Monterey Jazz Festival’s 2011 Jazz Legends Gala
Honors Terence Blanchard, September 15
at the Hyatt Regency Monterey
Gala Celebration Features Cocktails, Dinner, Silent Auction,
and Entertainment by Grammy-Winning Pianist, Hiromi
Proceeds Support Monterey Jazz Festival Education Programs
August 10, 2011; Monterey, California; The Monterey Jazz Festival is pleased to announce that it will honor the four-time Grammy-winning trumpeter, composer and bandleader, Terence Blanchard, at its Annual Jazz Legends Gala on Thursday, September 15, 2011 at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel & Spa in Monterey, California.
The Jazz Legends Gala, now in its fourth year, features the presentation of the distinguished Jazz Legends Award to a leading contributor to the world of jazz. Previous recipients of the award include pianist Dave Brubeck, bandleader Gerald Wilson, and impresario George Wein. Alongside the presentation of the Jazz Legends award to Mr. Blanchard, the evening includes a cocktail reception, gourmet dinner, silent auction and a special performance by the Grammy-winning pianist and 2011 Monterey Jazz Festival headliner, Hiromi. Special guests will include Monterey Jazz Festival Board Director, Clint Eastwood and his wife Dina.
“Our Jazz Legends Gala is a wonderful opportunity to help raise awareness and generate funds for our jazz education programs while at the same time honoring some of the fantastic artists who have helped create the legacy of the Monterey Jazz Festival,” said Tim Jackson, Artistic Director of the Festival. “We are honored to celebrate Terence Blanchard this year, as he has made innumerable contributions to the Monterey Jazz Festival through his many performances here, his role as the 2007 Artist-In-Residence, and as a key member of our 50th Anniversary Tour in 2008.”
Cost is $250 per person, with net proceeds supporting the Monterey Jazz Festival’s Education Programs, considered to be some of the most highly regarded in the country.
The Monterey Jazz Festival’s Education Programs have a strong impact on students and schools in Monterey County. Programs include the Traveling Clinician and Latin Jazz Programs, with professional musicians visiting Monterey County schools to teach students how to play and improvise in jazz and Latin styles; the Artist-In-Residence Program, which brings a leading jazz performer to work with students throughout the year; the Summer Jazz Camp, the Instrument and Sheet Music Library, the Digital Music Education Program and the Next Generation Festival; the Monterey County High School All-Star-Band, the Middle School Honor Band and Vocal Jazz Ensemble; and the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra.
Seating is limited at the Jazz Legends Gala. To find out more information about this event, visit montereyjazzfestival.org. RSVP by September 2 by calling 831.373.3366 or email development@montereyjazzfestival.org.
About Terence Blanchard
Four-time Grammy Award winner Terence Blanchard has established himself as one of the most influential jazz trumpeters and composers of his generation. Since the time he was a member of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers in the early 80s, he has released 29 albums and has over 50 film scores to his credit, including A Tale of God’s Will (A Requiem for Katrina). Currently working on commissions for Opera St. Louis and the Louisiana Philharmonic, Blanchard is also the Artistic Director of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, working with students in the areas of artistic development, arranging, composition, and concert programming. He also participates in master classes around the world and local community outreach activities in his beloved hometown of New Orleans. He has appeared at the Monterey Jazz Festival six times and was the Festival’s Artist-In-Residence in 2007. Terence represented the Monterey Jazz Festival for their 52-performance Golden Anniversary Tour in 2008, and while on the road with the All-Star band, he won a Grammy for his solo on “Be Bop” from Live at the 2007 Monterey Jazz Festival by the Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars. At the 2011 Monterey Jazz Festival, he’ll perform with Poncho Sanchez in a tribute to Dizzy Gillespie and Chano Pozo, and with the Still Ahead Orchestra, celebrating the late 1950s collaborations of Miles Davis and Gil Evans.
About Hiromi
Pianist Hiromi Uehara first mesmerized the jazz community with her 2003 Telarc debut, Another Mind, which shipped gold in Japan and received the Recording Industry Association of Japan’s Jazz Album of the Year Award. Since then, she has won worldwide acclaim and numerous awards for her subsequent recordings, including the Swing Journal New Star Award; Jazz Life‘s Gold Album; HMV Japan’s Best Japanese Jazz Album; Best Jazz Act at the Boston Music Awards; the Guinness Jazz Festival’s Rising Star Award; and Jazzman of the Year, Pianist of the Year, and Album of the Year in the Swing Journal Japan Readers Poll, and many more. Hiromi continued her winning streak with 2007’s Time Control; 2008’s Beyond Standard and 2009’s Place to Be. In 2011, Hiromi released Hiromi her seventh Concord Record, Voice, with bassist Anthony Jackson and drummer Simon Phillips, with whom she will perform at the 2011 Monterey Jazz Festival.
About the Monterey Jazz Festival
The Monterey Jazz Festival celebrates the legacy of jazz and expands the boundaries of and opportunities to experience jazz through the creative production of performances and educational programs.
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