ANNOUNCES TWO FULL DAYS OF JAZZ
AS PART OF 2006 SEASON
Performers to Include the Ravi Coltrane Quartet,
Rodney Kendrick, Steve Kuhn, John Hicks, and
Legendary Pianist McCoy Tyner
Tribute Concerts to the Legacies of
Tenor Sax Player Joe Henderson and
Gypsy Jazz Guitarist Django Reinhardt
All-Day Concerts on July 29 and August 5
Katonah, New York - In the tradition of great summertime jazz festivals worldwide, the 2006 Caramoor International Music Festival will present two days of jazz with a lineup featuring distinguished jazz masters and emerging young stars. Joe Lovano, Caramoor's Artistic Director of Jazz and a widely acclaimed tenor saxophone player, and Jim Luce, Caramoor's Jazz Festival Producer, have programmed the all-day Jazz Festivals on two successive Saturdays - July 29 and August 5. This will be Caramoor's thirteenth consecutive Jazz Festival, and over the years the Festival has celebrated the artistry of musicians representing the entire spectrum of jazz.
Caramoor's jazz concerts are held in the Venetian Theater, with hourly sets beginning at 2:30 p.m. Following a dinner breat at 6:30 p.m., the final set commences at 8:00 p.m. Both all-day programs are designed to allow visitors to come and go throughout the day and evening. Tickets for each all-day Jazz Festival are priced at $45.00 and $55.00. Tickets may be ordered by calling the Caramoor Box Office at 914-232-1252 or online at www.caramoor.org.
"It's a thrill for me to be Artistic Director and participate musically in one of the world's most creative jazz festivals today. Its rich history of programming is inspiring and on going," said Joe Lovano.
"Caramoor is an active participant in America's living musical arts. We are proud to be a home for the celebration of serious musical legacies as well as new music," said Michael Barrett, Caramoor's Chief Executive and General Director. He continued, "The Jazz Festival at Caramoor, headed by Joe Lovano, is an important part of our mission. Bringing focus to Django Reinhardt's important legacy, through his disciples, those most closely in tune with his work, and McCoy Tyner's pianistic mastery should give our audience a nourishing dose of America's indigenous art form, jazz, and show its influence around the world."
The Rodney Kendrick Trio, led by pianist Rodney Kendrick, launches the festival on July 29 with a 2:30 p.m. program that ranges from swing to stride and bebop. At 3:45 p.m., the Ravi Coltrane Quartet, led by saxophone player Ravi Coltrane, son of influential jazz experimentalist John Coltrane, will perform his own repertoire of jazz originals. At 5:00 p.m., pianist Renee Rosnes directs the Joe Henderson Project, a program celebrating the musical styles, compositions, and recordings of tenor sax player Joe Henderson. During his lifetime, Henderson played with nearly every important jazz musician, but he was also a widely influential composer, stylist, and arranger. A dinner break will follow Rosnes's 5:00 set. At 8:00 p.m., the Django Reinhardt Festival, featuring Dorado Schmitt, will salute the great Gypsy jazz guitarist as the focus of the day's final performance. Schmitt will be joined by a French ensemble featuring guitarists, a swing accordionist, a violinist, and a saxophonist; the troupe has performed its Reinhardt tribute to sold-out houses at the Kennedy Center and Birdland in New York City.
The second day-long Jazz festival will begin with pianist Kirk Lightsey ?s Tribute to John Hicks at 2:30 p.m. Young trumpet virtuoso Jeremy Pelt, who has already played with an impressive line-up of today's and yesterday's jazz luminaries, will perform with his Quartet at 3:45 p.m. The scale of the music grows with the 5:00 p.m. set, which features pianist and bandleader Steve Kuhn and a string orchestra of 12 players performing selections from Kuhn's 2004 recording Promises Kept. Kuhn's set will be followed by a break for dinner. At 8:00 p.m., renowned pianist McCoy Tyner and his Septet, including Eric Kamau Gravatt, drums; Charnett Moffett, bass; Dave Liebman, tenor-soprano saxophone; Steve Turre, trombone; Nicholas Payton, trumpet; and Donald Harrison, alto saxophone; will salute the 60th anniversary of the Impulse recording label. Tyner made many seminal recordings for the company, beginning in the 1960s and continuing to the present. In the liner notes for Tyner's 1963 Impulse album Inception, John Coltrane wrote: "First there is his melodic inventiveness and along with that the clarity of his ideas. He also gets a very personal sound from his instrument...McCoy has taste. He can take anything, no matter how weird, and make it sound beautiful."
