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Irvin Mayfield and New Orleans Jazz Orchestra Headlines Stanford's Pre-Independence Day Celebration

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In what has become a favorite summertime tradition for more than a decade, Stanford Lively Arts presents its annual pre-Independence Day concert and picnic on Thursday, July 3. Following their 2006-07 Lively Arts performance, the 16-member New Orleans Jazz Orchestra--led by Grammy-nominated composer and trumpet virtuoso Irvin Mayfield--returns to bring the rich musical legacy of the Crescent City to Stanford's beautiful Frost Amphitheater. Due to nearby construction on campus, there will be no post-concert fireworks this year. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. for picnicking and the concert begins at 7:30 p.m. The music will be performed, rain or shine.

Built in 1937, Frost Amphitheater is considered one of the most beautiful performance venues on the West Coast. From the outside, it has the appearance of a wooded hill. The terraced, grass-covered amphitheater is used for university ceremonies, performing arts events and other programs, and has hosted such diverse headliners as the Grateful Dead, Miles Davis and Benny Goodman. It was a gift from Mr. and Mrs. Howard Frost in memory of their son, Laurence Frost, class of 1935.

The latest in an illustrious line of New Orleans trumpeters, Irvin Mayfield was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1977 and quickly established himself as one of the most decorated and recorded jazz musicians of his generation. His music, which draws from all aspects of New Orleans' life and culture, reimagines New Orleans' styles and blends them into an authentic 21st century New Orleans sound. In honoring his late father who was lost to Hurricane Katrina, Mayfield has dedicated himself to promoting the unique New Orleans jazz music heritage.

As a Basin Street Records' artist, Mayfield has released 10 albums and has appeared on or produced dozens of other records, including two for the Half Note label. His Los Hombres Calientes albums have garnered Billboard's Latin Music Award for Contemporary Latin Jazz Album of the Year ("Volume One," 2000) and a Grammy nomination ("Volume Three," 2001). Mayfield has participated in a number of hurricane-related fundraisers and was featured at Jazz at the Lincoln Center's 2005 Higher Ground benefit concert, where he performed “Just a Closer Walk with Thee," which was also included on a hurricane relief compilation CD distributed by Blue Note Records.

Mayfield founded the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, a non-profit organization, to inspire and preserve jazz for the world to learn and enjoy, and bring New Orleans' music to cities through the United States. NOJO performs and presents programs that draw upon the rich musical and cultural traditions of New Orleans, and has created a permanent national performing arts and education organization to celebrate America's native musical form in the city of its birth. With a firm commitment to music education, NOJO also offers master classes led by Mayfield and interactive jazz outreach activities for young people entitled “A Visit with Jazz." In January 2006, Tulane University was announced as the new home of NOJO in New Orleans.

Tickets and information:
Tickets for the July 3rd Celebration with Irvin Mayfield and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra are $44 (adult) and $22 (Stanford student) for lawn or chair seating. Half-price tickets are available for youth ages 18 and under, and discounts are available for students and groups. Tickets can be purchased at the Stanford Ticket Office by phone at 650-725-ARTS (2787), or online

A limited number of reserved tables are a special benefit for Lively Arts donors. Tables of four or ten (with or without catered supper) range from $300 to $1,000 and may be purchased by contacting the development office at 650-736-1251.

Rental of a limited number of low-back lawn chairs is also available for $5 a chair. Umbrellas, wagons, barbecue grills, high-back lawn chairs, and pets are not permitted inside Frost Amphitheater. Strollers may be checked at the gate. Smoking is prohibited, except in designated areas outside the amphitheater.

Stanford Lively Arts' July 3 celebration is sponsored in part by Korbel Champagne Cellars, Stanford Federal Credit Union, Palo Alto Weekly, and Palo Alto Online.

Venue Information
Frost is located at the corner of Galvez Street and Campus Drive. The main entrance is on Lasuen Street, off Campus Drive. Parking is available off Campus Drive across from the amphitheater and at the Stanford Stadium. Parking for guests with disabilities is located off Lasuen Street from Campus Drive. Only vehicles displaying state-issued disability placards will be allowed to park in this area. The wheelchair accessible entrance is located off Lasuen Street near Roth Way. For guests needing mobility assistance, a golf cart shuttle will be available just inside the amphitheater's main entrances. Maps and directions are available on the Lively Arts Web site.

About Stanford Lively Arts:
Stanford Lively Arts curates experiences through which artists and audiences can engage their imagination, originality, and sense of adventure.

Residing within the campus of Stanford University, we attract a diverse audience for music, theater, dance, spoken word, and multi-media events. Through commissions and premieres, Lively Arts is also an incubator and destination for new work. As a key campus stakeholder in the arts, we play a leading and collaborative role in Stanford's thriving vision of a sustained culture of creativity--one in which the arts are integrated with the academic disciplines, flourish as a vital part of student life, and inspire a wide audience on campus and throughout the Bay Area.

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