oreen Ketchens, her husband, Lawrence, and drummer, Tony "Oulabula" Bazeley love Dubuque. They had no idea what they were getting themselves into when they agreed to come to our city upon invitation of Hempstead High School principal, David Olsen. David met Doreen on the streets of New Orleans during happier times. They were on vacation, and were strolling along that street full of music, and this fabulous jazz wafted toward them like a breeze. "It was fantastic!" exclaims David. "We listened, we bought CDs, and listened some more. We became instant fans."

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After Katrina hit New Orleans, David wondered about his friends and made contact with them. They have a website, so it was impossible to reach them.

"What can we do for you?" asked David. "What we really need is work," said Doreen a matter-of-factly. So arrangements were made and funds were raised to at least cover their expenses and get them to Dubuque. David sort of made everything up as he went along. He got some help from area arts groups, and pretty soon a schedule and itinerary were arranged. Schools would be visited, students would assemble, and we would all steep ourselves in that savory brew of New Orleans classic jazz.

Here's the best part: The Ketchens are not only great performers, but wonderful teachers. Everywhere they went, Doreen used the opportunity to involve her audiences, young and old, and she used the occasion to teach her audiences about the greatest American music. It was really incredible.

Doreen's Jazz New Orleans is a critically acclaimed group of musicians. Doreen and her husband met at Loyola University, and Doreen is classically trained. She figured she would end up in a symphony orchestra one day until she met her husband, Lawrence. After handing her a music book on some traditional jazz arrangements that included "When the Saints Go Marching In" and "The Rampart Street Parade," she began to play if only to humor Lawrence. She had never seriously played jazz. After she began playing, other family members within earshot came in and said, "You can play!" Well, of course she could play... but until the jazz started...

It's not certain how quickly New Orleans will recover in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and Doreen and her family were devastated by it. Their trip to Dubuque was more than just a gig to help raise some needed funds. It was a special escape from the devastation and the mess that is New Orleans at the present time. "We needed to get away from that for a little while," confided Doreen. And have they made friends in Dubuque? "Oh my, yes," says Doreen. My drummer, Oulabula, wants to by a chateau here," she said.