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| Rob Levit receives fellowship to UCLA Rob Levit, an award-winning jazz musician, composer, and educator residing in Annapolis, MD, has been selected as a fellow in The Asia Pacific Performance Exchange program at The University of California, Los Angeles for the summer 2006 period. During the fellowship, Levit will live, study, perform, and collaborate with 15 artists selected from an international pool of applicants. APPEX is an international musicians and artists residency program that promotes cross-cultural and interdisciplinary understanding; develops rigorous strategies for art-making reflecting the nuances of cultural differences; and fosters new ways to experiment, collaborate, and interpret artistic expression. Since its inception in 1995, APPEX has brought together more than 100 traditional and contemporary musicians and performing artists from throughout Asia -- from Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Philippines and Vietnam -- and the United States for intensive residency sessions on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles. APPEX musicians and artists residency is made possible by The Ford Foundation, with additional support from the U.S. Department of State, the National Endowment for the Arts, The Ford Foundation Jakarta, The National Commission for Culture and Arts- Philippines, and the Asian Cultural Council. Rob Levit, Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts Artist-In-Residence, is an award-winning musician, artist, and speaker actively engaged in the creative process. A graduate of the University of Virginia and New England Conservatory of Music, he has given workshops and/or concerts for Leadership Anne Arundel, Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, The Summit School, Entrepreneurs Exchange, American Women in Communication and other organizations. In his Creative Outreach Program through Maryland Hall, he has worked to bring the joy of creativity and the arts to numerous schools and underserved populations including: DC Village Homeless Shelter, Boys and Girls Club, Anne Arundel County Social Services, and Anne Arundel County Schools. Levit has produced over a dozen concerts at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts as Founder and Artistic Director of The Lew Cronin Memorial Concert Series and The Emerging Artist Concert Series. These concerts have included: Jazz, Persian classical music, Indian classical music, Bluegrass, Folk, Experimental Improvisation, Silent Film with Live Music and Ugandan music. As a leader and composer, he has recorded and released 17 CD's of original music. He has received major grants from the Doris Duke Foundation/Chamber Music America New Works and The Jazz Composers Alliance and is a five-time consecutive recipient of the Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Award for Artistic Excellence. Performances include the mainstage of the Montreal Jazz Festival, Ottawa National Arts Center, The Kennedy Center Millennium Stage, and First Night Annapolis. Levit also paints all the artwork for his compact discs and recently finished 24 original diagrams and illustrations for his forthcoming book on creativity. Levit's current CD, Touch the Spirit, is #11 on the New Age/World charts. His band, The Rob Levit Trio, has received the honor "Best Jazz Performer" from What's Up Magazine three consecutive times. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Jazz News :: home page |