(Brooklyn, NY – May 21, 2012) This June, Heart of Brooklyn and WBGO 88.3 FM will bring an eclectic mix of free and low-cost jazz performances to six of Brooklyn’s favorite cultural institutions with the annual series Jazz: Brooklyn’s Beat. From samba dancing with the Prospect Park Zoo’s sea lions to boogying under the arch at Grand Army Plaza, this month-long celebration gives Brooklynites of all ages a chance to enjoy world-class jazz music at some of the borough’s favorite cultural destinations.

Jazz: Brooklyn’s Beat is a unique partnership between Heart of Brooklyn and WBGO in collaboration with six cultural institutions — Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn Children’s Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Public Library, Prospect Park Alliance and Prospect Park Zoo — working together since 2007 to bring jazz musicians, singers and artists from around the globe to Brooklyn. The series showcases the borough’s diversity and the musical form of jazz through concerts, dances, lessons and more.

In 2012, audiences will be treated to an eclectic mix that ranges from Samba with the Sea Lions at Prospect Park Zoo, where sea lions BeeBe and Stella will “dance” along as Samba New York! teaches the crowd Brazil’s most famous dance; a free Felix Hernandez Rhythm Revue under Prospect Park’s Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch at Grand Army Plaza; the Chuck Braman Quartet featuring vibraphonist Behn Gillece at BBG’s free Amble celebration; a Father’s Day weekend performance by renowned harpist Brandee Younger at The Brooklyn Children Museum; bassist and vocalist Katie Thiroux playing Brooklyn Public Library’s outdoor plaza; and a concert by trumpeter Jeremy Pelt and his Quintet  as part of Brooklyn Museum’s BrooklyNites series.

Dates, Times and Fees:

The Chuck Braman Quartet featuring Behn Gillece at Brooklyn Botanic Garden (part of Amble: BBG’s June Jubilee)
Saturday, June 2 – 12:00 & 2:30pm
Free

Samba with the Sea Lions, Prospect Park Zoo
Saturday, June 9 – 12:00pm
Free with Admission ($8 adults, $6 seniors 65+, $5 for children ages 3–12)

Brandee Younger, Brooklyn Children’s Museum
Saturday, June 16 – 1:30pm
Free with Admission ($7.50)

Katie Thiroux Quartet at Brooklyn Public Library’s Plaza
Wednesday, June 20 – 7:00pm (swing dance lessons at 6:30pm)
Free

Felix Hernandez Rhythm Revue Dance Party at Prospect Park’s Grand Army Plaza
Saturday, June 23 – 4:00-7:00pm
Free

Jeremy Pelt Quintet at Brooklyn Museum
Thursday, June 28 – 7:00pm
Free with Admission ($12 adults, $8 students and senior citizens, suggested)

All events are free to members of WBGO and the host venue. For more information, visit www.heartofbrooklyn.org/jazz or www.wbgo.org/brooklyn, or follow @heartofbrooklyn and @wbgo on Twitter (hashtag: #JazzBklynsBeat).

Support for Jazz: Brooklyn’s Beat provided by TD Bank, Berkeley College and the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs. The series is made possible in part with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Founded in 1979, Newark Public Radio, Inc. is a publicly supported cultural institution that champions jazz at WBGO 88.3 FM in Newark, New Jersey and worldwide via wbgo.org. WBGO is the recognized world leader in jazz radio and one of the most respected jazz presenters in the country, and offers award-winning news and innovative children’s programs. Beyond reaching 400,000 weekly listeners (including 17,000 contributing members) on air, online and via mobile devices, WBGO presents live broadcasts from prestigious jazz venues and produces acclaimed programs for NPR heard by millions. WBGO is Jazz Week magazine’s 2010 Major Market Station of the Year.

Heart of Brooklyn (HOB) is a partnership of the leading cultural institutions located near Grand Army Plaza in central Brooklyn. Founded in 2001 by Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn Children’s Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Public Library, Prospect Park Alliance, and Prospect Park Zoo, this partnership is dedicated to promoting its unique cultural campus as a “must-see” destination to a diverse audience in Brooklyn and beyond. Heart of Brooklyn encourages tourism and learning by making its world-class collections and historic treasures more visible and accessible. As an integral part of Brooklyn’s renaissance, Heart of Brooklyn is committed to strengthening the future of its neighborhoods. Learn more at heartofbrooklyn.org.

