“Danilo is open to whatever comes, in that zero-gravity kind of way. When we become weightless, he doesn't start looking for things to hold on to." - Wayne Shorter, 2008
Danilo Pérez, the acclaimed Panamanian pianist, educator and social activist, will kick off the release of his new album, Providencia, with an NPR Music “Exlusive First Listen."
From August 23-31, NPR Music will make Providencia available for free on-demand listening in its entirety at NPRMusic.org and through the NPR Music App for iPhone and iPod Touch; a week-long world exclusive, culminating with the retail release of the album on August 31
Providencia, his debut for the Mack Avenue Records label, crosses streams of jazz, classical and Latin American folk music-which Pérez refers to as “hearing music in three dimensions." “This record is based on the idea that whatever we do has an impact in the universe," Pérez says. “The word 'providence,' for me, means standing up for the future of the next generation of children."
The ensemble Pérez has assembled for this album is itself an expression of his concept of “global jazz," an idea he carries on from his stint with the legendary Dizzy Gillespie's United Nations Orchestra. Alongside the Panamanian leader, the group includes Indian-American saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa, Lebanese-American percussionist Jamey Haddad, Colombian conga player Ernesto Diaz, Portuguese vocalist Sara Serpa and a Boston-based woodwind quintet.
Pérez has an expansive view of music's power and reach, expressed not only in his goals for the album but in his diverse palette and broad scope. On a practical level, Pérez has been working both in his native Panama and his adopted home of Boston. His annual Panama Jazz Festival has brought world-renowned musicians to the country for the last seven years, not only to perform but also to work closely with local youth. That mission is carried on yearlong by the Fundación Danilo Pérez, which offers musical and cultural education to disadvantaged young people in Panama City. In Boston, he now heads the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, which offers music students an opportunity to explore creativity, advance the social power of music, and connect music with the restoration of ecology and humanity.
Pérez's first U.S. performance in support of Providencia will take place on Labor Day weekend at the 2010 Detroit International Jazz Festival.
Listen to Danilo Pérez's new album via NPR Music's “Exclusive First Listen"
Danilo Pérez · Providencia
Release Date: August 31, 2010
Danilo Pérez, the acclaimed Panamanian pianist, educator and social activist, will kick off the release of his new album, Providencia, with an NPR Music “Exlusive First Listen."
From August 23-31, NPR Music will make Providencia available for free on-demand listening in its entirety at NPRMusic.org and through the NPR Music App for iPhone and iPod Touch; a week-long world exclusive, culminating with the retail release of the album on August 31
Providencia, his debut for the Mack Avenue Records label, crosses streams of jazz, classical and Latin American folk music-which Pérez refers to as “hearing music in three dimensions." “This record is based on the idea that whatever we do has an impact in the universe," Pérez says. “The word 'providence,' for me, means standing up for the future of the next generation of children."
The ensemble Pérez has assembled for this album is itself an expression of his concept of “global jazz," an idea he carries on from his stint with the legendary Dizzy Gillespie's United Nations Orchestra. Alongside the Panamanian leader, the group includes Indian-American saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa, Lebanese-American percussionist Jamey Haddad, Colombian conga player Ernesto Diaz, Portuguese vocalist Sara Serpa and a Boston-based woodwind quintet.
Pérez has an expansive view of music's power and reach, expressed not only in his goals for the album but in his diverse palette and broad scope. On a practical level, Pérez has been working both in his native Panama and his adopted home of Boston. His annual Panama Jazz Festival has brought world-renowned musicians to the country for the last seven years, not only to perform but also to work closely with local youth. That mission is carried on yearlong by the Fundación Danilo Pérez, which offers musical and cultural education to disadvantaged young people in Panama City. In Boston, he now heads the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, which offers music students an opportunity to explore creativity, advance the social power of music, and connect music with the restoration of ecology and humanity.
Pérez's first U.S. performance in support of Providencia will take place on Labor Day weekend at the 2010 Detroit International Jazz Festival.
Listen to Danilo Pérez's new album via NPR Music's “Exclusive First Listen"
Danilo Pérez · Providencia
Release Date: August 31, 2010
For more information contact DL Media.
