Tony Bennett Headed Back to Segerstrom Center, 10/5

Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents Tony Bennett, the 17-time Grammy Award-winning singer whose career spans more than six decades, on October 5 at Segerstrom Hall. The concert celebrates the newly-released Sony Legacy Tony Bennett: the Classics, a compilation of hits from Bennett's recent series of Duets CDs as well as solo versions of many catalog favorites. Bennett's daughter, Antonia Bennett, will open the performance with a collection of jazz/pop standards. She is a graduate of the prestigious Berklee College of Music.

Tickets to Tony Bennett start at $59 and will go on sale Sunday, June 15 at 10 a.m. PST. Single tickets will be available online at SCFTA.org, at the Box Office at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa or by calling (714) 556-2787. For inquiries about groups of 20 or more, call the Group Services office at (714) 755-0236. The TTY number is (714) 556-2746.

With worldwide record sales in the millions and dozens of platinum and gold albums to his credit, Tony Bennett is a singer and musician who touches the hearts and souls of audiences with his legendary vocals and charming stage presence. His long list of achievements during more than 60 years includes 17 Grammy Awards, including the prestigious Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, making him a true international treasure. His signature tunes, such as "Steppin' Out with My Baby" and "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" form part of the fabric of American music culture. Often billed as the world's most boyish octogenarian, Bennett is a vital musical artist at the peak of his powers.

Bennett celebrated his 85th birthday in 2011 with the release of Duets II and made music history by making Bennett the oldest artist to ever have a #1 CD on the Billboard album charts. Duets II followed Tony Bennett Duets: An American Classic CD, released in 2006. 2012 marked the 50th anniversary of the singer's signature song, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" as well as the release of a new documentary film, The Zen of Bennett, created and conceived by Bennett's son and manager Danny Bennett. Bennett also released his fourth book, Life is a Gift, in 2012 and entered The New York Times Best Seller list.

Bennett is also an accomplished painter. He has exhibited his work in galleries around the world, and three of his original paintings are part of the permanent collection in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

Throughout his career, Bennett has put his heart and time into supporting humanitarian concerns and joined Dr. Martin Luther King in the historic Selma March in 1965. His many charitable works include raising millions of dollars towards diabetes care and lending his artwork to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. In 2007, he was honored by the United Nations. Together with his wife, Susan, Bennett established the charitable organization, Exploring the Arts (ETA) to support arts education in public high schools. Bennett founded the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, a New York City public high school in his hometown of Astoria, Queens. ETA now supports 14 additional public high schools throughout New York City and just expanded to support three public arts high schools in Los Angeles.

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