NEA JAZZ MASTERS 2010 ANNOUNCED

[Lois Gilbert]

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) today announced the recipients of the 2010 NEA Jazz Masters Award -- the nation's highest honor in this distinctly American music. The eight recipients will each receive a $25,000 grant award and be publicly honored in an awards ceremony and concert on Tuesday, January 12, 2010 at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center.

The eight 2010 NEA Jazz Masters are:

Name
Category
City, State

Muhal Richard Abrams
Pianist, Composer, Educator
New York, NY

Kenny Barron
Pianist, Composer, Educator
Brooklyn, NY

Bill Holman
Composer, Arranger, Saxophonist
Los Angeles, CA

Bobby Hutcherson
Vibraphonist, Marimba Player, Composer
Montara, CA

Yusef Lateef
Saxophonist, Flutist, Oboist, Composer, Educator
Amherst, MA

Annie Ross
Vocalist
New York, NY

Cedar Walton
Pianist, Composer
Brooklyn, NY


George Avakian, a jazz producer, manager, critic, and educator from Riverdale, New York, will receive the 2010 A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Award for Jazz Advocacy.

"These master artists have dedicated their lives to shaping and advancing the rich tradition of jazz," said NEA Acting Chair Patrice Walker Powell. "The NEA is pleased to recognize their individual creative talents and celebrate their combined musical contributions."

For the January presentation, the Arts Endowment will again partner with Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City to produce the event, and the Association of Performing Arts Presenters and Arts Presenter's annual conference. Conference attendees will have the opportunity to attend some of the jazz master events and learn more about presenting jazz in the communities. The Awards Ceremony & Concert will be held at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center, and will feature the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis in a program dedicated to the honorees' lives and works. Past collaborations between the NEA and Jazz at Lincoln Center include the NEA Jazz in the Schools curriculum -- available free of charge to high school teachers nationwide and used by nearly 8.4 million students since its inception. The NEA Jazz in the Schools Web site is a 2009 Webby Awards Official Honoree.

Each member of the 2010 NEA Jazz Masters class met the selection criteria of being a distinguished artist whose excellence, impact, and significant lifetime contributions have helped to keep jazz alive and further the growth of the art form:

The co-founder and first president of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), pianist Muhal Richard Abrams is highly respected by critics and musical peers as both a pianist and composer in a variety of musical styles.

Recognized the world over as a master of performance and composition, virtuoso pianist Kenny Barron has worked with such renowned musicians as Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Haden, Roy Haynes, and fellow 2010 NEA Jazz Master Yusef Lateef.

Bill Holman's unique and complex arrangements have long been appreciated by musicians and critics alike, including Louie Bellson, Count Basie, Woody Herman, Buddy Rich, Doc Severinsen, and others.

Bobby Hutcherson's sound and style on the vibraphone helped modernize the instrument in the 1960s, adding an adventurous new voice to hard bop and free jazz. A major force on the international musical scene for more than six decades, Yusef Lateef was among the first to incorporate world music into traditional jazz through his mastery of Middle Eastern and Asian reed instruments.

One of the early practitioners of the singing style known as "vocalese" -- the setting of original lyrics to an instrumental jazz solo -- Annie Ross was part of the renowned vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross

One of the great hard bop pianists, Cedar Walton is also well-known for his distinctive compositions, which he first honed during his years with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers.

George Avakian is not only a record producer but a true pioneer in the industry. Besides producing some of the finest jazz albums of the 1950s for Columbia, including Miles Davis's Miles Ahead and Duke Ellington's Ellington at Newport, he helped establish the 33 1/3 LP as the primary format for the recording industry. He also was the first to produce reissues of long out-of-print jazz recordings.

[Valerie]

i am SO thrilled to see so many deserving folks get this acknowledgment (and $$$$).

[hornplayer]

My sentiments, exactly.

[Pete C]

Go Muhal! I think I had commented on a similar thread last year that the AACM had been pretty much ignored by the NEA over the years.

[SaxJazz12]

It is always great to see Kenny Barron get his due.

I was first introduced to him through Stan Getz's "People Time" which is a live, duet recording of Getz and Barron. Out of all the pianists Getz worked with, I feel like Barron accompanied him the best.

His songs "Voyage" and "Fejoada" are my two personal favorites.

[bigtiny]

You know...I can't remember the last time I saw one of these award lists (not just the NEA, but the whole scene in general) and didn't cringe at at least a third of the names, but they nailed this one, didn't they?

bigtiny

[Mike Schwartz]

Originally Posted by bigtiny

You know...I can't remember the last time I saw one of these award lists (not just the NEA, but the whole scene in general) and didn't cringe at at least a third of the names, but they nailed this one, didn't they?

bigtiny

Well put and agreed, BT!

[cookie]

Very pleased to see this list. Congratulations. These people made me love the music.

[stevebop]

Me too!
I'll be featuring a set from each of them on my show tonight.

Log on and click on Listen Live

[Pete C]

Originally Posted by stevebop

Me too!
I'll be featuring a set from each of them on my show tonight.

Log on and click on Listen Live

Make sure to include something from Holman's amazing Monk album.

