Each year, savvy jazz fans look forward to the annual Highlights In Jazz series. For almost a half century, the Jack Kleinsinger-produced events have brought together a multitude of beloved jazz musicians spanning an eclectic mix of generations and styles. The 2019 season is no exception, with four stellar concerts featuring some of the brightest luminaries in jazz today.
The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts presents Tony and triple Grammy Award-winning jazz legend Dee Dee Bridgewater in her Wallis debut with a tribute to the rich R&B tradition of Memphis - the city of her birth - on Saturday, March 23, 2019, 7:30 pm, in The Wallis' Bram Goldsmith Theater. The NEA Jazz Master and United Nations Goodwill Ambassador, joined by the Memphis Soulphony, returns to her roots to bring the sultry Memphis sound to Los Angeleswith Memphis…Yes I'm Ready, based on her acclaimed album of the same title recorded at Memphis' famed Royal Studios in 2016.
Producer Ken Davenport (Once on This Island, Spring Awakening) has obtained the Broadway stage rights to the life story of the great American singer, songwriter, actor and activist, Harry Belafonte.
The Music Conservatory of Westchester announces four in-depth musical experiences as its new Musical Masters Lecture Series begins on Sundays at 2 PM during spring 2019. Open to the public, the Conservatory's lecture series will include insight from experts Michael Boriskin, Mark Morganelli, Andrew Armstrong, and Elliott Forrest on the topics of Chamber Music, Brazilian Jazz, Musical Storytelling, and Film Music, respectively.
The Philly POPS will offer free tickets for furloughed government employees during the federal government shutdown. Government employees may present their IDs at the Kimmel Center Box Office to receive one free, complimentary pair of tickets to JAZZED! running January 18, 19 and 20 (One pair per Government-issued employee ID).
The Philly POPS presents Jazzed! The Philly POPS BIG Band with Terell Stafford, a swinging program honoring Philadelphia's unique contributions to the history of jazz, January 18 20 at The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. This performance is a part of The Philly POPS 40th Anniversary Season, which celebrates artists and music with connections to Philadelphia and the POPS.
Aretha's Jazz Café is proud to once again present Latin Jazz All Stars, arguably the finest aggregation of Latin Jazz musicians in the world, for one incredible night, Saturday, January 12th at 8:00PM
The Philly POPS presents Jazzed! The Philly POPS BIG Band with Terell Stafford, a swinging program honoring Philadelphia's unique contributions to the history of jazz, January 18-20 at The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. This performance is a part of The Philly POPS 40th Anniversary Season, which celebrates artists and music with connections to Philadelphia and the POPS.
Harlem Stage, the legendary uptown venue that for over 35 years has promoted the creative legacy of Harlem and artists of color from around the corner and across the globe, is proud to present its Spring 2019 season of performances. The season marks the 20thanniversary of Harlem Stage's signature dance program E-Moves, which for two decades has nurtured and presented choreographers of color across the spectrum of contemporary dance idioms to create new work.The season also features collaborations with exciting new partners including the Prototype Festival and the French Institute Alliance Francaise (FIAF), and continued relationships with venerable arts institutions such as Repertorio Español, Carnegie Hall, Manhattan School of Music, and Chamber Music America.
92Y announces a Valentine's Day concert with Dee Dee Bridgewater, NEA Jazz Master, triple Grammy Award winner, Tony Award winner and UN Ambassador. A singer who can expertly channel Ella, Billie, and Josephine Baker, Dee Dee is also an original and captivating song stylist. She comes to 92Y with her trio on Sunday, February 14 for an unforgettable evening of romantic standards and celebration of love.
Internationally acclaimed Garth Fagan Dance returns to The Joyce Theater with two vibrant world premieres and three stirring revivals from the company's rich archive. For close to half a century, Garth Fagan - the Tony, Olivier and Bessie award-winning choreographer of The Lion King - has created an innovative signature technique that seamlessly blends the gravity of modern dance, the speed and precision of ballet and the energy and physicality of Afro-Caribbean rhythms and movements.
