Thelonious Monk Institute Presents Newark's Top High School Musicians in Concert with Jazz Greats Jo

Thelonious Monk Institute Presents Newark's Top High School Musicians in Concert with Jazz Greats Jon Faddis and Tim Green, June 21 at NJPAC's Center for Arts Education

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, in conjunction with Newark Public Schools, will present high school jazz combos from Arts High, Barringer, East Side, and Science Park in concert with internationally acclaimed jazz artists Jon Faddis and Tim Green on June 21 at Newark's Horizon Theater located in NJPAC's Center for Arts Education. The free concert, featuring three generations of jazz artists, is made possible by The Prudential Foundation, which funds the Institute's year-round jazz education programs at the four schools. Faddis and Green will serve as artists-in-residence during the three days leading up to the concert. The event marks the culmination of the Institute's 2012-2013 Jazz in the Classroom program, which provides students with free in-school and after-school music instruction plus training in improvisation, theory, composition, sight reading, and other elements essential to the development of young musicians.

Thelonious Monk, Jr., Chairman of the Institute's Board of Trustees and son of legendary jazz pianist and composer Thelonious Monk, will be on hand to introduce the concert and talk about the program. "The concert will feature some of the very best music students in Newark," he said. "Seeing and hearing these extraordinary teenagers play this music at a level that so belies their years is heartening; they've come a long way since we introduced our program in the city a year and a half ago."

The Barringer Sextet, under the direction of trumpeter Greg Sneed, is composed of trumpeters Risardo Lupi, 18, and HectorUmpieere, 16; alto saxophonist Jaileen Santiago, 14; pianist Marquise Wilson, 18; bassist Kristina Sanchez-Cartagena, 16; and drummer Abner Santiago, 18.

The East Side Quintet, under the direction of saxophonist Ariel Ocasio, is composed of trombonist Kelsey Rodriguez, 17; guitarist Emmanuel Torres, 16; pianist Joe Mattina, 17; bassist David Barbosa, 18; and drummer Lucas Oliveira, 16.

The Science Park Septet, under the direction of saxophonist Mario McMiller, is composed of trumpeter Taheir Barnes, 16; alto saxophonist Bryan Sosa, 17; bass clarinetist Jaysen Bazile, 17; tenor saxophonist Jacob Martinez 17; pianist Luis Medina, 13; bassist Khaliah Peterson, 18; and drummers Adriana Freitas, 13, and Jonathan Isaacs, 18.

The Arts High Sextet, under the direction of flutist Lawrence Liggins and saxophonist Mike Lee, is composed of trumpeter Keivon Hemmings, 18; saxophonist Kimberley Garcia, 18; guitarist Rahsaan Pickett, 17; pianist Galo Inga, 16; bassist Joseph Quiles, 17; and drummer Sabrina Dias, 18. Students at Arts High, the country's oldest public performing arts high school, participate in the Institute's National Performing Arts High School Jazz Program, which helps prepare talented music students in nine cities across the nation to become jazz's next generation. "We've had a great year," said Pickett who with band mates Quiles and Dias recently performed at an Institute concert at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. along with guest artist Tim Green. "Thanks to the Monk Institute, we get to work with Mr. Green again, as well as the great Jon Faddis. Incredible."

The concert will be held on Friday, June 21st, beginning at 7:30 PM at Newark's Horizon Theater located in NJPAC's Center for Arts Education (24 Rector St.). Free and open to the public, the concert will feature an evening of standards, jazz classics, and contemporary jazz, programmed for an audience of all ages, including the young performers' peers.

"As young people are so influenced by kids their own age, who better to expose them to this great American art form than those of their own generation?" added Monk. "And with Jon Faddis and Tim Green performing alongside them, it's truly an extraordinary and rare opportunity for everyone to see and hear the torch being passed down among three generations."