Joe Lovano's reputation as one of the great tenor saxophonists performing today stems from his search for new modes of artistic expression and new takes on what defines the jazz idiom. Recent award highlights and accolades include Down Beat Critic's and Reader's poll 2005 and 2004 number one Tenor Saxophone; The New York Times 2004 "Jazz Album of the Year" for his Ballads recording I'm All For You featuring legendary pianist Hank Jones; a Grammy Award for 52nd Street Themes and The Gary Burton Chair in Jazz Performance at Berklee College of Music. Other awards include "Jazz Album of the Year" for 52nd Street Themes, 2001 Down Beat Critic's Poll Winner for "Musician of the Year," 2001 Jazz Journalists Association Critic's Choice Awards Winner for "Musician of the Year," and "Jazz Album of the Year" for 52nd Street Themes. Lovano has long experimented with varying ensembles and formats, including playing unaccompanied saxophone and gongs, as well as in duets, trios, quartets, quintets, his Wind Ensemble, Street Band and Nonet, reflecting his wide-ranging interests.
A one-time disciple of such widely diverse talents as Randy Weston, Barry Harris, Chris Anderson, and Thelonious Monk, pianist Rodney Kendrick is as at home with the avant-garde as he is with such more familiar jazz idioms as swing. Beyond those styles, Kendrick's stride playing features a fiercely propulsive left-hand bass, and his bebop percolates. Down Beat magazine wrote that "Kendrick puts on a brilliant keyboard display...[He] is one of today's most exciting young piano players and arrangers." He will be joined at Caramoor by two colleagues from his Trio.
The second son of John and Alice Coltrane, Ravi Coltrane, born in 1965, was named after sitar legend Ravi Shankar. Coltrane began playing clarinet in middle school, but grew up exposed to a variety of musical styles. In 1991, he began working with Elvin Jones, his father's renowned drummer from the 1960s, and soon began collaborating with such veterans as Jack DeJohnnette, Rashied Ali, Geri Allen, and Joe Lovano. In addition to working and travelling with his own Quartet, Ravi Coltrane has played with McCoy Tyner, Pharoah Sanders, Carlos Santana, Wayne Shorter, and many others.
Pianist Renee Rosnes grew up in Vancouver and began formal piano studies at age three, followed by violin lessons two years later. She studied Classical Performance in college, and played on the Vancouver club circuit before she came to New York in 1986. Rosnes was soon tapped for a series of high-profile gigs with jazz masters such as Joe Henderson, Wayne Shorter, James Moody and others. She has collaborated with a pantheon of jazz greats, including Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Branford Marsalis, Chris Potter, Nicholas Payton, and Christian McBride. She has earned three Junos (the Canadian equivalent of the Grammy Award) and two Jazz Report awards for Best Jazz Album. The late, legendary saxophonist and composer Joe Henderson was a major influence and creative force in jazz, and many of his compositions have become standards. Rosnes has performed her Henderson tribute widely, most recently at Jazz at Lincoln Center in February of 2006.
Pianist John Hicks, who is being honored on August 5 by Kirk Lightsey, moved to New York from St. Louis at the suggestion of Clark Terry and fellow St. Louis natives Miles Davis and Oliver Nelson. In his life he became a fixture on the scene, as leader or first-call sideman, presenting sparkling ballads or burning up the keyboard. His varied influences include Fats Waller piano rolls, Methodist church music, George Gershwin and bebop. Among his musical mentors were Albert King, Pharaoh Sanders, and Art Blakey. His stints with vocalist Betty Carter and with the Woody Herman Big Band propelled him to national notice. His recordings include appearances with Joshua Redman, Al Grey, Clark Terry, Ron Carter, Grady Tate, Roy Hargrove, and Gary Bartz, among others. In his last years he focused on solo work, his own big band concerts, and duets and trios.
Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt arrived in New York in 1998 after graduating from Berklee College of Music; his first professional jazz gig was playing with the Mingus Big Band, and he has since played with many jazz luminaries. Pelt has also been featured in a variety of different bands, including the Roy Hargrove Big Band, The Village Vanguard Orchestra, and the Duke Ellington Big Band, and is currently a member of the Lewis Nash Septet, Mingus Big Band, and The Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band. Pelt's focus is on writing music for his three bands, among them the Jeremy Pelt Quartet. Pelt was voted rising star on the trumpet two years in a row by Downbeat magazine and the Jazz Journalist Association.
Brooklyn-born Steve Kuhn began classical piano lessons at age five and soon began to "improvise and syncopate the classical repertoire." After graduating from Harvard, Kuhn attended the Lenox School of Music; fellow students included Ornette Coleman and Don Cherry, and the faculty included Bill Evans, George Russell, and Gunther Schuller. After performing with John Coltrane's quartet, and the with Stan Getz and Art Farmer, he formed the first Steve Kuhn Trio. In the mid-80's, Kuhn co-founded the All Star Trio, with bassist Ron Carter and drummer Al Foster, and launched an evolving edition of his trio with bassist David Finck. In 2004, Kuhn recorded Promises Kept, which included a string orchestra, which All About Jazz termed "a beautifully envisioned accomplishment by a pianist who proves yet again that his craft is unbounded and seemingly limitless in scope."
Kirk Lightsey defines himself as a Detroit pianist incorporating "...a Bud Powell awareness, an Art Tatum styling, a bebop feeling and a pianistic approach." Lightsey has toured across Europe and the United States performing and recording with names such as Chett Baker, George Coleman, Sonny Stitt, David Murray, Sonny Fortune, Freddie Hubbard, Woody Shaw and Harold Land. During and after this time he also put together ?In Stage?, a production group which included musicians, dancers and actors. He was the pianist and music director for O.C. Smith for five years and moved to Los Angeles where he gigged and recorded with other artists such as Pharoah Sanders, Bobby Hutcherson, Esther Philips and Harold Land. Another five-year association with Lovelace Watkins began in 1974, which took Kirk to Australia, Africa, Europe and the British Isles as well as New York and Las Vegas. While touring in Europe, Lightsey conducted the Bucharest Symphony Orchestra and the Scala Symphony Orchestra in Spain. He also conducted the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra. Kirk also spent some time in Dexter Gordon?s group, during which time he acquired a larger jazz audience. Currently, Kirk Lightsey is the pianistic force behind The Leaders, a sextet formed in 1984 to play the major European jazz festivals. New York Times critic Robert Palmer writes "They...are among the leading exponents of their respective instruments, and they are players who are helping chart the evolution of jazz as a whole.? The latest trio?s CD, « Good Bye Mr Evans » on Evidence Records was top rated by the jazz magazines: Downbeat gave it 4 1/2 stars.
Fazioli Piano
Pianists at this year's Caramoor Jazz Festival will play the Fazioli F-278 piano, courtesy of Klavierhaus, Inc., 211 West 58th Street, in New York City. Klavierhaus is the authorized dealer of Fazioli Pianoforti of Sacile, Italy. Fewer than 100 Faziolis are available worldwide each year.
About Caramoor
Caramoor is the legacy of Walter and Lucie Rosen, who built the great house and filled it with their treasures. Walter Rosen was the master planner for the Caramoor estate, bringing to reality his dream of creating a place to entertain friends from around the world. Their musical evenings were the seeds of the International Music Festival today. Realizing the pleasure their friends took in the beauty of Caramoor - the house with its art collection; the gardens; and the musical programs on summer evenings - the Rosens established a Foundation to open Caramoor to the public in perpetuity.
Lucie Rosen survived her husband by seventeen years. During those years, she expanded the Music Festival: The Spanish Courtyard was used as a setting for musical events, as it is today. Under her direction, the great stage of the Venetian Theater was built.
