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National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2009-2010 NEA Jazz Masters Live Grants

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For the second year, the National Endowment for the Arts will bring outstanding jazz musicians, writers, producers, and scholars to communities across the nation through NEA Jazz Masters Live. For the 2009-10 season, 12 organizations will receive grants totaling $250,000 through the program to support multi-event, extended engagements, featuring many jazz greats who have received an NEA Jazz Masters Award, the nations highest honor in jazz. Managed by Arts Midwest, the program offers audiences the unique opportunity to enter into a deeply creative and ultimately personal dialogue with these renowned artists.

Among the more than 25 NEA Jazz Masters participating in NEA Jazz Masters Live events are Dave Brubeck, Chick Corea, Jimmy Heath, Ahmad Jamal, and Hank Jones, as well as jazz historian and educator Dan Morgenstern and festival producer and pianist George Wein. The 12 grant recipients include venues such as the Detroit International Jazz Festival and the Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans.

“Jazz artists have wonderful music to share and fascinating stories to tell," said Acting NEA Chair Patrice Walker Powell. “We are fortunate to have among our NEA Jazz Masters many of the artists who have been on the forefront of change and NEA Jazz Masters Live provides audiences with invaluable access to both their music and their stories."

Through NEA Jazz Masters Live, the Masters share their expertise in performances, master classes, clinics, lectures, and short term residencies. The majority of the grantees will present several NEA Jazz Masters. For instance, as part of the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival in Vermont, the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts will feature three NEA Jazz Masters in residence: saxophonist and composer Sonny Rollins, guitarist and composer Jim Hall, and critic, journalist, and record producer Nat Hentoff.

During the first year of NEA Jazz Masters Live in 2007-2008, 28 Masters participated in engagements such as:



  • NEA Jazz Masters Week that included a moderated “sound table" discussion with Nancy Wilson and John Levy was presented by the Manchester Craftsmens Guild.

  • The Detroit International Jazz Festival presented twelve different events, featuring eight NEA Jazz Masters, included “talking tent" sessions with the artists and performances by student ensembles under the direction of Benny Golson and Jimmy Heath.



Organizations chosen for the 2009-2010 NEA Jazz Masters Live are:

American Jazz Museum: Kansas City, MO: Clark Terry and Dan Morgenstern

Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge: Baton Rouge, LA: Ahmad Jamal and Paquito D'Rivera

Contemporary Arts Center: New Orleans, LA: Phil Woods

Detroit International Jazz Festival: Detroit, MI: Dave Brubeck, Donald Byrd, Chick Corea, Jimmy Heath, Hank Jones, Wayne Shorter, and Gerald Wilson

Duke Ellington Jazz Festival: Washington, DC: James Moody

Flynn Center for the Performing Arts: Burlington, VT: Jim Hall, Nat Hentoff, and Sonny Rollins

Jazz Arts Group of Columbus: Columbus, OH: Frank Foster

Jazzmobile Inc.: New York, NY: Jimmy Heath, Nat Hentoff, Billy Taylor, Clark Terry, Rudy Van Gelder, George Wein, Frank Wess

Monterey Jazz Festival: Monterey, CA: Toshiko Akiyoshi, Dave Brubeck, Chick Corea, and Hank Jones

National Black Arts Festival: Atlanta, GA: Jon Hendricks

Outpost Productions Inc.: Albuquerque, NM: Toshiko Akiyoshi

Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz: Washington, DC/New Orleans, LA: Ron Carter, Slide Hampton, Barry Harris, and Jimmy Heath

About the NEA Jazz Masters Program
The National Endowment for the Arts has supported jazz artists and organizations since 1969, providing millions of dollars in grants and awards. In 2004, the NEA significantly expanded its NEA Jazz Masters program and in 2005 created the NEA Jazz Masters Initiative, a comprehensive program of jazz support that includes the NEA Jazz Masters Award; NEA Jazz Masters Live, a series of multiple event engagements in selected communities, featuring NEA Jazz Masters; radio programming featuring NEA Jazz Masters; educational resources through the NEA Jazz in the Schools program; publications and reports. Please see complete information on the website.

About the National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts, both new and established; bringing the arts to all Americans; and providing leadership in arts education. Established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government, the Arts Endowment is the largest annual national funder of the arts, bringing great art to all 50 states, including rural areas, inner cities, and military bases. Please visit the NEA website.

About Arts Midwest
Arts Midwest connects people throughout the Midwest and the world to meaningful arts opportunities, sharing creativity, knowledge, and understanding across boundaries. Arts Midwest connects the arts to audiences throughout the nine-state region of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. One of six non-profit regional arts organizations in the United States, Arts Midwests history spans more than 25 years. Please visit the Arts Midwest website for more information.

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