# # #

WBGO News Director Doug Doyle (right) accepts award from NYABJ President Michael Feeney (left)

NEWARK, NJ, May 17 – Jazz station WBGO-FM/Jazz 88.3 swept the Radio Category with First Place honors in General News, Public Affairs and Arts & Entertainment at the 2012 New York Association of Black Journalists (NYABJ) awards ceremony held on Tuesday, May 15, at The Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center in New York.  NYABJ recognizes the best in Print, New Media, Radio, Magazine and Television reporting on issues that affect the Black Diaspora.

WBGO received awards in the following categories:

First Place in the Spot General News Radio Category – “Newark Shootings” Reporting from Newark City Hall, WBGO’s Monica Miller spoke with Newark Mayor Cory Booker and Police Director Samuel DeMaio about a targeted shooting spree by drug dealers which left a 15-year-old dead.

First Place in Public Affairs/Radio Category – Conversations with Allan Wolper: “Frank Lucas” Host Allan Wolper had a candid conversation with former Harlem drug king Frank Lucas, who at one time was smuggling massive shipments of pure heroin to the United States from Southeast Asia on military transports. Now, Lucas counsels teenagers to remain in school and stay drug free. Conversations with Allan Wolper airs on WBGO Wednesday nights at 7:30, alternating each month with SportsJam with Doug Doyle.

First Place in Arts & Entertainment/Radio Category – WBGO Journal: “Ailey Camp Newark” WBGO News Director Doug Doyle reported on the final concert in the inaugural season of Ailey Camp Newark. Through funding of the Prudential Foundation, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater held summer camps in Brick City. Doyle took listeners through a magical night of dance, music, skits and fun at NJPAC. WBGO Journal airs Fridays at 7:30 pm.

“This year’s awards reflect WBGO’s commitment to telling stories you don’t hear anywhere else. The art of story-telling is a big part of what we do, and listeners are treated to so much more than a sound bite,” said News Director Doug Doyle. “We are excited that the WBGO Journal and Conversations with Allan Wolper continue to be recognized by NYABJ, and we will hold these prestigious awards as barometers of the caliber of work that we will continue to present to our listeners.”

The WBGO News Department has won more than 60 NYABJ Awards since 1998.

Since its inception in 1976, NYABJ has a legacy of providing professional and moral support to its members, which include reporters, editors, photographers, graphics editors, art directors, public relations professionals, students and academics. This year’s New York awards were judged by NABJ’s Dallas Chapter.

Founded in 1979, Newark Public Radio, Inc. is a publicly supported cultural institution that champions jazz at WBGO 88.3 FM in Newark, New Jersey and worldwide via wbgo.org. WBGO is the recognized world leader in jazz radio and one of the most respected jazz presenters in the country, and offers award-winning news and innovative children’s programs. Beyond reaching 400,000 weekly listeners (including 17,000 contributing members) on air, online and via mobile devices, WBGO presents live broadcasts from prestigious jazz venues and produces acclaimed programs for NPR heard by millions. WBGO is Jazz Week magazine’s 2010 Major Market Station of the Year.

#  #  #

George Wein and Newport Festivals Foundation, Inc.™
Announce Formation of Newport Jazz Festival® Advisory Committee

NEW YORK, NY, May 14, 2012 – To enhance dialogue and share knowledge about the ever-evolving art form of jazz, George Wein and the Newport Festivals Foundation, Inc.™ today announced the creation of the Newport Jazz Festival® Advisory Committee, made up of some of the leading jazz festival producers from around the world.

“The members of the committee are the true source of knowledge about what is happening in jazz.  Collectively, they listen to everything that is being produced and their awareness of the extraordinary musicians in their countries is invaluable,” said Wein, Newport Jazz Festival Producer and Chairman of the Newport Festivals Foundation. “Since jazz is becoming more of a global music each year, having formal access to this outstanding group of international producers will help ensure that the Newport Jazz Festival, as well as other festivals, remain significant and influential institutions for years to come.”

Advisory Committee members are: Iñaki Anua, Festival de Jazz de Vitoria-Gasteiz; Joan Anton Cararach, Voll-Damm Festival Internacional de Jazz de Barcelona; John Cumming, London Jazz Festival; Quint Davis, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival;  Bertrand Flamang, Gent Jazz Festival; Tim Jackson, Monterey Jazz Festival; Jan Willem Luyken, North Sea Jazz Rotterdam; Miguel Martin, San Sebastian Jazz Festival;  André Ménard and Alain Simard, Festival International de Jazz de Montreal; Carlo Pagnotta, Umbria Jazz Festival; Ken Pickering, Vancouver International Jazz Festival; Fritz Thom, Jazz Fest Wien; and Penny Tyler, Ravinia Jazz Festival. For tickets and the complete line-up, go to www.newportjazzfest.net.

