Historic concert features extraordinary performances by dozens of celebrated artists including Tony Bennett, Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis, Stevie Wonder, Hugh Masekela, Lang Lang, Wayne Shorter, Angelique Kidjo, Chaka Khan, Christian McBride, Esperanza Spalding and many others...
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) will broadcast a one-hour television
special of the first annual International Jazz Day All-Star Global Concert on
Friday, April 10 at 10:00 p.m. EST. The concert features extraordinary
performances by more than 40 world- renowned artists who gathered at the United
Nations General Assembly Hall in New York City.
The
concert’s many historic moments include a first-time collaboration with Stevie
Wonder and Esperanza Spalding, plus Michael Douglas introducing legendary South
African trumpeter Hugh Masekela. Douglas’ father, Kirk Douglas, had starred in
the film “Young Man with a Horn,” which inspired a young Masekela to begin
playing the trumpet.
Other
highlights include a stellar performance by Tony Bennett, a magical duet with
Herbie Hancock and China’s piano virtuoso Lang Lang, and a captivating
performance featuring Wynton Marsalis with Panamanian pianist Danilo Pérez.
Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter and Jack DeJohnette perform Miles
Davis’ classic “Milestones” and Dee Dee Bridgewater joins Shankar Mahadevan,
Jimmy Heath, George Duke, Christian McBride and Zakir Hussain in a unique
rendition of Duke Ellington’s “Cottontail.”
The
incomparable Chaka Khan joins Blue Note saxophone great Joe Lovano onstage for
a special rendition of “Them There Eyes” and Angelique Kidjo brings the crowd
to its feet with “Afrika.” Longtime blues aficionado Morgan Freeman introduces
a dynamic blues & jazz segment featuring Robert Cray, Susan Tedeschi and
Derek Trucks. The evening culminates with the entire all-star cast performing
Stevie Wonder’s quintessential tune “As.”
In its
review of the concert, JazzTimes said, “New York City has always been home to
the world’s most storied jazz venues, from Minton’s Playhouse and the Cotton
Club of decades past to the Blue Note and Village Vanguard of today. Until now,
no one would ever have thought to place the General Assembly of the United
Nations—that august room where policies affecting the world are made—on that
list. But on the night of April 30, there was no better place in New York—or
the rest of the planet—to hear jazz. The ‘Sunset Concert’ closing out the first
annual International Jazz Day…was a star-studded affair—the hosts were Morgan
Freeman, Robert De Niro, Michael Douglas and Quincy Jones—but it was also a
phenomenal jazz concert.”
The
concert concluded the first annual International Jazz Day celebration that
brought together people of all ages, backgrounds and nationalities around the
world. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO) 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.
Through this united effort, International Jazz Day is the one day each year
that jazz is celebrated worldwide. It is recognized on the official calendars
of both the United Nations and UNESCO.
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 worldwide celebration.
According
to Herbie Hancock, “On International Jazz Day, jazz is celebrated, studied, and
performed around the world for 24 hours straight. Collaborations abound among
jazz icons, scholars, composers, musicians, dancers, writers, and thinkers who
embrace the beauty, spirit, and principles of jazz, freely sharing experiences
and performances in our big cities and in our small towns, all across our seven
continents. I can’t think of a better way to build peace and cultural
understanding.”
The PBS
special will air in April as part of Jazz Appreciation Month and will raise
awareness of the fourth annual International Jazz Day celebration, taking place
on all continents on April 30, 2015. This year, Paris, France will serve as
International Jazz Day Global Host City, presenting dozens of education
programs and performances, along with an All-Star Global Concert featuring a
wide range of internationally acclaimed artists. The concert will be streamed
to audiences around the world.
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