Curated by NJMH executive director Loren Schoenberg, the performance will feature New Orleans pianist and music director Jonathan Batiste, a rising star on the national scene; trumpeter Dominick Farinacci, a Wynton Marsalis and Joe Lovano veteran; saxophonist Dayna Stephens, a longtime fixture on the Bay Area scene, now residing in New York; Macedonian-born clarinetist Vasko Dukovski; Bay Area–based bassist David Ewell, a member of the genre-crossing jazz ensemble VidyA; and drummer Darrell Green, whose credits include work with Jay McShann and Dr. Lonnie Smith. Following the concert will be a free discussion with the artists, moderated by Schoenberg.
Widely considered the greatest of all jazz albums, Kind of Blue heralded the arrival of Davis’ new stylistic approach, which became known as “modal jazz”—an approach in which songs are based on modal scales in lieu of chord progressions. The album became the best-selling jazz recording of all time, and the musicians who participated are among the most important jazz artists of the last century.
Stanford Lively Arts’ season-long tribute to Miles Davis has included a variety of events throughout the academic year, including lectures, demonstrations, and film screenings. Leading up to this finale concert, Loren Schoenberg will give a free presentation called “Miles 1959: A Blue Year” on Thursday, April 16 at 8:00 p.m. at Wallenberg Learning Theater, located at 450 Serra Mall (building 160) on the Stanford campus. Schoenberg will lead a behind-the-scenes tour of the making of the recording with live concert footage and TV appearances.
This presentation is generously supported by Abraham and Marian Sofaer.
TICKETS
Tickets for “50 Years of Kind of Blue: A Live Jazz Laboratory” on Saturday April 18 at 8:00 p.m. at Kresge Auditorium are $34 for adults and $17 for Stanford students. Half-price tickets are available for young people age 18 and under, and discounts are available for groups and non-Stanford students. For tickets and more information, contact the Stanford Ticket Office at 650-725-ARTS (2787).
VENUE INFORMATION
Kresge Auditorium is located on the Stanford University campus at 555 Nathan Abbott Way, located behind Stanford Law School. Parking on campus is free of charge after 4:00 p.m. and on weekends at all times. Please note: Construction has temporarily displaced some parking in the area. Alvarado Row has been closed. Use Arguello Mall to access ‘A’ parking lots around the law school.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL JAZZ MUSEUM IN HARLEM
The National Jazz Museum in Harlem has been ensconced in its Harlem offices for six years now; Executive Director Loren Schoenberg and Director of Operations Bryan E. Glover maintain things on a day-to-day basis. Co-Director Christian McBride, internationally in-demand bassist, is the Museum’s traveling Ambassador when he is on the road, as well as frequent participant in our programs when he is in New York. In addition, Schoenberg is a noted conductor, saxophonist, and author who has appeared internationally and won the 1994 Grammy Award for Best Album Notes. He has recorded several albums with his own big band, and also with Benny Goodman, Benny Carter and Bobby Short. He is on the faculties of the Juilliard School, the Manhattan School of Music, Jazz at Lincoln Center's Essentially Ellington Band Director's Academy, and is program director of the Jazz Aspen Snowmass Jazz Colony. He is the author of The NPR Curious Listener’s Guide to Jazz.
ABOUT STANFORD JAZZ WORKSHOP
Founded in 1972, the Stanford Jazz Workshop (SJW) has welcomed jazz artists and enthusiasts to the Stanford University campus each summer. As SJW’s programs grew, attracting preeminent artists such as Dizzy Gillespie and Stan Getz, the organization began presenting public concerts to encourage community appreciation and awareness of jazz. These early concerts served as the beginning of the Stanford Jazz Festival. Today the festival draws 15,000 music enthusiasts and is ranked by many critics and fans as one of the top jazz events on the West Coast.
ABOUT STANFORD LIVELY ARTS
Stanford Lively Arts curates experiences that engage artists’ and audiences’ imagination, creativity, and sense of adventure. Founded in 1969 at Stanford University, we produce and present music, theater, dance, spoken word, and multi-media events. We place a special focus on innovation and risk-taking, and through commissions and premieres are an incubator and destination for new work. Stanford Lively Arts plays a leading and collaborative role in the university’s thriving vision of a sustained culture of creativity—one in which the arts integrate with the academic disciplines, flourish as a vital part of campus and community life, and inspire new perspectives on our lives and culture.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
