2010 Ella Fitzgerald Award: The Manhattan Transfer
The Manhattan Transfer are the 12th recipients of the Ella Fitzgerald Award, established in 1999 for our 20th anniversary and conferred in recognition of the versatility, improvisational originality and quality of repertoire of a jazz singer renowned on the international scene. Icons of American pop jazz singing for three decades, The Manhattan Transfer is an atypical vocal ensemble, with a panache synonymous with 80s jazz and a sound so entwined with our culture that you can find yourself humming along to Birdland, Boy from New York City and Route 66 without even realizing it Their musical adventure has endured nearly 40 years and racked up almost as many Grammys as Michael Jackson. The Manhattan Transfer has bridged eras and styles, while always maintaining a distinctive sound rooted in doo-wop. And after 37 years, they remain the equal of their extraordinary renown. The Manhattan Transfer will be performing on Saturday, June 26, 6 p.m., Thtre Maisonneuve, PdA, as part of the En voix Rio Tinto Alcan series. In accepting the prize, The Manhattan Transfer will be following previous Ella Fitzgerald prizewinners John Pizzarelli (2009), Aretha Franklin (2008), Harry Connick, Jr., (2007), Etta James (2006), Al Jarreau (2005) Tony Bennett (2004), Bobby McFerrin (2003), Dianne Reeves (2002), Diana Krall (2001), Dee Dee Bridgewater (2000) and Diane Schuur (1999).
2010 Miles Davis Award: Sonny Rollins
Sonny Rollins will be the 17th recipient of the Miles Davis Award, created for our 15th anniversary in 1994 to honour a great international jazz musician for the entire body of his or her work and for that musicians influence in regenerating the jazz idiom. A powerhouse player nicknamed the Saxophone Colossus, Rollins was strongly influenced by Charlie Parker and is an undeniable master of thematic and melodic improvisation-but also of musical exploration. Hes switched up styles and periods, opening up to electric instruments in the manner of an Ornette Coleman, next digging into calypso, funk, R&B or pop, or even playing on an album (Tattoo You) by the Rolling Stones! Add in the powerhouse blowing that gives his music its robust and muscular signature sound, as well as an incomparable register that in and of itself sums up the past few decades of jazz history, from be-bop to jazz fusion, and its clear that were dealing not simply with a tenor, but with a Colossus! Sonny Rollins will be performing on June 27, 7:30 p.m., Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, PdA, as part of Les vnements spciaux TD series. Sonny Rollins is the latest in a series of Miles Davis prizewinners. He follows Ornette Coleman (2009), McCoy Tyner (2008), Mike Stern (2007), Brad Mehldau (2006), Dave Holland (2005), Keith Jarrett (2004), Joe Zawinul (2003), Chick Corea (2002), Michael Brecker (2001), Charlie Haden (2000), Cassandra Wilson (1999), John Scofield (1998), Herbie Hancock (1997), Wayne Shorter (1996), Pat Metheny (1995) and John McLaughlin (1994).
2010 Antonio Carlos Jobim Award: Richard Bona
Richard Bona is the 7th recipient of the Antonio Carlos Jobim Award, created for the Festivals 25th anniversary to honour artists distinguished in the field of world music whose influence on the evolution of jazz and cultural crossover is widely recognized. Armed with his bass, Cameroons Richard Bona won swift entry to the most prestigious of musical circles: Salif Keita, Harry Belafonte, Mike Stern, Pat Metheny, Bobby McFerrin, Branford Marsalis In 2007, one year after the release of his 4th solo album, Tiki, he would deliver a most memorable series of shows at the Festival in the Invitation series-and will be welcomed back this year as MAnu Katchs special guest. Routinely recognized as the most expert of musicians, Bona is an equally impressive composer, ingeniously blending the rhythms of his native land with those of jazz, imbuing the whole with a lyrical, reflective quality that is sensitive, touching and very personal. Richard Bona, The Ten Shades of Blues - July 2, 6 p.m., Thtre Maisonneuve, PdA (En voix Rio Tinto Alcan series), June 30, 6 p.m., Ges - Centre de crativit (Invitation series). As winner of the Antonio Carlos Jobim Award, Richard Bona follows in the footsteps of Toots & The Maytals (2009), Gilberto Gill (2008), Anglique Kidjo (2007), Salif Keita (2006), Khaled (2005) and Ibrahim Ferrer (2004).
2010 Oscar Peterson Award: Don Thompson
Don Thompson is the 22nd artist to receive the Oscar Peterson Award, created on the 10th anniversary of the Festival in 1989 to salute a Canadian musician who has made outstanding contributions to jazz in this country and for the quality of his art. Pianist, bassist, percussionist and maestro of the vibraphone, Vancouvers Don Thompson made his name in part thanks to his collaborations with such greats as Moe Koffman and Sonny Greenwich. An emblematic and even legendary figure in Canadian jazz, the self-taught musician has won attention and praise since the 60s for his talents as a composer, instrumentalist and arranger. A performer who allies sophistication and elegance, he received many accolades, including Junos, the CBC National Jazz Award, the prix SOCAN. As recipient of the Oscar Peterson Award, Don Thompson follows in the footsteps of Susie Arioli (2009), Dave Young (2008), Franois Bourassa (2007), Yannick Rieu (2006), Bernard Primeau (2005), Diana Krall (2004), Kenny Wheeler (2003), Lorraine Desmarais (2002), Moe Koffman (2001), Charles Biddle (2000), Maynard Ferguson (1999), Guy Nadon (1998), Rob McConnell (1997), Nelson Symonds (1996), Michel Donato (1995), Paul Bley (1994), Fraser MacPherson (1993), Vic Vogel (1992), UZEB (1991), Oliver Jones (1990) and, of course, Oscar Peterson (1989).
2010 Bruce Lundvall Award: Herman Leonard
Herman Leonard is the 2nd recipient of the Bruce Lundvall Award. In keeping with a tradition launched for the Festivals 10th edition, and repeated every five years with the addition of a new prize, the Festival marked its 30th anniversary last year with the creation of the Bruce Lundvall Award, presented annually to the non-musician who has left a mark on the world of jazz or contributed to the development of the music, through the media, the concert or record industries. Herman Leonard studied under master photographer Yousuf Karsh-with the likes of Albert Einstein and Clark Gable as subjects. In 1949, he opened a studio in New York and struck up friendships with Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington He served as Marlon Brandos personal photographer, moved to Paris and worked as a fashion and advertising photographer, and for Playboy Magazine. In 1991, he settled in New Orleans, where he would become deeply involved in the citys jazz scene. He has lived in California since 2005. The excellence and historical importance of his work have garnered him many awards and distinctions, along with this tribute from Quincy Jones: When people think of jazz, their mental picture is likely one of Hermans. Truer words never spoken! As recipient of the Bruce Lundvall Award, Herman Leonard follows in the footsteps of the man whose name graces the trophy, Bruce Lundvall (2009).