Wein and some of the Newport Jazz Festival Advisory Committee are members of the International Jazz Festival Organization (IJFO), an umbrella association to currently 17 leading jazz festivals worldwide. The members do not compete territorially and their events are held at times that allow potential touring of common projects.

In addition, the Newport Festivals Foundation also created an Advisory Board in 2011 for its Newport Folk Festival. While that group is made up of artists Colin Meloy of The Decemberists, Gillian Welch, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Jim James of My Morning Jacket and Ben Knox Miller of The Low Anthem, Wein chose to fill this Committee with fellow jazz festival producers.  However, the jazz impresario says he is “open to bringing on artists and other industry professionals who understand the importance and challenges of promoting jazz, presenting and developing emerging performers and keeping the legacy of the Newport Jazz Festival, and jazz in general, alive.”

The 2012 Newport Jazz Festival presented by Natixis Global Asset Management, which takes place August 3 – 5, features Pat Metheny Unity Band, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Jack DeJohnette’s 70^th Birthday Celebration, Dianne Reeves, Dr. John, Kurt Elling, Maria Schneider Orchestra, Jason Moran and The Bandwagon, Ambrose Akinmusire Quintet, Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks, the 3 Cohens, Christian McBride’s Inside Straight and more.

The Newport Festivals Foundation, Inc.* was founded by George Wein in 2010 to build up and continue the legacies of the famed Newport Jazz Festival and Newport Folk Festival. Under the auspices of the Foundation, the Newport Jazz Festival presents performers who respect and honor jazz music traditions, and at the same time reflect the changes in today’s musical trends. Through the establishment of partnerships with local high schools and colleges/universities, the Foundation will present programs to educate young people about jazz music as presented at the annual festival. For more information, please visit www.newportfestivalsfoundation.org.

#  #  #

*The Newport Jazz Festival® and Newport Folk Festival® are productions of Newport Festivals Foundation, Inc. ™, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation, under license from Festival Productions, Inc. and George Wein; all rights reserved.

***
Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival Runs May 7 – 13, 2012
All Tickets Just $10 or Free!

The prestige of the past. The pulse of the present.

New York, NY, May 1, 2012 – Harlem clubs such as Minton’s and Clark Monroe’s Uptown House gave birth to bebop, and Small’s Paradise was “the home of the happy feet.”  However, in other clubs up in Harlem, the Afro-Cuban influence was moving feet and making its mark on the music, changing the landscape forever.   The second annual Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival, produced by the Apollo Theater, Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile, Inc., presents tributes to two vivid venues that helped make New York the capital of Jazz and Latin music – Club Havana San Juan and Park Palace.

On Saturday, May 12, at 8:00 and 10:00 pm, festival partner Harlem Stage presents a Tribute to Club Havana San Juan, led by Louis Bauzo, at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse, 150 Convent Avenue at West 135^th Street. Club Havana San Juan, located at 138^th and Broadway, opened in the early sixties. Pioneering musicians like Tito Rodriguez, Machito, Celia Cruz and Eddie Palmieri performed there, and the club was one of the spawning grounds for the musical revolution known to the world as Salsa. In the 21^st Century, producer/impresario Geno Chaviano co-created the Havana San Juan Orchestra, a 22-piece big band fluent in everything from the mambo to Classic Latin music. Leading the ensemble is the celebrated Juilliard-trained, Puerto Rican percussionist/educator Louis Bauzo – who has performed with a host of Latin greats, from Mario Bauza and Cachao to Mongo Santamaria. Fellow Puerto Rican conguero Alfredo “Freddy” Lugo, a veteran sideman with Celia Cruz, Andy Harlow and a host of others, will showcase the full range of his percussion wizardry along with the music of many others of the era.  “It’s such an honor and pleasure to revive this golden era of Latin music that flourished just 3 blocks away from the original location of HAVANA SAN JUAN,” says Geno Chaviano.  Tickets are available at the door. For more information, log on to www.harlemstage.org.