Caramoor is a Garden of Great Music. "We invite people to come early, explore our beautiful grounds, take a tour of the House Museum, visit our gift shops, enjoy a pre-concert picnic, and discover beautiful music in a relaxed setting," advises Paul Rosenblum, Caramoor's Managing Director. With its unique heritage, Caramoor remains a place where magical summer days and nights are shared and enjoyed by thousands. "Caramoor is the loveliest Festival of them all." - The New York Times
Art and Gardens
Concerts take place in two outdoor theaters - the large, acoustically superb Venetian Theater, and the more intimate, romantic Spanish Courtyard. Caramoor is more than just music - there is beauty at every turn. The House Museum, the former summer home of Caramoor's founders, Lucie and Walter Rosen, contains a vast collection of Renaissance, 18th-century, and Eastern art objects - furniture, tapestries, sculpture, paintings, fabrics, porcelain and jade. There are entire rooms that were imported from Euorpean palaces and villas, twenty of which are open to the public. A special exhibition, beginning Sunday, May 21, Caldwell & Company - Masters of Metal and Light, will celebrate the work of one of the most important designers and manufacturers of early 20th century American decorative arts. Edward F. Caldwell and Company of New York was one of the finest manufacturers and designers of lighting fixtures, decorative objects and metalwork from 1896 to its closure after World War II. The Caramoor Caldwell collection includes well over 100 objects, pieces that were commissioned either for Caramoor or the Rosens' New York City residence. On Thursdays and Fridays, Afternoon Tea is served in the Summer Dining Room, overlooking the Spanish Courtyard.
Caramoor's gardens are also well worth the visit. Nine unique perennial gardens including a Sense Circle for the visually handicapped, a Butterfly Garden, a Medieval Mount, and two whose special characteristics are enjoyed primarily at night may be seen on a guided tour or on one's own.
House Museum
Guided tours of the House Museum are provided from Wednesday through Sunday, 1-4 p.m., with the last tour at 3 p.m. On Saturdays, during the Festival, tours are given from 1-5 p.m., with the last tour at 4 p.m. Tickets are $9 (children 16 and under free). Admission includes the exhibition Caldwell & Company Masters of Metal and Light. (Preview Benefit Party and Silent Auction on Friday, May 20 at 7 p.m.)
Guided tours of the House Museum are provided from Wednesday through Sunday, 1-4 p.m., with the last tour at 3 p.m. On Saturdays, during the Festival, tours are given from 1-5 p.m., with the last tour at 4 p.m. Tickets are $9 (children 16 and under free). Admission includes the exhibition Cadwell & Company ? Masters of Metal and Light. (Preview Benefit Party and Silent Auction on Friday, May 20 at 7 p.m.)
Getting to Caramoor
Caramoor is easy to get to by car or mass transportation. From Manhattan, take the Caramoor Caravan and ride comfortably in a luxurious, air-conditioned coach. Round trip service is $21 and is available for all Saturday and Sunday performances during the Festival. The Caravan departs from the Port Authority Bus Terminal and Upper West Side and East Side locations. Call the Box Office (914-232-1252) for further information and reservations. By train, take the Harlem Division of the Metro-North Railroad to Katonah. Taxi service from the station to Caramoor (5 minutes away) is available. By car: (West Side Manhattan, New Jersey) Take the Saw Mill River Parkway north to Katonah. Exit at Route 35/Cross River. Turn right, and at the first traffic light make a right turn onto Route 22 south. Travel 1.9 miles to junction of Girdle Ridge Road. Follow the signs to Caramoor. (Detailed directions: 914-232-5035, press 2 or online at Caramoor.org).
TICKETS
Tickets may be ordered by calling the Box Office at 914-232-1252 or online at www.caramoor.org.
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July 29 Jazz Festival I
Saturday, All Day Swing Sensations
Venetian Theater Joe Lovano, Artistic Director; Produced by Jim Luce
2:30 Rodney Kendrick Trio
3:45 Ravi Coltrane Quartet
5:00 Joe Henderson Project
8:00 Django Reinhardt Festival
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August 5 Jazz Festival II
Saturday, All Day Enduring Spirits - Celebrating Miles and Coltrane
Venetian Theater Joe Lovano, Artistic Director; Produced by Jim Luce
2:30 Kirk Lightsey ? A Tribute to John Hicks
3:45 Jeremy Pelt Quartet
5:00 Steve Kuhn ?Promises Kept? with bass and 12 string players
8:00 McCoy Tyner Septet ? The Story of Impulse Records _______________________________________________________________________________
ALL PROGRAMS AND ARTISTS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
Press Tickets:
Leah Grammatica
212.243.6052
leahgram@aol.com
