CareFusion Jazz Festival NY Celebrates Herbie Hancock's 70th Birthday

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Herbie Hancock officially celebrated his 70th birthday on April 12, but CareFusion Jazz Festival New York is extending the celebration with a tribute concert at Carnegie Hall, 57th Street & 7th Avenue, on Thursday, June 24, at 8:00 pm. Performing with the renowned pianist at Herbie Hancock - Seven Decades: The Birthday Celebration are special guests India.Arie, Terence Blanchard, Ron Carter, Bill Cosby, Jack DeJohnette, Dave Holland, Joe Lovano, Wallace Roney, Wayne Shorter and others plus Hancock's band featuring Greg Phillinganes, Vinnie Colaiuta, Tal Wilkenfeld, Lionel Loueke and Amy Keyes.

The festivities continue on June 24 at 11:00 pm with Tribute to Herbie Hancock: Late Night Jam Session hosted by Jeff "Tain" Watts featuring some of New York City's finest musicians at City Winery, 155 Varick Street in lower Manhattan.

Sponsored by CareFusion, a leading global medical device company, and produced by George Wein's New Festival Productions, LLC, the festival takes over New York June 17 – 26 with 47 concerts at 22 venues across four boroughs.

Herbie Hancock also is scheduled to perform at the CareFusion Newport Jazz Festival on Sunday, August 8, at Fort Adams State Park in Newport, RI, followed by another birthday tribute concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood, CA, on Wednesday, September 1.

The Carnegie Hall concert is a benefit for the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz. Herbie Hancock is the Institute Chairman and some of the concert's special guests sit on the Board of Trustees and Advisory Board.

An iconic pianist and composer, Herbie Hancock has been an integral part of every jazz movement since the 1960s. As a member of the Miles Davis Quintet, he became one of the pioneers of the avant garde sound; his music of the 70s combined electric jazz with funk and rock sounds and influenced music over the next decades. Among his many compositions that have become modern standards are "Canteloupe Island, " "Maiden Voyage, " "Watermelon Man, " and "Chameleon."

Just three days before the Carnegie Hall concert, Herbie Hancock's "The Imagine Project" is set for release on June 21 via Hancock Records/Red. The new CD from the multiple Grammy-winning artist and musical pioneer is an unprecedented international recording and film project featuring collaborations between the music legend and over a dozen superstars from around the world. Utilizing the universal language of music to express its central themes of peace and global responsibility, the musical collaborations combine Hancock's genre-defying vision with the "local" musical identity of cultures from around the world.

"The Imagine Project" is the next step in the pianist's extraordinary ground-breaking career, and builds upon his recent successes and recognition, including 2007 Grammy for Album of the Year – "River/The Joni Letters", Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World, multiple award-winning album/film, "Possibilities, " Jazz Chair for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, among many others.

In addition to the Herbie Hancock birthday concert, CareFusion Jazz Festival New York presents three other concerts at Carnegie Hall: Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock, Jack DeJohnette on Thursday, June 17; An Evening with Chris Botti with special guest Nikki Yanofsky on Saturday, June 19; and The Genius of João Gilberto on Tuesday, June 22. All three concerts are at 8:00 pm.

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