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| The Jordans at Chicago's 2006 Jazz Fest The Jordans: Marlon, one of the world top trumpeters, jazz singer Stephanie, older brother Kent, a highly regarded flutist; and Rachel, an classical violinist and music instructor at Jackson State University were featured performers at the 2006 JazzFest in Chicago, Illinois on Sunday, August 6, 2006. This year's celebration is part of the 32nd Annual Duke Ellington Tribute under the theme of Connecting Family Ties. Celebrating Duke Ellington's genius was what Jazz Unites Founder Geraldine de Haas had in mind in 1974 when she and a group of fellow jazz lovers produced the first jazz music concert at the Grant Park Music Shell following his death. That concert became the forerunner of the annual Chicago Jazz Festival as well as the Blues, Gospel, Latin and other free outdoor music festivals in Chicago's downtown parks. Like many other Katrina victims, the Jordans suffered physical injuries and loses, including homes, priceless instruments and "a lifetime of music." Yet, mere weeks later, that same tragedy propelled this brilliantly talented family into the national spotlight during the nationally televised Higher Ground Hurricane Relief Benefit Concert at New York's Jazz at Lincoln Center. Marlon Jordan who hit the music world hard in the 1990s with three well-praised recordings on the Columbia label and one on the Arabesque label knows first-hand the perils of Hurricane Katrina. Marlon camped out on the roof of his New Orleans East home for five days, waiting to be rescued. "I had a two-story house and my whole bottom floor was flooded, " the 35-year-old said. "I had to bust a hole through the top of the roof and stay out there during the day so they would see us. I built a cabana out of a shower curtain." A long-line helicopter rescue mission pulled Marlon and his girlfriend from the roof. Not knowing the extent of his injuries, Marlon had two fractured ankles from swimming through flood waters and kicking mailboxes while rescuing two neighbors whose house had caught fire during the ordeal. His latest CD, You Don't Know What Love Is Marlon Jordan featuring Stephanie Jordan has been well received nationally. Following the national televised Jazz at Lincoln Center Higher Ground Hurricane Relief Benefit, JazzTimes Magazine wrote, "Stephanie Jordan, a standout here, was the real discovery of the evening. Her haunting rendition of (Here's to Life) this bittersweet ode associated with Shirley Horn was delivered with uncanny poise and a dept of understated soul that mesmerized the crowd and registered to the back rows. Singing with a clarity of diction that recalled Nat "King" Cole..." Kent, Rachel and Marlon added a special musical blend to the tune. In their billing of Stephanie's return later this year for 4 performances at Jazz at Lincoln Center on October 20 and 21, JALC boasts, "Every so often a new voice stands up and proclaims itself, but few do so with such supreme depth and understated soul..." Setting the stage for such an imposing tradition is older brother Kent Jordan, the vaunted flutist who hit his stride as a jazz artist on the national scene in the early 1990s. In describing Kent Jordan's latest album Out of This World writer Khephra Burns states, "The clear, authoritative voice that was uniquely his from his debut recording has grown richer...deeply in and of this world in its understanding and expression of the range of human emotions. But it is clearly outside the mundane. Taking what is familiar and making of it something new and surprising, it helps us to see the world in a new way." Out of This World, is "a synthesis of styles and traditions, " reflecting Jordan's depth and breadth of experience. Featuring instrumental tunes as well as vocals, the arrangements are articulate, intelligent and lyrical. Kent also recorded with Columbia, cutting three albums on the label. His third Columbia album (1988's Essence) proved to the jazz world that he could play creatively. Kent studied at the Eastman School of Music and New Orleans' Center for the Creative Arts, being inspired at the latter by Ellis Marsalis (with whom he recorded). Kent's ultimate desire is to create a media organization that will embrace the differences of individual artists. His dream is to make his record label, Funkshenal Art Media a haven for artists who desire to create, not conform and to create a brand that listeners come to associate with a specific lifestyle and emotion. Violinist Rachel Jordan is still recovering from Katrina's havoc and its aftermath. In addition to losing her home and two prized violins, while returning to New Orleans to see her damaged home she was in a severe car accident. "I dislocated my shoulder and broke my arm in four places. I'm in a certain amount of pain, and it's still not 100 percent, " said Rachel, a professor of violin/viola at Jackson State University in Mississippi. Rachel received a Master of Music from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland where she studied with the great Berl Sernofsky. She has been a featured performer in numerous solo recitals; most notably the Kennedy Center, the Mozart Festival in Salzburg, Austria, the Music Center of Houston and the Mozart Festival in Washington, D.C. As an adjunct professor at Dillard University, Rachel started the Jesse Dent Recital series which featured African American Musicians performing classical music and the annual "An Afternoon of Classical Music" chamber music series sponsored by the New Orleans Chapter of the Links. She is also the executive producer and performs on her siblings' You Don't Know What Love Is album. Their father, saxophonist and Professor Edward "Kidd" Jordan, has performed with notables of every genre and received international recognition for his long dedication to music education - from the halls of academe, to jazz bands and summer camps, to programs he established in Africa. Their pianist mother Edvige was classically trained like most of her children and boasts several musicians on her side of the family as well. Like other families now synonymous with New Orleans music, the Jordans are advancing a tradition of music shaped by family ties. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Jazz News :: home page |