Thursday, September 28, 2017

THREE-TIME GRAMMY® NOMINEE JOEY ALEXANDER HONORS JAZZ ICON THELONIOUS MONK's CENTENNIAL WITH JOEY.MONK.LIVE!

14-year-old pianist and three-time GRAMMY® nominee Joey Alexander will release, Joey.Monk.Live! on Motéma Music, in honor of jazz icon Thelonious Monk's 100th Birthday. The album will stream exclusively on Apple Music and be available for digital download on iTunes on Friday, September 29, followed by wider digital release on Friday, October 13.

Joey routinely cites Monk as his greatest influence. This trio project, recorded live at Jazz at Lincoln Center in June 2017, features fresh arrangements of seven iconic Monk compositions.  There are five stellar trio tracks - "Evidence," "Ugly Beauty," "Rhythm-A-Ning," "Epistrophy," and "Straight No Chaser" - featuring bassist Scott Colley and drummer Willie Jones III, as well as a pair of imaginative and lyrical solo excursions on, "Round Midnight," and "Pannonica."

To celebrate the new album and Monk's legacy, Joey will headline New York's Jazz Standard one-night only on Monk's Centennial, Tuesday, October 10, with fellow Motéma artist, Charnett Moffett on bass, and Joey's frequent collaborator Ulysses Owens Jr. on drums.

The weight of Monk's influence is evident in elements of Joey's unique piano style, his thoughtful approach to Monk classics on his first two albums, My Favorite Things (2015) and Countdown (2016), and in the growing body of compelling Joey Alexander originals, three of which were featured on his prior albums, with six more to be unveiled when his third studio album is released in 2018.

"Thelonious Monk taught me to groove, bounce, understand space, be patient, be simple, sometimes be mysterious but, most of all, to be joyful," reflects Joey. "In my arrangements, I tried to stay true to the essence of his music - to treat it with the highest level of respect. Thelonious Monk's music is the essence of beauty."

Since coming to the United States in 2014, the response to Joey has been astonishing. The Bali-born 14-year old has experienced one of the most rapidly ascendant careers in jazz history. Since releasing his chart-topping albums, My Favorite Things (2015) and Countdown (2016), Joey has earned a combined three GRAMMY® Award nominations, making him the youngest jazz artist ever nominated for a GRAMMY® Award. His musical adroitness earned him appearances on the GRAMMY® Awards, The Today Show, CNN, as well as CBS 60 Minutes profile by Anderson Cooper, fueling a rare level of public notoriety for Joey as a jazz musician, both within the jazz community and among the public at large.

"Joey.Monk.Live!" Track Listing
1. Round Midnight
2. Evidence
3. Ugly Beauty
4. Rhythm-A-Ning
5. Epistrophy
6. Straight No Chaser
7. Pannonica

Tour Dates:
September 28: Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center, Birmingham, AL
September 29: Donald W. Nixon Centre for the Arts, Newman, GA
October 10: Jazz Standard, New York, NY
October 13: Schermerhorn Performing Arts Center, Nashville, TN
October 14: Loeb Playhouse at Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
October 20: Orchestra Hall, Detroit, MI
October 21: Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts, Brookfield, WI
January 12: Adrienne Arsht Center, Miami, Florida
January 19: Singha Winter Jazz Festival- Singha Park, Chiang Rai
January 25: Collins Center for the Arts, Orono, Maine
February 17: Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, NY
February 22: Jazz Alley, Seattle, WA
March 2-3: Appel Room @ JALC, New York, NY
March 23:  Strathmore, Bethesda, MD
March 30: Musical Instrument Museum, Phoenix, AZ
March 31: Capitol Theatre, Salt Lake City, UT
April 20: Schaeffer Auditorium/ Kutztown University
April 21: Strand Capitol Arts Center, York, PA
April 27: Musco Center, Orange, CA
April 28: La Jolla, San Diego, CA
April 29: UCSB, Santa Barbara, CA


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