Randy Weston Headlines Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Awards Gala 6/11

Pianist Randy Weston headlines the artist lineup and tickets are now on sale at www.JJAJazzAwards.org for the 15th annual Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Awards gala, to be held on Saturday, June 11, from 1 pm to 5 pm EDT at City Winery,155 Varick St. at Vandam in New York City.

Besides Weston, trumpeter Wallace Roney's sextet, Canadian flutist/soprano saxophonist Jane Bunnett with Cuban-born pianist Hilario Duran and special guest Candido on congas, singer Gregory Porter (a nominee for the JJA's Male Vocalist of the Year Award) and the Hammer Klavier Trio from Hamburg will perform at the event. The JJA gala, a fundraiser for the non-profit professional organization that promotes coverage of jazz in all media, will also feature announcements and presentations of the Awards to winners, and introductions of "Jazz Heroes" honored for extra-musical jazz activism in locales across the U.S. (in order to highlight the decentralized aspect of jazz activism, the JJA is not inducting "A Team" jazz activists this year). City Winery refreshments and beverages, as well as Brother Thelonious Ale and Celebrity Jazz cognac will be served.

The Jazz Awards is being produced as live streaming video, viewable online (and later archived) at JJAJazzAwards.org. Free satellite parties have been convened to watch the Awards in Berkeley, Boston, Nashville, Phoenix, Portland OR, Seattle and Washington, D.C, among other sites.

The general public may purchase tickets to the Awards gala in New York for $150. Ticket reservations, the list of all nominees for 2011 JJA Jazz Awards, details about the satellite parties and videos of the performers are also available at JJAJazzAwards.org.

Jazz Awards headliner Randy Weston, robust at 85 and a recently named Guggenheim Fellow, is a nominee for the JJA's Best Book of the Year Award for his autobiography African Rhythms ("arranged" by former JJA vice president Willard Jenkins). Weston's performance and that of singer Gregory Porter, whose album Water was nominated for a Grammy as vocal jazz cd of the year, are being supported by Motema Records. Acclaimed trumpeter Wallace Roney and his band with his brother Antoine and Arnold Lee on saxophones is being supported by HighNote/Savant Records.

Pianist Hilario Duran, born in Cuba and residing in Canada, has been nominated for two Juno Awards for his 2010 album Motion, hailed as #1 of the year by the Latin Jazz Network; soprano saxophonist/flutist Jane Bunnett, a multiple Juno winner who led her Spirits of Havana ensemble at the 2009 JJA Jazz Awards, has been Duran's guest artist on tour with a 13-piece Latin Jazz band. Their performance is supported by Alma Records; master conguero Candido Camero, who joins them, was voted Percussionist of the Year by the JJA in 2009. The Hammer Klavier Trio, presented by Jan Matthies Management, is the subject of a JJA-nominated Short Form Video of the Year, and appears at the Jazz Awards as part of its debut American tour.

The JJA Jazz Awards is the only broad-based, independent, international celebration of jazz excellence. Begun in 1997 as a collaboration between the Jazz Journalists Association and Michael Dorf (then executive director of the Knitting Factory, now Founder and CEO of City Winery), it has been produced annually since 1999 by the JJA as part of its effort to increase awareness of jazz worldwide through writing, photography, audio/video and new media productions.

JJA Jazz Awards are presented 39 categories encompassing jazz music, presentation and documentation. The JJA's "Jazz Heroes" are activists, advocates, altruists, aiders and abettors of jazz who have had significant impact on their immediate locales. The 2011 "Jazz Heroes" are:

? Omrao Brown, managing partner of Bohemian Caverns, who has helped stimulate new jazz activities in Washington, D.C.
? Peggy Cafritz, supporting founder of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts inWashington, D.C.
? John Gilbreath, executive director of Earshot Jazz, Seattle.
? Dr. Maiterya Padukone, dentist affiliated with the Jazz Foundation of America, treating musicians in New York City.
? Don Z. Miller, jazz impresario of Arizona, Mexico and Europe.
? Ed Reed, 82-year-old singer and substance abuse counselor, Richmond,California.
? Mike Reed, drummer, bandleader, music series and festival presenter, Chicago.
? Roger Spencer and Lori Mechem, directors of the Nashville Jazz Workshop,Nashville.
? Elynor Walcott and her sons, proprietors of Wally's Jazz Café, longtime venue for youthful and emerging jazz in Boston.

The Jazz Awards gala raises funds for JJA educational efforts and activities aimed at developing new audiences for jazz. These include the eyeJAZZ video training program, audience enrichment programs at jazz festivals and educational institutions, initiatives using social media to activate under-addressed segments of the potential jazz audience and establishment of online platforms for jazz journalists.

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