New Orleans’ Edward "Kidd" Jordan named 2013 JJA ‘Jazz Hero’

contents

jazz

Sir Edward "Kidd" Jordan of New Orleans has been selected as recipient of the 2013 Jazz Journalists Association (JJA) 'Jazz Hero' award. These honorees are activists, advocates, altruists, aiders and abettors of jazz who have had significant impact in their local communities. The 'Jazz Hero' awards, made on the basis of nominations from community members, are presented in conjunction with the Jazz Journalists Association's annual Jazz Awards honoring significant achievements in jazz music and journalism.

In submitting Jordan's name, JJA Professional Journalist member David Kunian wrote, "Edward "Kidd" Jordan breaks all the conventional rules when it comes to jazz. Most players get older and they get more conservative in their playing. Kidd's saxophone work can still peel the paint off the walls while blowing vibrations so sympathetic with your soul as to leave you teary, breathless and exhilarated.

Most jazz players teach only because they have to, but Kidd has made teaching a part of his practice since he started in the late 1950s. He has run the Jazz and Heritage Foundation School of Music, the Jazz Studies program at Southern University of New Orleans, and the Louis Armstrong Jazz Camp. His teachings extend beyond how to play the music, to how to work as a musician. By now, if you've learned to play jazz in New Orleans in the last 30 years, you've learned some from Kidd.

He treats music as he's lived it, as an art and a craft. Although best known as an avant-garde jazz musician ("Don't call it free jazz, " he's said, "because then people think you don't have to pay"), he played baritone saxophone on rhythm and blues hits in the 1960s, and has backed up such stars as Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, and REM when they've come to town.

His music, his work, his dedication and his wisdom make him an inspiration. He's been recognized as a Knight (Chevalier) of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture, with a Lifetime Achievement Award from New York City's Vision Festival, and every time I hear him or interview him, what's occurred sticks with me for days, weeks, months. It's no wonder that he put out one of his best early records, No Compromise, himself. He's street as well as intellectual, tough of mind and steely of resolve, harboring no illusions about the difficult path he's chosen nor the treacheries of the world of music and music business, yet a good man, a stellar musician, a good example to follow. His children, trumpeter Marlon, flutist Kent, (violinist Rachel) and singer Stephanie are not the only ones who emulate him. He fills the role of hero for me."

On April 1, the Jazz Journalists Association launched JazzApril – a month long celebration of all things jazz — and the 2013 JJA Jazz Awards season by announcing this year's Awards' finalist nominees along with the names of this year's JJA Jazz Heroes, cited for their exemplary work in keeping jazz alive and well in their communities.

This year's twenty-five Jazz Heroes -the complete list is on the Jazz Heroes page- were named on the basis of nominations from their home communities, in consultation with the JJA. They represent a wide range of contributions to their local jazz communities, as well as the national and international jazz world: among the group are musicians, educators, presenters and businesspeople. What they all have in common is their dedication to local efforts that nurture the spirit of jazz and ensure its transmission to new generations of jazz lovers.

Mr. Jordan will receive his award at a location to be determined on April 30, 2013. In November 2011, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) officially designated April 30 as International Jazz Day in order to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role of uniting people in all corners of the globe. International Jazz Day is chaired and led by Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director General, and legendary jazz pianist and composer Herbie Hancock, who serves as a UNESCO Ambassador for Intercultural Dialogue and Chairman of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz. The Institute is the lead nonprofit organization charged with planning, promoting and producing this annual celebration, which began in 2012.

write your comments about the article :: © 2013 Jazz News :: home page