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| Stanley Clarke Band Wins Grammy Award Jazz bass legend Stanley Clarke won a Grammy Award in ceremonies held this evening at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, streamed line online worldwide and broadcast live in the US on CBS-TV. Clarke received his award in Category 44, Best Contemporary Jazz Album, for the full-length album The Stanley Clarke Band on the Heads Up International label. "I'm grateful on behalf of the whole band for this honor. It's humbling to be in such strong company." Clarke said while on tour with his seminal group Return to Forever in Australia. "It's so gratifying to see that jazz and instrumental music remain such vibrant and exciting musical forms, and that we could contribute to their vitality. I'd like to thank the members of the Stanley Clarke Band: keyboardist Ruslan Sirota; drummer Ronald Bruner, Jr.; pianist Hiromi Uehara and the rest of the performers on this album. I'd also like to thank my wife Sofi, who's been such a strong supporter of my career, and my children, who are also making their paths in the arts." Members of The Stanley Clarke Band were on hand to accept the award from the podium in Los Angeles. Other players on the Grammy-winning album include vocalist Cheryl Bentyne; guitarists Charles Altura, Rob Bacon and Armand Sabal-Lecco; saxophonist Bob Sheppard; bass synthesizer Lorenzo "Larry" Dunn; keyboardist Felton Pilate; horn players Andrew Lippman and John Paperbook; and drum programmers Chris Clarke and Jon Hakakian. Clarke, whose prodigious talent, 40 albums and 60 film scores have made him one of the most recognized and respected names in the annals of contemporary music, recently formed a music label, Roxboro Entertainment Group, named for his Philadelphia high school. The first two artists on the label—guitarist Lloyd Gregory and multi-instrumentalist Kennard Ramsey—have just released albums; the next two albums will come from keyboardist Sunnie Paxson and Ruslan Sirota, pianist, arranger and keyboardist on The Stanley Clarke Band. Clarke also recently awarded two $12, 000 scholarships to high school music students Zech Hogan and Jon Williams through The Stanley Clarke Foundation. write your comments about the article :: © 2011 Jazz News :: home page |