Harlem Stage, the legendary uptown venue that for over 35 years has promoted the creative legacy of Harlem and artists of color from around the corner and across the globe, is proud to present its Fall 2018 season of performances. The season is curated by Monique Martin, recently appointed Director of Programming for Harlem Stage and features artists who #Disrupt and take creative risk. The performances feature a range of artistic genres, offering audiences the chance to experience legendary performers, as well as rising stars.
Pianist and composer Randy Weston will perform with his African Rhythms Quartet on Saturday, July 7th at 7:00 PM, at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center.Born April 6, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York of Jamaican parentage, remarkably Mr. Weston is still performing at full force at 92 years of age. He is a testament to the vibrancy of music as a medium of spiritual restoration.
Banjo Nickaru & Western Scooches are likely the only band today infusing elements of Gullah-Geechee and world rhythms with folk traditions, Americana, New Orleans influences, and 1920s jazz. The forthcoming sophomore album, Get Us Out Of Fearland, due June 15, builds upon the multicultural exuberance that made the band's debut, Very Next Thing, a transcendent breath of fresh air. Elmore Magazine championed its “remarkable musical dexterity with songs that bask in a genuine roots regimen and a sense of timeless tradition,” and revered tastemaker station WFUV said, “This is a band that must be heard to be believed!'
Banjo Nickaru & Western Scooches are likely the only band today infusing elements of Gullah-Geechee and world rhythms with folk traditions, Americana, New Orleans influences, and 1920s jazz. The forthcoming sophomore album, Get Us Out Of Fearland, due June 15, builds upon the multicultural exuberance that made the band's debut, Very Next Thing, a transcendent breath of fresh air. Elmore Magazine championed its “remarkable musical dexterity with songs that bask in a genuine roots regimen and a sense of timeless tradition,” and revered tastemaker station WFUV said, “This is a band that must be heard to be believed!'
Jack Kleinsinger's Highlights In Jazz closes its 46thseason with a tribute to lauded jazz guitarist Russell Malone. A mainstay on the Manhattan music scene since the 1980s, as well as a regular at international festivals and concert halls, Russell has attracted critical and fan recognition for his work as an accomplished leader and in-demand sideman.
The National Music Council has announced that jazz legends Chick Corea and The Manhattan Transfer will be honored at the organization's 35 th annual American Eagle Awards on Thursday, June 28 at the Summer NAMM Show in Nashville. The honors are presented each year in recognition oflong-term contributions to American musical culture and heritage, the importance of music education and inspiration for all children, and the need to protect creators' rights both locally and globally.
Renowned virtuoso guitarist and composer Gil Gutierrez with bassist David Rodriguez and violinist Robert Stern makes a much-anticipated return to the legendary Jazz Standard in New York City, May 22-23.
New York's beloved Dance Theatre of Harlem, under the artistic direction of Virginia Johnson, returns to NY City Center for its annual homecoming season tonight, April 4, the 50th Anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., with the annual Vision Gala, honoring dance legend Carmen de Lavallade and civil rights icon Xernona Clayton.
The Jazz Epistles were South Africa's first black jazz band, pioneering a new musical form influenced by bebop and traditional South African music. Inspired by Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, The Jazz Epistles formed when the Dollar Brand Trio from Capetown-which included pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, bassist Johnny Gertze, and drummer Makaya Ntshoko-combined talents with alto saxophonist Kippie Moeketsi, the late great trumpeter Hugh Masekela, and trombonist Jonas Gwangwa. Their first and only album, Jazz Epistle, Verse 1, released in 1959, brought them international acclaim. Following the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre and the increasing oppression of the apartheid government-including the prohibition of jazz music-band members emigrated to Europe and North America. Two of them, Ibrahim and Masekela, would go on to become jazz stars in their own right.
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