The benefit concert is part of The Orangutan Project, an initiative dedicated to raising awareness and funds to help Orangutans around the world. (Nadirsyah Nadirsyah / Pexels)

Jazz and Orangutans? A match made in heaven?

A benefit concert for Orangutans will be held at St Andrews United Church featuring local dancing and a Jazz trio. The event is part of The Orangutan Project, an initiative dedicated to raising awareness and funds to help Orangutans around the world.

Nanaimo resident Amy Kaellis was inspired by the movement and took the initiative to organize the benefit concert.

“I was so moved by the plight of these amazing animals that I wanted to do something to help, hence the concert.”

According to Kaellis, she first became interested in the movement after seeing a TV program about the threats orangutans faced. She would later discover The Orangutan Project, which has a local chapter in Langley, where she contacted the representative.

Kaellis would later travel to Seattle to attend a presentation led by the organization's founder, Leif Cocks. This reinforced her interest in supporting the orangutan conservation and eventually led to the benefit concert. She explained the importance of Orangutans in their natural habitat.

“They're like the gardeners of the rainforest because as they feed in the treetops, they drop seeds as they're feeding and also in their droppings, which is sort of like also providing instant fertilizer for the seeds. So, they keep the cycle of the rainforest going by doing that. They help perpetuate the forest.”

The Orangutan Project was founded in 1998 by primatologist Leif Cocks and works to protect orangutans and their habitats in Borneo and Sumatra, islands located in Asia and Indonesia.

Kaellis identified deforestation issues connected with palm oil plantations and forest fires as the major drivers of habitat loss for orangutans. The organization rescues orphaned orangutans, rehabilitates them, protects their habitat and supports the surrounding community, through education, medical and legal help.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, orangutans are a critically endangered species. Populations are estimated at around 105,000 in Borneo and 14,000 in Sumatra; they are threatened by deforestation and agricultural expansion, especially palm oil plantations and illegal wildlife trafficking. The species is known to feast on fruits like lychees and figs and enjoy water from holes in trees.

Ahead of the concert, Kaellis commented on the community’s support.

“The people are all very talented, the people who are offering their talent for this concert, for this event,” said Kaellis. “It's also to benefit critically endangered orangutans.”

She explained what she hopes audience members will take away.

“I'm really hoping that people will come away with an enhanced awareness of how important these animals are to save, not only because of their role in ecological terms, but just in their own right,” said Kaellis. “So I hope people will take away that greater appreciation of orangutans, and do what they can to help them become more aware of products they can avoid that may endanger their continued existence, the animals' existence, and, um, just a greater respect for our natural world in general.”

Kaellis said she plans to give a short presentation and slideshow about orangutans before the performances. She hopes the event will help attendees understand the threats orangutans face and their importance to the rainforest ecosystem. Beyond raising funds, she wants audiences to become more aware of the impact of everyday consumption on endangered wildlife.

Kaellis recruited Couch, who she knows having studied jazz for almost two years. (Verra Creative)

Teighan Couch, jazz vocalist, songwriter and music teacher from Ottawa will lead the concert performance, alongside Nick Peck on the piano and Brock Meads on double bass. Couch explained what audiences can expect to hear.

“A lot of it is gonna be my original music and my new original music, so not just stuff that's already featured on my album, but some new compositions that I've just written in the past few months here are gonna be featured.”

Kaellis recruited Couch, who she knows having studied jazz for almost two years, plus Harbour Dance, after attending one of their performances at the Port Theatre. Couch added she has prepared a Halloween themed arrangement of Ding-Dong The Witch is Dead, which she hopes to use to close the show. Her music draws heavily from straight ahead jazz, bebop, blues, and traditional jazz.

She commented on her sentiment on being involved in the fundraiser.

“ I think it's really nice that I get to support a cause and do what I love at the same time. Like I get to draw people in to hopefully, you know, help a cause that's bigger than just me and just the music, which is a fun opportunity.”

Couch said it’s her first time headlining a benefit concert. She also plans to donate $5 from each copy of her album, It’s Pronounced Cooch, sold at the concert to The Orangutan Project.

She commented on what she hopes attendees will take away.

“I hope they leave with a little pep in their step and their spirits a little more uplifted. I hope to see maybe some new faces who are maybe discovering jazz for the first time, and, you know, they might hear something they like and then go and explore some more.”

Kaellis explained what audiences will gain from the event.

“You get a double thing. You get to feel good about helping these animals. You get to feel good listening to great music and watching great dancing, so it's a win-win.”

The benefit concert takes place this Friday, October 16, at St. Andrews United Church. Tickets are $35, with doors opening at 6 p.m. ahead of the 7 p.m. performance.

Further information is available at the official Orangutan Project website.

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.

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