[bigtiny]

Originally Posted by Pete C

Make sure to include something from Holman's amazing Monk album.

What an unsung gem Holman is, eh? I mean, the guy's been around forever. Excellent player, excellent arranger and bandleader. I first heard him on Stan Kenton albums. It's a shame that so many great players and arrangers who are/were part of the LA scene are so under recognized. Holman's pedigree and resume are as formidable as a lot of East Coasters, yet you don't see the yearly Downbeat profile, or other publicity about them...

bigtiny

[stevebop]

Originally Posted by Pete C

Make sure to include something from Holman's amazing Monk album.

That's on my list!

[Mike Schwartz]

Originally Posted by Pete C

Make sure to include something from Holman's amazing Monk album.

I picked up on Steve's idea and included some of the class of 2010 on this morning's show, including the title track of the Holman band's "Brilliant Corners" CD, which I hadn't heard in quite some time.

Also had organist Radam Schwartz on the show today rekindling the Schwartz_in_jazz mini-convention that Steve and I attended at a couple of the IAJE meets

[stevebop]

Here's the entire playlist from last Friday's show including the 2010 NEA Jazz Masters.
Congratulations to them and to the NEA or some fine choices this year:


JAZZ FROM STUDIO FOUR
Friday, May 22, 8pm–midnight, WGBH 89.7

2010 NEA JAZZ MASTERS
HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY-MUSIC RECORDED IN 1959
R.I.P. BUDDY MONTGOMERY

Listed by artist: selection, album (label)

8:00pm
THEME: Horace Parlan Quintet: Wadin', Speakin' My Piece (Blue Note)

8:05PM
Buddy Mongomery: The Night Has A Thousand Eyes, Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume 15 (Concord)
The Mastersounds: Spring Is Here, Introducing The Mastersounds-Water's Edge (Fresh Sounds)
Buddy Mongomery: 1,000 Rainbows, Here Again (Sharp Nine)

8:26pm
Thelonious Monk; recorded in 1959: Little Rootie Tootie, Orchestra at Town Hall (Riverside)
Thelonious Monk; recorded in 1959: Jackie-ing, 5 By Monk By 5 (Riverside)
Thelonious Monk; recorded in 1959: Pannonica, The Complete Riverside Recordings (Riverside)

8:49pm
Bill Holman; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Thelonious, Brilliant Corners (JVC)
Stan Kenton; featuring Bill Holman arrangements and compositions:
Solo for Buddy; Lover Man, Kenton Showcase The Music of Bill Holman (Capitol)
Lennie Niehaus; featuring Bill Holman, tenor saxophone: Blue Room, The Octet #2 (Contemporary)

9:09pm
Annie Ross; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Gypsy in My Soul, Skylark (DRG Music)
Lambert, Hendricks & Ross: Jackie, The Swingers (Pacific Jazz)
Annie Ross; Gerry Mulligan: This Time The Dreams on Me, Sing A Song with Mulligan (Pacific Jazz)
Annie Ross: I Hadn't Anyone Till You, Music is Forever (DRG Music)

9:24pm
John Coltrane; recorded in 1959: Giant Steps, Giant Steps (Atlantic)
Cannonball Adderley; recorded in 1959: This Here, The Quintet in San Francisco (Riverside)
Coleman Hawkins; recorded in 1959: Red Beans, Coleman Hawkins with The Red Garland Trio (Prestige)

9:50pm
George Russell; featuring Bill Evans; recorded in 1959: East Side MEdley, New York NY (Impulse)
Bob Brookmeyer; Bill Evans; recorded in 1959: The Man I Love, The Ivory Hunters/Double Barrelled Piano (Blue Note)
Bill Evans; recorded in 1959: You and The Night and The Music, The Complete Riverside Recordings (Riverside)

10:16pm
Muhal Richard Abrams; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Dizbirdmonkbudmax (A Tribute), Family Talk (Soul Note)

10:34pm
Cedar Walton; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Milestones, Underground Memories (HighNote)
Cedar Walton: Besame Mucho, Latin Tinge (HighNote)
Cedar Walton: The Vision, Composer (Astor Place)

10:55pm
Helen Humes; recorded in 1959: Stardust, 'Tain't Nobody's Biz-ness If I Do (Contemporary)
Little Jimmy Scott; recorded in 1959: I'm Afraid the Masquerade is Over, The SAvoy Years and More (Savoy)
Dinah Washington; recorded in 1959: This Bitter Earth, First Issue: The Dinah Washington Story (Verve)

11:07pm
Bobby Hutcherson; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Delilah, Skyline (Verve)
Bobby Hutcherson: Blues Mind Matter, Stick Up (Blue Note)

11:19pm
Yusef Lateef; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Morning, Jazz Moods (Savoy)
Yusef Lateef: When You're Smiling, Into Something (Prestige New Jazz)

11:36pm
Kenny Barron; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Bud-Like, Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume 10 (Concord)
Kenny Barron: The Only One, The Only One (Reservoir)
Kenny Barron: Quickstep, Quickstep (Enja)

11:55pm
Buddy Mongomery: Here Again, Here Again (Sharp Nine)

[Pete C]

Originally Posted by Mike Schwartz

Also had organist Radam Schwartz on the show today rekindling the Schwartz_in_jazz mini-convention that Steve and I attended at a couple of the IAJE meets

What's Anton up to these days?

