning or placing high in the Pacific Coast Collegiate and Reno Jazz Festivals. Since Rory Snyder was hired as Director of Jazz Studies in 1990 the Night Jazz Band has recorded 3 CDs, the first featuring Phil Woods and the second featuring Toshiko Akiyoshi. The latest release is DVC Jazz Live at Yoshi’s w/ Bob Mintzer. The Night Band has also appeared at Yoshi’s Jazz Club many times and had a very successful tour of China. They have also taken jazz cruises and played at the CMEA State Conference. The band is now a fee based class, meaning we have to raise the money to keep the band going. Our bi-annual Yoshi’s gigs are best fundraisers for us, so any ticket you buy for a Night Jazz Band gig helps support the future of the band....

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The Night Jazz Band directed by Rory Snyder is considered as one of the top Community College evening jazz ensembles in California, and one of the longest running at 41+ years. The group has achieved a top-notch reputation by winning or placing high in the Pacific Coast Collegiate and Reno Jazz Festivals. Since Rory Snyder was hired as Director of Jazz Studies in 1990 the Night Jazz Band has recorded 3 CDs, the first featuring Phil Woods and the second featuring Toshiko Akiyoshi. The latest release is DVC Jazz Live at Yoshi’s w/ Bob Mintzer. The Night Band has also appeared at Yoshi’s Jazz Club many times and had a very successful tour of China. They have also taken jazz cruises and played at the CMEA State Conference. The band is now a fee based class, meaning we have to raise the money to keep the band going. Our bi-annual Yoshi’s gigs are best fundraisers for us, so any ticket you buy for a Night Jazz Band gig helps support the future of the band.

Rory resumed a strong guest artist program with guests including Joe Henderson, Clark Terry, Bill Watrous, Michael Wolff, Bruce Forman, Bobby Hutcherson, Don Menza, John Clayton, Gordon Goodwin, Louie Bellson, Ed Shaughnessy, Grant Geissman, Bob Mintzer, Wayne Wallace, Tom Politzer and more.

Tom E Politzer, lead tenor sax player with Tower Of Power was born in Detroit and raised in Palo Alto, Calif. His parents were opera lovers so he grew up with a strong background in classical music. Tom took up the clarinet when he was ten and became pretty proficient playing in my school bands and with local youth orchestras. I wasn’t really exposed to much popular music, but half way through his junior year in high school, the Jazz Band needed someone to fill the baritone sax chair. He was skeptical, but playing Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Rich and especially “Squib Cakes” by Tower of Power convinced me! Had he not made the switch, he may not have become a professional musician.

The switch changed my life forever. Suddenly I was listening to T.O.P., Earth, Wind & Fire and all types of jazz and r&b. I started buying records and going to clubs. I was a regular at the Keystone Corner in San Francisco and saw so many greats -- Dexter Gordon, Horace Silver, Art Blakey, Weather Report, Freddie Hubbard, Miles. Playing sax just transformed me. I started thinking, ‘I’d like to do that’ -- sit on stage and perform with a great band -- and being in Tower of Power, or Maynard’s band, or Buddy Rich’s band, was at the top of my list. To me, Tower represented one of the greatest bands I ever heard –- they were inspired and they were having fun.

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