The beat continues with a Mother’s Day Celebration on Sunday, May 13, at 4:00 pm, when festival partner Jazzmobile, Inc. pays homage with Dancing Mambo/Park Palace Live! at Harlem USA, 2309 Frederick Douglass Blvd, 2^nd Floor. The Park Palace was jumping in the forties and fifties, when mambo was king and bandleader Machito debuted and held court there.  It was at one of its Sunday matinee dances that bop trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie met Cuban percussionist Chano Pozo. Their collaboration – along with the contributions of arranger Mario Bauza – resulted in the merging of bebop into the genre known as Cubop AKA Latin jazz. The supercharged drummer/percussionist/educator Bobby Sanabria, with seven recordings as a leader, including his Grammy-nominated Tito Puente Masterworks Live!!,  leads his new Multiverse Big Band on a torrid-tempoed, time travel when musicians and dancers swung in simpatico. Special guest on this mambo-motored trip down memory lane is the ever-youthful octogenarian master Cuban percussionist Candido Camero, the last of the Holy Trinity of Afro-Cuban hand drum masters that included Mongo Santamaria and Carlos Patato Valdez. Tickets are available at the door. For more information, please visit www.jazzmobile.org

Both events are designed to move the hips, as well as the heart, so put on your dancing shoes and join the celebration of Park Palace and Club Havana San Juan at the Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival.

The Apollo Theater, Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile, Inc. have joined forces again to present the second annual Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival May 7–13, 2012.  Continuing the mission of the inaugural festival, the three venerable cultural organizations will present a series of concerts and events to celebrate the rich legacy of jazz in the uptown community.

Other highlights of the 2012 Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival include:

• Wycliffe Gordon’s Jazz à la Carte (May 12) – The Apollo’s variety shows of the 1930’s made a stellar comeback last year under the music direction of composer/trombonist Wycliffe Gordon and the director/choreographer Kenneth L. Roberson. The show returns when Gordon celebrates the world-renowned Apollo with host Maurice Hines, tap star Savion Glover, the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra, vocalist Theresa Thomason, pianist Aaron Diehl, trumpeter Philip Dizack, trombonist/vocalist Natalie Cressman and the Apollo Dancers.
• · Tribute to Club Harlem: Celebrating Cecil (May 8 – 9) – Three of today’s most innovative pianists honor the uncompromising creative force of Cecil Taylor in two evenings of solo and duet performances. Vijay Iyer, Amina Claudine Myers, Craig Taborn and poet Amiri Baraka, will perform at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse.

• Small’s Paradise: (Re) Created (May 7, 9, 10, 11) – Jazzmobile will take the bold leap to re-create the legendary Small’s Paradise, once Harlem’s premier night spot and longest-operating club. Re-created at Harlem USA on the second floor of Magic Johnson Theater,  the series features the Revive Music Paradise Band, Johnny O’Neal, Sachal Vasandani, Umar Hassan, The Tap Messengers, Marika Hughes & Bottom Heavy, Will Calhoun plus education presentations including Daniel Carlton’s When Small’s Had It All.
• Showman’s Late Night Jazz (May 8 – 12) – A week-long series produced by the Apollo Theater and Showman’s at the legendary club frequented by Duke Ellington, Sarah Vaughan, Pearl Bailey, Grady Tate and countless others, continues the tradition with sessions featuring Danny Mixon, Lonnie Youngblood, Lou Volpe, Cynthia Holiday and Sarah McLawler.

• Tribute to Clark Monroe’s Uptown House (May 10) at Harlem Stage Gatehouse – Featuring some of the world’s finest instrumentalists and vocalists, this year’s Grammy winner for Best Jazz Vocal Album The Mosaic Project gives females a place to support and celebrate each other from a musical and social perspective. Terri Lyne Carrington will be joined by Lizz Wright, Nona Hendryx, Ingrid Jensen, Tia Fuller, Helen Sung, Mimi Jones and Nir Felder to construct creative consciousness as “women with voices.”

• Minton’s Playhouse: Legends on the Bandstand (May 9 – 12) – Jazzmobile brings the famed club on 118^th Street back to life with a celebration of some of the legends of the esteemed bandstand.  Acknowledging iconic contributions are keepers of the flame, including TK Blue celebrating Charlie Parker, octogenarian Barry Harris remembering Thelonious Monk, Winard Harper with a tribute to Max Roach and an artist TBD paying homage to Dizzy Gillespie. Each set will be followed by a late night jam.

The three partners are again collaborating with Columbia University to bring humanities programming that will further highlight the cultural significance of Harlem and the Festival. The University’s programming includes a May 11 special advance screening of The Savoy King, a documentary on Swing-era drummer/bandleader Chick Webb, Ella Fitzgerald and the renowned Savoy Ballroom as well as an exploration of the spiritual dimensions of Harlem’s aesthetic legacies in jazz.

For the complete festival calendar of events and more information, log on to www.harlemjazzshrines.org .

