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| George Wein & Newport All-Stars at Blue Note, Saratoga, Montreal & More George Wein isn't producing a jazz festival in New York this summer, but that didn't stop him from performing in one. Catch the renowned jazz impresario and pianist when he takes center stage at the Blue Note Jazz Festival with his Newport All-Stars at the Blue Note jazz club June 13 - 15 at 10:30 pm each night. He shares the evening with his long-time friend and fellow pianist, Dave Brubeck, who performs at 8:00 pm. Joining pianist Wein in his debut performance at the Blue Note are Ken Peplowski, clarinet; Lew Tabackin, saxophone; Howard Alden, guitar; George Mraz, bass; and Lewis Nash, drums. "Since I brought the Newport Jazz Festival to New York in 1972, June has been one of my favorite times of the year, " said Wein, Chairman of the Newport Festivals Foundation, which produces the Newport Folk Festival July 30 – 31 and the Newport Jazz Festival Presented by Natixis Global Asset Management August 5 -7. "I am very much looking forward to playing piano with this all-star band at the world-famous Blue Note while Steve Bensusan and his team handle all of the production business." In addition to performing at the Blue Note Jazz Festival, George Wein will be interviewed as part of the Blue Note/NYU Steinhardt Jazz Series at Barnes and Noble, 150 East 86th Street between Third and Lexington Avenues, on Friday, June 10, at 4:00 pm. Host Dave Schroeder will talk with George about his life in jazz and music. George Wein & the Newport All-Stars continue festival performances with a stop at the Freihofer's Saratoga Jazz Festival on Saturday, June 25, where Wein will be honored by the Saratoga Performing Arts Center for his role in founding the festival 34 years ago. For tickets and more information, visit www.spac.org. On Sunday, June 26, at 7:00 pm, George Wein & the Newport All-Stars head to the 32nd annual Festival International de Jazz de Montreal at the Les Salles de Gésu in Montreal Quebec. In addition to performing, George will be presented with the Bruce Lundvall Award, which honors an individual who has left a mark on the world of jazz or contributed to the development of the music, through the media, the concert or record industries. For tickets and more information, go to www.montrealjazzfest.com. The All-Stars performing at Saratoga and Montreal are Randy Brecker, trumpet; Anat Cohen, clarinet; Lew Tabackin, saxophone; Howard Alden, guitar; Lewis Nash, drums; and Peter Washington, bass. On Saturday, July 23, at 8:00 pm, George and his group, featuring bassist Jay Leonhart along with Anat Cohen, Howard Alden and Lewis Nash, perform at Rockport Music at the Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport, MA. For tickets and more information, log on to www.rockportmusic.org. The Newport Jazz Festival has represented the best in jazz since its birth in 1954. In carrying the message of Newport throughout the world, George Wein has organized groups with the sobriquet Newport Jazz Festival All-Stars (or Newport All-Stars). The All-Stars have performed around the world from Australia to Japan to every country in Europe and have featured many of the most important names in jazz. NEA Jazz Master, festival organizer, producer and pianist George Wein is considered to be as much a legend as his festivals. Through his company, Festival Productions, he has spearheaded hundreds of music events annually since he produced the first Newport Jazz Festival - an event that started the "festival era, " according to jazz critic Leonard Feather. He followed the success of America's first annual outdoor jazz festival with the Newport Folk Festival in 1959. Later, he pioneered the concept of sponsor association with music events; the Schlitz Salute to Jazz and the Kool Jazz Festival preceded any other sponsor identity with entertainment events, giving the sponsor the title presentation that guaranteed mention of the sponsor's name in publicity and promotion. His company went on to produce titled events for JVC, Mellon Bank, Verizon, Essence, Ben & Jerry's, CareFusion and others. At 85, Wein has as much creative fuel as he did when he started the Newport festivals and advanced the concept of live music. In 2010, he founded Newport Festivals Foundation, a 501(c) (3) organization that will perpetuate the history of jazz and folk music in Newport and will allow the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals to live on in perpetuity. Wein's autobiography, Myself Among Others: A Life in Music (Da Capo Press), has become a major reference on jazz history. In addition to his life in jazz, Wein has a long history of involvement with philanthropy and the arts, including the establishment of the Joyce and George Wein Chair of African American Studies at Boston University, the Alexander Family Endowed Scholarship Fund at Simmons College and the Joyce Alexander Wein Prize at the Studio Museum in Harlem. write your comments about the article :: © 2011 Jazz News :: home page |