Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

By Jeffery Luhn

10 November, 2026

Post Categories:

Photos & Projects

Post Tags:

Musician Photography Portrait Photography
Leave a comment (39 Comments)

Share this post:

When I moved from the San Francisco Bay Area to the little village of Felton, in the Santa Cruz Mountains, I was motivated to get into the jazz music scene. Bob Smith, a trumpeter that had played with many West Coast big bands in the 1940s-1960s, told me there was someone I had to meet.

Bob Smith Trumpet

“I want to introduce you to a cool hip lady pianist I know. Miss Velzoe Brown. Come to her birthday party and bring your bass. You’ll be inspired. She’s 96, going on 29.”

Velzoe on stage

My wife and I attended the party. Wow! Velzoe was surrounded by over 50 friends, students, and fellow musicians. She knew everybody by name, had a kind word for each of us, and led the jam session with unbridled energy. On that day it’s not an overstatement that we fell under her spell. Time shared with Velzoe was always time well spent.

Velzoe telling a story

Velzoe typically played gigs once a week at various retirement homes, care facilities, private parties, and civic functions. Her band was ‘Velzoe and the Upbeats.’ I shared bass duties with David. Penny was a regular, playing sax and singing. If you played with the Upbeats, Velzoe had a magenta and a burgundy top made for you. I never saw her perform in any other colors.

Penny singing
Tracy the drummer

There’s a lot I can say about Velzoe. She was a good painter, able to recite long passages of poetry and prose by memory, had a dozen active students, was the artist in residence for the Port Washington Music Festival for 13 years, was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award by the regional jazz society, and entertained tens of thousands of people with her music and funny stories.

The Upbeats

Velzoe was a good landscape painter.

Velzoe always had big birthday parties. On her 100th birthday the legendary Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz staged an event that exceeded the 225-person capacity of the venue. The managers of the Kuumbwa jokingly promised they would host all future birthday parties for Velzoe. They kept their word for 101.

Velzoe at her 100th birthday party

In her last few months, she had a steady flow of visitors and well-wishers. My wife and I were regulars. Pictured here, Velzoe and I with her cat, Bilbo the Eighth. She had lots of cats and she just decided to call them all Bilbo.

Velzoe and I with Bilbo VIII

About ten months before her passing she showed me some old pictures of her in various bands. She started playing professionally at age 16 and never had another job. She’s the girl on the far right.

Velzoe at age 16

Velzoe’s primary instrument was trombone, but she played all the instruments next to her in this photo.

Velzoe at age 26

I love this shot of her on drums!

Velzoe on Drums age 30

Velzoe started playing piano when she was six years old. Even though she was proficient on numerous instruments, piano became her favorite.

I took a photo of her sitting in her favorite chair looking at a picture book about three months before her passing. It was a very nice day for us. Rest in Peace Miss Velzoe Brown. March 1, 1910 – May 4, 2011.

Velzoe reading at age 101

Share this post:

About The Author

By Jeffery Luhn
I started as 'pro' photographer at 17 when I was hired to photograph 'The Hippie Invasion of Europe' by United Press International in 1969. It was a great assignment, from what I remember! Photography and video production has been my career. Teaching photography has been my sideline from 1980, but is now my main job. I love film. I also publish novels on Amazon.
Read More Articles From Jeffery Luhn

Find more similar content on 35mmc

Use the tags below to search for more posts on related topics:

Musician Photography Portrait Photography

Donate to the upkeep, or contribute to 35mmc for an ad-free experience.

There are two ways to contribute to 35mmc and experience it without the adverts:

Paid Subscription – £3.99 per month and you’ll never see an advert again! (Free 3-day trial).

Subscribe here.

Content contributor – become a part of the world’s biggest film and alternative photography community blog. All our Contributors have an ad-free experience for life.

Sign up here.

Make a donation – If you would simply like to support Hamish Gill and 35mmc financially, you can also do so via ko-fi

Donate to 35mmc here.

Comments

Kevin Saruwatari on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Nice story! I like the archival portraiture you have here.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Yes, cool vintage photos! Thanks.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Michael Ward replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Beautifully lit especially the lead photograph

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CHRISTOF RAMPITSCH on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Damn that's a great B&W portrait! And a great story also. To me, anything music related always looks somehow better in B&W. Both the instruments (especially brass) and the singers. But that's really the nicest portrait I've seen in years!
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Thanks, Christof. I'm so glad I got that shot!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Art Meripol on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

We should all be so blessed to play our ‘instruments’ until we are 101. Really nice portrait. It somehow captures her nostalgic visit to the past. I”m curious…so you place her perfectly in window light or is it augmented with flash? I really appreciate the mix of archival and your work to tell a beautiful story. Great post Jeffery.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Art, That's just natural light. I shot it with a Rolliei. The setup is simple: I put a sheet of white paper into the book and posed her so she was looking down on the blank page. The page is reflecting direct sunlight into her face. There's also direct sunlight on her hands, but nowhere else. I had a reflector set up on camera right to tame the contrast. She wasn't able to keep her eyes open for long, so we did the one, two, three thing a few times. It really breaks the spell to describe the set up, because as photographers, we try to make things look spontaneous. To say that some of the best spontaneous shots are planned sounds jaded. Joe Rosenthal really got slammed for 'staging' the Iwo Jima shot, but he was just in the right place when all the elements were re-assembled. The shot of Velzoe was staged, and a lot quieter than Iwo Jima! So please, don't tell anyone how I did this shot.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Art Meripol replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