#  #  #

WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM Continues Its Celebration
of International Jazz Day Today at 6:30 pm
with Broadcast of Herbie Hancock’s
Sunrise Concert in New Orleans

NEWARK, NJ, April 30, 2012 – WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM continues its celebration of International Jazz Day today at 6:30 pm with a special broadcast of Herbie Hancock’s sunrise performance in New Orleans.  WBGO’s Josh Jackson enjoyed the early morning festivities and taped interviews with Hancock in Congo Square as well as with trumpeter Terence Blanchard, Tom Carter (President of the Thelonious Monk Institute) and two local students who are participants in the Monk Institute high school initiative.

The sunrise concert, in the birthplace of jazz and the home of the world-renowned New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, featured Hancock and Blanchard, Ellis Marsalis, Kermit Ruffins, Bill Summers, Treme Brass Band, Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts, Dr. Michael White, Luther Gray, Roland Guerin and other special guests. Among the tunes the musicians performed were “Watermelon Man,” “Night in Tunisia,” “Afro Blue,” “On the Sunny Side of the Street,” and “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

In November 2011, during the UNESCO General Conference, the international community proclaimed April 30 as International Jazz Day, which is intended to raise awareness in the international community of the virtues of jazz as an educational tool, and a force for peace, unity, dialogue and enhanced cooperation among people. For more information, please visit www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/events/prizes-and-celebrations/celebrations/international-days/international-jazz-day/.

Throughout April, WBGO also celebrated its 33^rd anniversary, Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM) and Public Radio Music Month. To mark the occasion, the station presented the seventh annual JAM Festival, a series of live, in-studio broadcasts featuring student jazz ensembles from across the Northeast.  WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM’s JAM schedule also included Craig Taborn Trio live from the Village Vanguard; The Checkout Live at Berklee featuring Ingrid Jensen; the annual Jazz Leadership Society brunch at NJPAC’s Nico’s with Catherine Russell; The Checkout Live at 92 Y Tribeca featuring Third World Love and Jason Lindner’s Now vs. Now.

The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History designated April Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM) to draw greater public attention to the extraordinary heritage and history of jazz and its importance as an American cultural heritage. In addition, JAM is intended to stimulate the current jazz scene and encourage people of all ages to participate in jazz—to study the music, attend concerts, listen to jazz on radio and recordings, read books about jazz, and support institutional jazz programs.

Public radio stations and their supporters throughout the music community are celebrating Public Radio Music Month to highlight the partnership between public radio and music. Throughout April, stations will partner with musicians and listeners to feature live concert broadcasts, exclusive interviews, in-studio performances and more. WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM and other participating public radio stations are tastemakers, teachers and curators of local culture who bring innovative new sounds from emerging artists as well as the best in classic jazz.

Founded in 1979, Newark Public Radio, Inc. is a publicly supported cultural institution that champions jazz at WBGO 88.3 FM in Newark, New Jersey and worldwide via wbgo.org. WBGO is the recognized world leader in jazz radio and one of the most respected jazz presenters in the country, and offers award-winning news and innovative children’s programs. Beyond reaching 400,000 weekly listeners (including 17,000 contributing members) on air, online and via mobile devices, WBGO presents live broadcasts from prestigious jazz venues and produces acclaimed programs for NPR heard by millions. WBGO is Jazz Week magazine’s 2010 Major Market Station of the Year.

#  #  #

Blazing Tongues: The Singers & Writers of Lenox Lounge

Featuring

Tulivu-Donna Cumberbatch & Beareather Reddy, May 8, 7:00 pm

Gregory Generet and Chuck Cooper, May 11, 7:00 pm

***

Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival Runs May 7 – 13, 2012

All Tickets Just $10 or Free!

The prestige of the past. The pulse of the present.

NEW YORK, NY, April 30 2012 – The historic Lenox Lounge, a fixture in Harlem since 1939, located on Lenox Avenue  between 124^th and 125^th streets, has been home to some of the hottest jazz in the city from Billie Holiday and Miles Davis to Frank Sinatra and John Coltrane, and it’s also been a favorite hang for many African-American writers, including James Baldwin, Ralph Ellison, Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes, to name a select few.

That melding of voice and music – spoken word and jazz – is the inspiration for Blazing Tongues: The Singers & Writers of Lenox Lounge, set for May 8 and 11 during the second annual Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival, produced by the Apollo Theater, Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile, Inc.

