A press conference announcing the New York City-based jazz quintet FIVE PLAY’s Vietnam tour took place in Ho Chi Minh City on June 6.

The event opened with the screening of the trailer for Judy Chaikin’s documentary “The Girls in The Bands”, which tells the story of women who faced racist and sexist male musicians in the 1930s and '40s. In an effort to combat the notion that only men can play jazz, a number of female artists, including FIVE PLAY, with five female members, have strived to confirm their place in the world of jazz.

The band, including drummer Sherrie Maricle, pianist Tomoko Ohno, bass player Noriko Ueda, trumpet player Jami Dauber and clarinetist Janelle Reichman, was formed in 1999 as a sister group of the world-renowned DIVA Jazz Orchestra.

FIVE PLAY has performed at many of the most prestigious concert halls, music festivals, universities and jazz clubs in the United States, including Carnegie Hall and The Kennedy Center. The group has also performed at major festivals around the world.

At the conference, the ladies shared that they also encountered sexism when touring in the past. Before their shows, audience expectations seemed low because they didn’t appreciate a female jazz band. “However, their minds changed after watching our performances,” the band said.

The American group, which has performed around the world and contributed to the world’s music education, avoided calling themselves famous.

“I don’t know if famous is correct, but we’re recognized,” Sherrie Maricle stated at the conference.

According to Maricle, a professional jazz musician must be talented in playing instruments and have a unique style and personality, while Janelle Reichman added the artist must be flexible on how to fit himself/herself into different music situations.

Asked why they chose an industrial zone in Nha Trang as part of their tour in Vietnam, since workers do not seem to enjoy jazz much, FIVE PLAY shared they want to be an inspiration for the female workers there.

“Workers don’t often have the chance to approach this kind of music. As artists, we’re excited to introduce American music to them,” Maricle, the band leader said. “I heard that there are many female workers at the zone, we want them to see that women can do things people have thought we can’t.”

The band also shared with local media their happiness upon seeing many women, especially little girls, that have been inspired to do things which are not usually thought of as something women do after watching their shows.

Moreover, parts of FIVE PLAY’s performances were also revealed at the conference. The band will play a kind of music which is a mix of Asian traditional music and American jazz. The highlight of the shows will be their own arrangement of a Vietnamese song.