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Mo' Music with Mo Morgen
by Manny Meland on March 30, 2010
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Every Thursday and Friday, Mo Morgen makes music at the Miami Shores Country Club. That’s where I caught his act he calls Mojazz. It presents my man Mo Morgen on keyboard and sopranino sax. And for the past ten years, it includes the other half of his act, percussionist Madafo.
Mo was born in New York. His interest in music was stirred by his mother and brother, both amateur classical pianists. He was eleven when his fondness of Benny Goodman steered him to trying the clarinet. He loved Benny Goodman but he never loved the clarinet. At 18, he switched to sax. He tried the alto, tenor, baritone and bass saxes. “Finally, I fell in love with the Eb soprano sax”, he said. He affectionately calls it Nino”. (The E & b flats put Nino in a higher range).
The thing about Morgen is that he is a prolific promoter. In New York in 1975, he founded the world renowned Jazzmania Society which spearheaded the legendary Jazz Loft Movement. He promoted jazz five nights a week at his loft where he rotated prominent guest stars. On weekends, he provided opportunities for bands to showcase themselves. In 1977, he organized the first three day New York Loft Jazz Festival. The same year, he presented a Brazilian Jazz Festival. Morgen’s Jazz Loft’s ten years run made it the most successful in New York.
In 1993, Mo joined a tide of New Yorkers who moved to Miami. Here he opened a Miami Beach jazz club called MoJazz Cafe located on 71st St. at the foot of Miami Beach. It was a great place to hang and catch some good vibes. I especially enjoyed his Sunday jam sessions. However, jazz clubs have a slim survival rate. He could not generate enough traffic.
I later ran into him at a benefit for drummer Howard Moss. Moss had unfortunately contracted lung cancer. Our local musicians close rank when a fellow musician is in need. They filled an art gallery in North Miami where everyone was happy to pay a door charge to hear their contemporaries play.. Mo said gatherings like this are great for networking. This consummate producer then spread the message around the room that he will repeat this every Sunday. That was a good idea but too few showed up the next Sunday.
Morgen got it right at the Miami Shores Country Club. Check it out. The parking is free and plentiful and so are the hors d’ouvres. The club offers a very affordable menu for your dining pleasure and you can’t beat the price of wine at $5 a glass.
And now with daylight saving time, get there early to see the sunset on the golf course. Of course, the piece de resistance is the musical stylings of Mo and Madafo and the various local musicians that they invite to stand in each week.
Mo and Madafo, Thursdays and Fridays, 7-10 p.m. Miami Shores Country Club, 10000 Biscayne Blvd., Miami
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