On Tuesday, May 8, at 7:00 pm at The Gatehouse, festival partner Harlem Stage presents Tulivu-Donna Cumberbatch & Beareather Reddy: Music of Ella Fitzgerald and words of Paule Marshall. Cumberbatch is steeped in African-American music. She is the daughter of baritone saxophonist Harold Cumberbatch, and she’s named after the Charlie Parker classic, “Donna Lee.”  Born in Brooklyn, she grew up singing in the church, counts Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald as influences, and has performed with Hannibal Loukumbe, Diedre Murray, Cecil Payne, and the Hank Doughty/Ray Abrams Big Band.  Cumberbatch notably celebrated Ella in Diedre Murray’s “Songbird” at Harlem Stage in the late nineties.

Georgia-born, New York-based vocalist Beareather Reddy has worked with Max Roach, Archie Shepp, Abdullah Ibrahim, Sheila Jordan and dance choreographer Dianna Ramos. She’s also a veteran of the theater, as evidenced by her sterling work with Atlanta’s 14^th Street Theater, where she wrote “Dinah’s Blues,” a one-woman show; and she appeared in the Audelco nominated “Nzhinga’s Children,” at the National Black Theatre. She is the founder/CEO of her own company, Big Eyed Productions. Cumberbatch and Reddy will illuminate the music of Ella Fitzgerald and the words of novelist Paule Marshall, author of several acclaimed novels including Brown Girl, Brownstones and Triangular Road.

On Friday, May 11, at 7:00 pm, don’t miss Gregory Generet and Tony Award winner Chuck Cooper, directed by Tamara Tunie: Music of Johnny Hartman and words of Ralph Ellison at The Gatehouse. Presented by Harlem Stage in partnership with Lenox Lounge, Columbia University’s Center for Jazz Studies (CJS) and Institute for Research in African American Studies (IRAAS), this collaboration features Brooklyn-born vocalist Gregory Generet, who has worked with Mike Renzi, Laurence Hobgood, Eric Reed and Onaje Allan Gumbs, and recorded his debut CD, (re)Generet-ion in 2009, with his wife, Law & Order actress Tamara Tunie, who directs this program. Together, they blend their talents to deliver some new interpretations to the music of the velvet-toned Johnny Hartman – who recorded with John Coltrane and Dizzy Gillespie – and the words of the immortal novelist Ralph Ellison, author of Invisible Man, Shadow and Act, and Going to the Territory. A night of high African-American art is all but assured by this dynamic duo.

Chuck Cooper is a veteran of 10 Broadway plays and musicals and numerous television guest leads and film appearances over the span of his 30 years as a professional actor. He won the 1996 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a musical for his portrayal of Memphis in The Life. His other Broadway credits include: Finian’s Rainbow; Lennon; Caroline Or Change (Audelco Award, Best Featured Actor); Chicago; Passion; Someone to Watch Over Me; Rumors; Amen Corner and Getting Away With Murder.

Blazing Tongues: The Singers & Writers of Lenox Lounge is part of Harlem Stage’s Harlem Stride series.

Tickets are $10 and are available at the door. For more information, visit www.harlemstage.org.

The Apollo Theater, Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile, Inc. have joined forces again to present the second annual Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival May 7-13, 2012.  Continuing the mission of the inaugural festival, the three venerable cultural organizations will present a series of concerts and events to celebrate the rich legacy of jazz in the uptown community.

Other highlights of the 2012 Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival include:

• Wycliffe Gordon’s Jazz à la Carte (May 12) – The Apollo’s variety shows of the 1930’s made a stellar comeback last year under the music direction of composer/trombonist Wycliffe Gordon and the director/choreographer Kenneth L. Roberson. The show returns when Gordon celebrates the world-renowned Apollo with host Maurice Hines, tap star Savion Glover, the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra, vocalist Theresa Thomason, pianist Aaron Diehl, trumpeter Philip Dizack, trombonist/vocalist Natalie Cressman and the Apollo Dancers.

• · Tribute to Club Harlem: Celebrating Cecil (May 8 – 9) – Three of today’s most innovative pianists honor the uncompromising creative force of Cecil Taylor in two evenings of solo and duet performances. Vijay Iyer, Amina Claudine Myers, Craig Taborn and poet Amiri Baraka, will perform at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse.

• Small’s Paradise: (Re) Created (May 7, 9, 10, 11) – Jazzmobile will take the bold leap to re-create the legendary Small’s Paradise, once Harlem’s premier night spot and longest-operating club. Re-created at Harlem USA on the second floor of Magic Johnson Theater,  the series features the Revive Music Paradise Band, Johnny O’Neal, Sachal Vasandani, Umar Hassan, The Tap Messengers, Marika Hughes & Bottom Heavy, Will Calhoun plus education presentations including Daniel Carlton’s When Small’s Had It All.

