OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Elliot Glicksman
President
Elliot Glicksman recently retired after 42 years practicing law. In the course of his 42 year career, Elliot served as President of the Arizona Trial Lawyers Association, sat on the Advisory Board of the National Crime Victims Bar Association, was the President of Homicide Survivors, Inc and was the first Chairperson of the Tucson Citizen Police Advisory Committee.
For his service to the community, Elliot has received the 2015 AJC Learned Hand Award for Community Service, the 2017 Steven M Gootter Foundation Philanthropic Award, and the 2008 Cystic Fibrosis Breath of Life Award. In addition to his law practice, Elliot has performed stand-up comedy opening for Jerry Seinfeld, Gilbert Gottfried and Phyllis Diller. He routinely takes former Mayor Jonathan Rothschild’s money at poker. His greatest accomplishment is his marriage to wife, Lorraine, and being the father of Jill, Ben and Zach.

Dan Gibson
Vice President

Laura Liewen
Treasurer
Laura Liewen, CPA and Shareholder at R&A CPAs in Tucson, has more than 20 years of experience in public accounting. Laura graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Arizona. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Arizona Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the Tucson Tax Study Group, Inc. Her musical background includes five years as manager for rock group the Gin Blossoms. In 2019 she joined the Tucson Jazz Festival board as their treasurer. Laura enjoys craft beer, spending time with her family, including her pets, and traveling the world.

Brandi Haga-Blackman
Secretary

Mary Ellingsen
Volunteer Coordinator

Jonathan Rothschild
Board Member
Photo by Steve Meckler Distinction 2021

Steven Pope
Board Member

Louis Salute
Board Member

Angelo Versace
Board Member
Versace has performed on twelve studio albums: two as a leader and ten as a sideman, including Jazz Hymns with guitarist Jerry Hahn and Kristian 3.0 with Take-6 vocalist, Khristian Dentley. He has also had the privilege of working as a sideman with several internationally recognized artists: Lewis Nash, Warren Wolf, Terell Stafford, Brice Winston, Joe Saylor, Troy Roberts, Dave Stryker, Roxy Coss and Chuck Israels. Versace travels yearly to Taipei, Taiwan where he is on faculty at the Fu Jen University Jazz – a camp which coordinates with the American Institute of Taiwan Jazz Outreach Program. Most recently, he has been a member and appointed board director of the newly minted Tucson Jazz Collective (TJC). The group, which has performed for the SAACA Jazz Legends Concert with vocalist, Becca Stevens, continues to perform in and around Southern Arizona.
OUR FOUNDER

Yvonne Ervin
The HSL Properties Tucson Jazz Festival was a culmination of Yvonne’s incredible career. Yvonne was the Executive Director of the Western Jazz Presenters Network and editor of Hot House Magazine. She was also an active board member of the International Association of Jazz Educators. Over her career as a jazz journalist for print and radio, Yvonne interviewed over 150 jazz legends. Yvonne was a founding member of the Tucson Jazz Society, was inducted into the Tucson Musicians Museum and created “Jazz on the Border: The Mingus Project” a weeklong festival in Nogales, Arizona and Sonora.
Between January 2014 and the first festival 11 months later, Yvonne, with the love, support, and assistance of her husband Alan Hershowitz, was unstoppable. She booked the artists, selected the venues, established ticket prices, lined up ticket sellers, artist transportation, food, lodging, designed our program, created the free MLK Day outdoor Jazz Fiesta, helped secure sponsors, and marketed the festival.
Following her untimely passing on December 26, 2018, the HSL Tucson Jazz Festival continues and thrives because of Yvonne’s vision. Stated succinctly, there would have been no festival without Yvonne Ervin. When you are enjoying this year’s 2022 HSL Tucson Jazz Festival, please take a moment to remember this incredible force of nature- our first Executive Director, Yvonne Ervin.
Elliot Glicksman
Tucson Jazz Festival Board President