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Internationally renowned jazz trumpet great Jon Faddis possesses a virtually unparalleled range and full command of the instrument, making the practically impossible seem effortless. Born in Oakland, California, Faddis began playing at age eight. He joined Lionel Hampton's band at age 18 and was soon discovered by his mentor Dizzy Gillespie, with whom he performed numerous times. Faddis has since gone on to perform in every major venue around the globe and record well over 100 albums with such diverse artists as Anthony Braxton, Kenny Burrell, Duke Ellington, Billy Joel, Quincy Jones, Kool and the Gang, Jack McDuff, Charles Mingus, Oscar Peterson, the Rolling Stones, Paul Simon, and Frank Sinatra. His horn also can be heard on the theme of "The Cosby Show," on the soundtrack of Clint Eastwood's films The Gauntlet and Bird, and on many commercials. Throughout his career, Faddis has directed a number of eminent jazz ensembles and currently leads the Jon Faddis Jazz Orchestra of New York, as well as his own quartet, which has made more than a dozen recordings. Besides being an internationally acclaimed performer, conductor, and composer, Faddis is an esteemed jazz educator and enjoys working with up-and-coming young artists. He is on the faculty of the Conservatory of Music at Purchase College-SUNY in Westchester, NY, and presents master classes, clinics, and workshops around the world. www.jonfaddis.com

Rising star Tim Green is one of the top alto saxophonists on the scene today. Born and raised in Baltimore, Green attended the Baltimore School for the Arts, and later the Manhattan School of Music and the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance, where he received his bachelor's and master's degrees, respectively. While at the Monk Institute, Green studied, performed, and toured internationally with such jazz greats such as Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, and Terence Blanchard. He has gone on to perform around the world and record with such eminent artists as Carl Allen, Kenny Burrell, Cyrus Chestnut, Jon Faddis, Roy Hargrove, Sean Jones, Queen Latifah, Wynton Marsalis, Christian McBride, Mulgrew Miller, Jeremy Pelt, Eric Reed, and Warren Wolfe. Besides performing and composing, Green thoroughly enjoys teaching. He serves on the jazz faculty at Morgan State University and the Baltimore School for the Arts, and presents jazz workshops at high schools and universities across the country. His latest recording, Songs from This Season (True Melody Music, 2013), has received critical acclaim. www.timgreenmusic.com

ABOUT THE THELONIOUS MONK INSTITUTE OF JAZZ

The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz is a nonprofit education organization established in memory of Thelonious Monk, the legendary jazz pianist and composer. Monk was one of the primary architects of bebop and his impact as both performer and composer has had a profound influence on every genre of music. His more than 70 compositions are classics that continue to inspire artists in all disciplines. Monk believed the best way to learn jazz was from a master of the music. The Institute follows that same philosophy by bringing together the greatest living jazz musicians to teach and inspire young people, offering the most promising young musicians college level training by world-renowned jazz masters through its fellowship program in Jazz Performance at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music in Los Angeles, and presenting public school-based jazz education programs around the world. Helping to fill the tremendous void in arts education left by budget cuts in public school funding, the Institute's programs are provided free to the public and use jazz as the medium to encourage imaginative thinking, creativity, a positive self-image, and respect for one's own and others' cultural heritage. Jazz great Herbie Hancock serves as the Institute's chairman. www.monkinstitute.org

ABOUT THE JAZZ IN THE CLASSROOM PROGRAM

The Institute's Jazz in the Classroom program facilitates the education of music students who attend public high schools across the nation. The program offers them the opportunity to participate in a pre-conservatory, highly specialized performance-based jazz curriculum, study with some of the world's most eminent jazz artists and educators, perform in a jazz combo composed of their peers, and prepare for entry into the country's most distinguished conservatories and university schools of music. Included is instruction in Jazz Improvisation, Theory, Composition, History, and Styles and Analysis. The Institute provides each participating school with consultation regarding curriculum development and instructional methodology, residencies by Institute staff, high-profile performance opportunities, and funding for visiting guest artists and clinicians. The program also includes the presentation of peer-to-peer jazz informances around the country whereby the students, in conjunction with major artists, play and talk about jazz in an effort to educate their peers about America's indigenous art form and the values it represents: teamwork, unity with ethnic diversity, democracy, and the vital importance of really listening to one another. www.monkinstitute.org/education

ABOUT THE PRUDENTIAL FOUNDATION

The Prudential Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation supported by The Prudential Insurance Company of America, a subsidiary of Prudential Financial, Inc. The Prudential Foundation focuses its grant making strategy in the areas of education, economic development and arts and civic infrastructure; and it supports community engagement efforts of Prudential employees through Matching Gifts and other programs that recognize their volunteer work.

For more information, full-length bios, and photos, or to schedule an interview with one of the
artists and/or students, please contact: JB Dyas atjbdyas@monkinstitute.orgor 323-270-3904.

The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz
JB Dyas
323-270-3904 (cell)
310-284-8200 (office)
jbdyas@monkinstitute.org

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