• Showman’s Late Night Jazz (May 8 – 12) – A week-long series produced by the Apollo Theater and Showman’s at the legendary club frequented by Duke Ellington, Sarah Vaughan, Pearl Bailey, Grady Tate and countless others, continues the tradition with sessions featuring Danny Mixon, Lonnie Youngblood, Lou Volpe, Cynthia Holiday and Sarah McLawler.

• Tribute to Clark Monroe’s Uptown House (May 10) at Harlem Stage Gatehouse – Featuring some of the world’s finest instrumentalists and vocalists, this year’s Grammy winner for Best Jazz Vocal Album The Mosaic Project gives females a place to support and celebrate each other from a musical and social perspective. Terri Lyne Carrington will be joined by Lizz Wright, Nona Hendryx, Ingrid Jensen, Tia Fuller, Helen Sung, Mimi Jones and Nir Felder to construct creative consciousness as “women with voices.”

• Minton’s Playhouse: Legends on the Bandstand (May 9 – 12) – Jazzmobile brings the famed club on 118^th Street back to life with a celebration of some of the legends of the esteemed bandstand.  Acknowledging iconic contributions are keepers of the flame, including TK Blue celebrating Charlie Parker, octogenarian Barry Harris remembering Thelonious Monk, Winard Harper with a tribute to Max Roach and an artist TBD paying homage to Dizzy Gillespie. Each set will be followed by a late night jam.

The three partners are again collaborating with Columbia University to bring humanities programming that will further highlight the cultural significance of Harlem and the Festival. The University’s programming includes a May 11 special advance screening of The Savoy King, a documentary on Swing-era drummer/bandleader Chick Webb, Ella Fitzgerald and the renowned Savoy Ballroom as well as an exploration of the spiritual dimensions of Harlem’s aesthetic legacies in jazz.

For the complete festival calendar of events and more information, log on to www.harlemjazzshrines.org.

#  #  #

Claire Daly

NEWARK, NJ, April 26, 2012 – WBGO’s award-winning, free Kids Jazz Concert Series, which brings jazz culture and dynamic performances to young people throughout the year, wraps up its Spring season this Saturday, April 28, at 12:30 pm, at Newark Museum, 49 Washington Street, with baritone saxophonist Claire Daly’s presentation of How Important Is the Melody?.

In this performance, the Claire Daly Quartet demonstrates what a melody is, why it’s important and why it stands out. Melody is where harmony and rhythm come together. While enjoying music, the listener loves and learns the melody – it’s what makes a song memorable. The program is presented in partnership with Wells Fargo Jazz for Teens.

Claire Daly will tell you that her life changed on September 23, 1971, when as a young musician playing saxophone for three months, she attended a performance of the Buddy Rich Band. When the saxophone section stood up for a solo, Daly’s excitement stood up with them. After dragging her father to the stage door for autographs, she took one look at the tour bus and said, “I’d do anything to be on that bus.” It was the kind of epiphany that only young enthusiasm can breed, but enthusiasm is still the motivating force in her musical life. After attending the Berklee College of Music, the baritone saxophonist set out to make a living as a musician. Her career has included anchoring the sax section in the Diva Big Band for seven years, freelancing in New York, recording five CDs with the composer/pianist Joel Forrester and their band, People Like Us, as well as her own CDs Swing Low, Movin’ On and Heaven Help Us All. She is celebrating the release of the Mary Joyce Project: Nothing to Lose, a musical gift to her second cousin, who made a 1,000-mile journey from Juneau to Fairbanks, Alaska, in 1935. The piece was premiered at the Juneau Jazz and Classics Festival in May. In addition, she has performed on numerous CDs, film scores and jingles, as well as at festivals and venues around the world.

The Kids Jazz Concert Series features interactive, hour-long programs that give young people opportunities to learn about the distinct qualities of jazz, and why it is a reflection of our community, nation, and world.  Top jazz and blues artists produce programs tailor-made for young people, leaving time for further exploration of the music through Q&A sessions with the artists. In addition to the music, the event includes door prizes, a gift for each child and a fun-filled afternoon with other young jazz lovers.

Previous concerts in the series included Brandee Younger (March 31, Montclair Art Museum), Donald Harrison (April 14, Cicely Tyson Performing Arts Center) and Will Calhoun (April 21, New Jersey Performing Arts Center).

All concerts are handicapped accessible.  Adults must be accompanied by a child.