I can see it and have done very similar. Great technique to have in your repertoire. Many of my favorite shots are constructed but most people, hopefully, would never know.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Miguel Mendez on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Hermosa historia ,hermosa mujer, y hermosa foto.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Gracias!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Gary Smith on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Inspirational! Thanks for sharing, Jeffery.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Thanks, Gary!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Andrew Roddick on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Fantastic story and images. Cheers
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Thank you, Andrew.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sergio Palazzi (aka @CanonF1) on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

great story, great photos, bravo!
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Thak you, Sergio!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

David Hume on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Wonderful shots and story Jeffery; the feature portrait is so good!

(Please - fix the crop on the photo of her landscape painting - fingernails down a blackboard seeing that!)
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Thanks, David. I'll fix the crop on the painting. It is buggy.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Crop fixed. Thanks for the feedback.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Carl Follstad on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

She was 2 years old when the Titanic sank ... that lady saw a lot in her long life! Thanks for sharing her story and for the wonderful photos.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Carl, Yes, the world changed so much during her time. She never complained about the direction humanity was going because she felt both humanity and the planet were self-correcting. More than once she noted that the planet will always prevail, with or without humanity. She said two things will save us: Music and laughter. What a great lady!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Tony Warren on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

An amazing and inspirational story and amazing life experience for you Jeffery. What an incredible lady. Your images bring it all to life too. Thanks for giving us all the chance to see her story.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Tony, I'm glad you enjoyed meeting Velzoe! Jeffery

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Eric Rose on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

It's like a Life Magazine story! Wonderful images, all.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 10/11/2026

Thanks, Eric. She was an extraordinary person. She needs a Wikipedia page!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

David Pauley on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

An incredible and inspiring portrait, Jeffrey! At an age when so many people, even if blessed to be in the right minds, turn inwards, Miss Brown seems to have reveled in connecting with others, giving far more than she asked for in return. The radiance of your black and white portrait of her, technically perfect (my God!), seems to get at something much deeper. Really stunning.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

Thank you, David. Knowing Velzoe and being in her glow was one of the greatest joys of my life. She never had to work hard to be such a magnetic personality. One of her students was a doctor, and asked Velzoe if she could take a blood sample from her for further study. Velzoe had never had a serious illness, no hospital stays, never needed glasses, and never had kids. Velzoe said, "Sure, if it can help someone play better." Always witty. She influenced people to be more understanding and generous. On another note: I remember you said you were going to Paris. When are we going to see some shots? Jeffery

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

David Pauley replied:

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

She sounds just amazing. I hope you made a print of this portrait! Thanks for asking about Paris. It was great, and I have a piece coming out in about 2 weeks. Cheers!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

I do have prints of that shot. It won a nation award from the 'Booksellers Photo Contest.' in the category, 'Never too old to read.' Bookshop Santa Cruz has the 8x8 print on the wall behind the cash register! Cool! I made 150 5x5 prints and gave them to people at Velzoe's memorial. She may be one of the most 'posted on the fridge' people in our region! Glad you liked her.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Alexander Seidler on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

Thanks for that beautiful story !
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

Thanks, Alexander

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Ibraar Hussain on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

Ah Jeffrey! This was a joy to read and to see her personality and life manifest themselves in her wonderful portrait!
Thank you
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

Ibraar, Velzoe was a unique person. I'm glad you liked the photos and story. Jeffery

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Geoff Chaplin on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

Uplifting story, well done Miss V! And well done you, a great set of images and story to match, thanks Jeffery.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 11/11/2026

Geoff, I'm glad you liked it. Velzoe was a unique person!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

David Rusling on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 12/11/2026

This post is a beautiful tribute to an amazing lady. The portrait, as well as being a really good photograph, portrait captures her so well that I almost feel that I met her. Bravo and thank you.
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 12/11/2026

Thanks, David. I wish you could have met her. I wish everybody could have met her. One of a kind.

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Michael Keppler on Meet Miss Velzoe Brown

Comment posted: 14/11/2026

A superb portrait and a really fascinating story. And I’ve learnt something about portrait photography too Thank you so much for keeping the memory of Velzoe Brown alive in such a wonderful way, and thank you very much for this brilliant post!
Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jeffery Luhn replied:

Comment posted: 14/11/2026

Michael, Thanks for your kind comments. Velzoe was special!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Posts

The York Mills subway entrance on Wilson & Yonge (which is now defunct I believe)

12 November, 2026

The Terrible Transit Conspiracy

By Sneakerzoom

What started as a ‘fun little project’ quickly turned out to be a ‘little bit of nothing’ as I never completed this thing. As it turns out, photographing...
Read More

11 November, 2026

Gran Canaria on Kodak Portra 400

By Martin H

Gran Canaria is one of the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, just off the northwest coast of Africa. A popular holiday destination for Europeans, the ...
Read More