Boston, MA. October 2, 1995. Initially planned by John Chan as a special tribute to Ron Della Chiesa, twenty-one of New England's greatest jazz musicians donated their time and talents for a four-hour Sunday night jam session, and then turned it into a rally to demand the restoration of MusicAmerica, Della Chiesa's recently canceled radio show on WGBH-FM/89.7. In the audience at Chan's, Woonsocket's well-known jazz club, was an obviously touched Ron, wife Joyce, mother Florence, MusicAmerica substitute host Carol Sloane, many long-time friends, and a loud, wildly supportive sell-out crowd.
Chan's 9 year old son, Jonathan, presented Della Chiesa with a plaque to commemorate the evening. It bore the inscription: "A special tribute to Ron. We, the family of MusicAmerica at 100,000 strong is grateful to Uncle Ron for his 18 wonderful years of spinning classical American music. Thanks for the memories and all that jazz."
One of the evening's many high points came when singer Rebecca Parris, fighting the flu, told the crowd that MusicAmerica was the last vestige of WGBH's original educational mission. "No other program, and no other host, taught the public so much about our musical heritage as MusicAmerica and Ron", she said. Parris dedicated the first of two songs, Melancholy Baby, to 90-year old Florence, and closed with How Do You Keep the Music Playing?, a tune that has become the theme song for the campaign to bring back the show.
Underscoring the show's regional reach, mayor Francis Lanctot spoke from the stage and declared Sunday, October 1 to be "Ron Della Chiesa Day" in Woonsocket. Waving a red, white, and blue MusicAmerica bumper sticker, Mayor Lanctot told the crowd that in three decades of running for office, his wife never allowed bumper stickers-even his!-on the family car, but that she has reversed that policy for the campaign to bring back MusicAmerica.
The program closed with John Chan's presentation of a check, the evening's proceeds, to John Brady, Chairman of the Committee to Save MusicAmerica. Thanking Chan, Brady said "This incredible evening has both fueled public spirit and added financial support for our campaign. We continue our crusade to convince station management to bring back the show."
Performing at Chan's were Greg Abate, Paul Antonelli, Paul Broadnax, Donna Byrne, Artie Cabral, Paul DelNero, Diamond, Jim Gwin, Peter Kontrimas, Pat Loncar, Molly Malone, Dave McKenna, Dan Moretti, Chris Neville, Rebecca Parris, Herb Pomeroy, Ray Santisi, Gray Sargent, Carol Sloane, Mike Turk, and Marshall Wood.
Ron Della Chiesa's MusicAmerica program kept classical American music alive for 18 years and reached a weekly audience of 100,000 listeners. The Committee to Save MusicAmerica has organized a campaign to restore the show and maintains a 24-hour hotline, 617-662-0853. It estimates that its efforts have cut contributions to WGBH by $50,000 to $100,000, and its goal is to reach the $250,000 mark by December 31, if WGBH refuses to budge.