Special thanks to sponsors Prudential Foundation, NJPAC’s Wells Fargo Jazz for Teens, OHL Trust, PNC Foundation, F.M. Kirby Foundation and New Jersey State Council on the Arts.

For more information on the Kids Jazz Concert series and WBGO-FM, visit www.wbgo.org.

ABOUT WBGO

Founded in 1979, Newark Public Radio, Inc. is a publicly supported cultural institution that champions jazz at WBGO 88.3 FM in Newark, New Jersey and worldwide via wbgo.org. WBGO is the recognized world leader in jazz radio and one of the most respected jazz presenters in the country, and offers award-winning news and innovative children’s programs. Beyond reaching 400,000 weekly listeners (including 17,000 contributing members) on air, online and via mobile devices, WBGO presents live broadcasts from prestigious jazz venues and produces acclaimed programs for NPR heard by millions. WBGO is Jazz Week magazine’s 2010 Major Market Station of the Year.

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Jon Faddis

NEWPORT, R.I. – World-renowned trumpeter, composer, conductor and educator Jon Faddis – who was declared as “the best ever” by the legendary John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie – will conduct a master class and workshop for high school students on Saturday, May 5 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Salve Regina University.

The free program, “Pathways to Jazz,” which is being sponsored by the Newport Festivals Foundation, Inc.™ and the Salve Regina University Department of Performing Arts, has attracted student musicians from throughout southern New England.

The program will kick off with comments and an introductory performance by Faddis and the master class teachers, and conclude with a performance by workshop participants. The program will be held in historic Ochre Court, 100 Ochre Point Ave.

Joining Faddis as workshop leaders will be some of the area’s outstanding performers and educators including Metro Narcissi (saxophone), Mac Chrupcala (piano), Mike Renzi (piano), Joe Parillo (piano), Alan Bernstein (bass), Mike Coffee (drums) and Gino Rosati (guitar).

“The Newport Festivals Foundation and Newport Jazz Festival are pleased to build upon our long-time relationship with Salve Regina University and Jon Faddis to present this master class for area high school students,” said George Wein, producer/founder of the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals and Chairman of the Newport Festivals Foundation. “Education initiatives are an important goal of the Foundation’s mission and we are looking forward to helping young musicians develop their skills and mindsets as they consider future careers in music.”

Faddis remains true to the tradition of honoring mentors who taught him, regularly leading master classes and clinics worldwide, and also teaching as a full-time faculty member at the Conservatory of Music, Purchase College-SUNY (where he is artist-in-residence, professor and director of jazz performance).

As a trumpeter, Faddis possesses a virtually unparalleled range and full command of his instrument, making the practically impossible seem effortless. Born in 1953, Faddis began playing at age 8, inspired by an appearance by Louis Armstrong on television. Meeting Dizzy Gillespie at 15 proved to be a pivotal beginning of a unique friendship that spanned over three decades. Shortly after his 18^th birthday, Faddis joined Lionel Hampton’s big band, moving from Oakland, Calif. to New York.

Faddis worked as lead trumpet for the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra at the Village Vanguard, formed his own quartet, and soon began directing big band orchestras, including the Grammy-winning United Nation Orchestra, the Dizzy Gillespie 70^th Birthday Big Band, the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni All-Stars, the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band (1992-2002), Chicago Jazz Ensemble (2004-2010) and the successor to the CHJB, the Jon Faddis Jazz Orchestra of New York (2003-present).

His distinctive trumpet appears on hundreds of records and numerous soundtracks for film and television. His original works include the Jazz opera Lulu Noire (1997) as well as compositions on his Grammy-nominated Remembrances (Chesky 1998), Hornucopia (Epic 1991), Into the Faddisphere (Epic 1989) and Teranga (Koch 2006).

The Newport Festivals Foundation was founded by George Wein in 2010 to build up and continue the legacies of the famed Newport Jazz Festival and Newport Folk Festival. Under the auspices of the Foundation, the Newport Jazz Festival presents performers who respect and honor jazz music traditions, and at the same time reflect the changes in today’s musical trends. Through the establishment of partnerships with local high schools and colleges/universities, the Foundation will present programs to educate young people about jazz music as presented at the annual festival. For more information, please visit www.newportfestivalsfoundation.org.

Founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1947, Salve Regina is a private, coeducational university offering a comprehensive and innovative liberal arts education in the Catholic tradition that fosters the development of each student’s distinct and individual talents. Accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, the University enrolls more than 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students from across the U.S. and around the world.

For more information on Pathways to Jazz, please contact Peter Davis at davisp@salve.edu.

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