[Mike Schwartz]

Originally Posted by Pete C

What's Anton up to these days?

He's working hard as usual... bought a converted loft a number of years ago. I'm on his e-mail list.

Regularly does what he call "house concerts" that appear to OK with and sells out seemingly each time. He'll be at Yoshi's next week backing a singer, which he appears to do regularly.

After years of bumping into one another here and there quite regularly; that hasn't happened much lately, which probably means we will soon.

[Mike Schwartz]

Originally Posted by stevebop

Here's the entire playlist from last Friday's show including the 2010 NEA Jazz Masters.
Congratulations to them and to the NEA or some fine choices this year:


JAZZ FROM STUDIO FOUR
Friday, May 22, 8pm–midnight, WGBH 89.7

2010 NEA JAZZ MASTERS
HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY-MUSIC RECORDED IN 1959
R.I.P. BUDDY MONTGOMERY

Listed by artist: selection, album (label)

8:00pm
THEME: Horace Parlan Quintet: Wadin', Speakin' My Piece (Blue Note)

8:05PM
Buddy Mongomery: The Night Has A Thousand Eyes, Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume 15 (Concord)
The Mastersounds: Spring Is Here, Introducing The Mastersounds-Water's Edge (Fresh Sounds)
Buddy Mongomery: 1,000 Rainbows, Here Again (Sharp Nine)

8:26pm
Thelonious Monk; recorded in 1959: Little Rootie Tootie, Orchestra at Town Hall (Riverside)
Thelonious Monk; recorded in 1959: Jackie-ing, 5 By Monk By 5 (Riverside)
Thelonious Monk; recorded in 1959: Pannonica, The Complete Riverside Recordings (Riverside)

8:49pm
Bill Holman; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Thelonious, Brilliant Corners (JVC)
Stan Kenton; featuring Bill Holman arrangements and compositions:
Solo for Buddy; Lover Man, Kenton Showcase The Music of Bill Holman (Capitol)
Lennie Niehaus; featuring Bill Holman, tenor saxophone: Blue Room, The Octet #2 (Contemporary)

9:09pm
Annie Ross; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Gypsy in My Soul, Skylark (DRG Music)
Lambert, Hendricks & Ross: Jackie, The Swingers (Pacific Jazz)
Annie Ross; Gerry Mulligan: This Time The Dreams on Me, Sing A Song with Mulligan (Pacific Jazz)
Annie Ross: I Hadn't Anyone Till You, Music is Forever (DRG Music)

9:24pm
John Coltrane; recorded in 1959: Giant Steps, Giant Steps (Atlantic)
Cannonball Adderley; recorded in 1959: This Here, The Quintet in San Francisco (Riverside)
Coleman Hawkins; recorded in 1959: Red Beans, Coleman Hawkins with The Red Garland Trio (Prestige)

9:50pm
George Russell; featuring Bill Evans; recorded in 1959: East Side MEdley, New York NY (Impulse)
Bob Brookmeyer; Bill Evans; recorded in 1959: The Man I Love, The Ivory Hunters/Double Barrelled Piano (Blue Note)
Bill Evans; recorded in 1959: You and The Night and The Music, The Complete Riverside Recordings (Riverside)

10:16pm
Muhal Richard Abrams; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Dizbirdmonkbudmax (A Tribute), Family Talk (Soul Note)

10:34pm
Cedar Walton; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Milestones, Underground Memories (HighNote)
Cedar Walton: Besame Mucho, Latin Tinge (HighNote)
Cedar Walton: The Vision, Composer (Astor Place)

10:55pm
Helen Humes; recorded in 1959: Stardust, 'Tain't Nobody's Biz-ness If I Do (Contemporary)
Little Jimmy Scott; recorded in 1959: I'm Afraid the Masquerade is Over, The SAvoy Years and More (Savoy)
Dinah Washington; recorded in 1959: This Bitter Earth, First Issue: The Dinah Washington Story (Verve)

11:07pm
Bobby Hutcherson; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Delilah, Skyline (Verve)
Bobby Hutcherson: Blues Mind Matter, Stick Up (Blue Note)

11:19pm
Yusef Lateef; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Morning, Jazz Moods (Savoy)
Yusef Lateef: When You're Smiling, Into Something (Prestige New Jazz)

11:36pm
Kenny Barron; 2010 NEA Jazz Master: Bud-Like, Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume 10 (Concord)
Kenny Barron: The Only One, The Only One (Reservoir)
Kenny Barron: Quickstep, Quickstep (Enja)

11:55pm
Buddy Mongomery: Here Again, Here Again (Sharp Nine)

I played Buddy Montgomery last week from the Maybeck & the Sharp9 CD's, and Kenny Barron today from "Quickstep" and that wonderful trio CD captured at Bradley's released just a few years ago.