Elling Swings Sinatra!
 In April Kurt Elling again pays homage to Frank Sinatra's 100th birthday with a series of Elling Swings Sinatra concerts in the Midwest.
The Kurt Elling Quintet concerts at Millikin University in Decatur, IL & City Winery Chicago feature Emmet Cohen on piano, John McLean on guitar, Clark Sommers on bass, and Kendrick Scott on drums, with special guests John "Wojo" Wojciechowski on saxophone & Tito Carillo on trumpet.
Next up, the KEQ, this time with Bryan Carter on drums, plays eight regular shows at Jazz at the Bistro in St. Louis and then another Elling Swings Sinatra gig at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, KS.Kurt has remarked,"Sinatra was the voice of America at her most powerful, most developed - culturally, politically, economically - when we were really at the American zenith in the 20th century. He was, for all intents and purposes to the world and for America, the sound of what we offered. He was fortunate to be a swinging, eloquent, powerful, defining singer at a time when American popular music was swinging music."
At the recent Portland Jazz Festival, Kurt performed Elling Swings Sinatra with the Art Abrams Swing Machine Big Band, featuring a special guest appearance by pianist Bill Charlap.
Just before that concert, Kurt, Bill Charlap, and jazz writer Will Friedwald (author of the excellent Sinatra! The Song Is You: A Singer's Art) sat down for a 45 min. Jazz Conversation in front of a live audience. You can listen to the podcast here.Bill Charlap said of Sinatra, "That's a benchmark that's so high that we only wish to honor it by not trying to be it. but by being ourselves."
Charlap also remarked, "Sinatra was The Voice, but in 2015, in my opinion, Kurt Elling is the voice, he is the one. He has not just the instrument but the taste, the swing, the naturalness, the depth, the imagination, and the originality. So that's reason enough to sing songs that were associated with Sinatra."
Kurt will be performing with the Bill Charlap Trio, with special guests Harry Allen & Warren Vaché, for Swing a Song of Sinatra at the 92nd Street Y in New York on July 28, part of Charlap's Jazz in July programming.
| |
 This year marks the 13th observance of Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM). JAM was created at The National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian in 2002 to herald and celebrate the extraordinary heritage and history of jazz.
Jazz ~ Inventive. Spontaneous. Never ordinary.
In addition to the centenaries (100th birthdays) of Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday, 2015 is also the centenary of Billy Strayhorn, this year's JAM poster musician (see Short Takes below) . Frank Sinatra was similarly honored with a JAM poster in 2012 and Billie Holiday in 2003.
International Jazz Day
April 30, 2015
This year Paris is the global host city for the fourth annual International Jazz Day, sponsored by UESCO, chaired and led by Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director-General, and by legendary pianist and composer Herbie Hancock, who serves as a UNESCO Ambassador for Intercultural Dialogue and as Chairman of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz.
 France is often recognized as the second birthplace of jazz after the United States, and since World War I, Paris has been one of the main centers for the creation and diffusion of jazz worldwide.
The 2015 All-Star Global Concert with 26 guest artists will be webcast live from Paris at 7:00 pm CEST on April 30 & at these times worldwide:
| Paris - 7 pm | London - 6 pm | NYC - 1 pm |
| Tokyo - 2 am (May 1) | Sydney - 3 am (May 1) |
The All-Star Global Concert video will also be available on the web several hours after the concert ends for your viewing pleasure. And check out this 2 min trailer. #JazzApril
#JAM
#JazzDay
| |
Your Moment of Elling . . .
In 1933 when he was still a teenager, Billy Strayhorn (JAM poster, right) began composing "Lush Life" and fine-tuned it over several years. In 1938 he first sang for Duke Ellington who hired him in 1939, thus beginning their long musical collaboration.
But "Lush Life" wasn't performed publicly until 1948.
Now it's a beloved jazz standard.
Kurt performed "Lush Life" on his Grammy-winning live recording, Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman. It's notoriously hard to sing.
As jazz vocalist Sheila Jordan commented, "The melody and chords of 'Lush Life' are challenging, and the lyrics are fantastic."
|
|
|
 |
April Gigs
|
April 11, 2015Kurt Elling Quintet +2 Elling Swings Sinatra Kirkland Fine Arts Center Millikin University 1184 W Main St Decatur, IL April 12, 2015TWO SHOWS - SOLD OUT!Kurt Elling Quintet +2 Elling Swings Sinatra City Winery Chicago 1200 W Randolph Chicago, IL April 13, 2015 Kurt Elling Quintet +2 Elling Swings Sinatra - SOLD OUT! City Winery Chicago 1200 W Randolph Chicago, IL April 15-18, 2015 EIGHT SHOWS - TWO EACH NIGHT Kurt Elling Quintet Jazz at the Bistro 3536 Washington Ave St. Louis, MOApril 19, 2015Kurt Elling Quintet Elling Swings Sinatra Lied Center of Kansas University of Kansas 1600 Stewart Ave Lawrence, KSApril 21, 2015Kurt Elling Quintet Elling Swings Sinatra Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts Missouri State University 525 S. John Q Hammons Parkway Springfield, MOApril 23, 2015TWO SHOWS Kurt Elling Quintet Elling Swings Sinatra Holland Performing Arts Center 1200 Douglas St Omaha, NE April 24, 2015 Kurt Elling Quintet With the Turner Center Jazz Orchestra Elling Swings Sinatra Sheslow Auditorium Drake University 2507 University Ave Des Moines, IAFree pre-concert presentation at 6:45April 25, 2015Kurt Elling Quintet Elling Swings Sinatra Capitol Theatre
Overture Center for the Arts 201 State St Madison, WIApril 26, 2015Kurt Elling Quintet Elling Swings Sinatra Weidner Center University of Wisconsin 2420 Nicolet Drive Green Bay, WI
COMING UP:
In May Kurt travels the world again! On May 1, Kurt performs on Friday Night Is Music Night: The Sinatra Legacy at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival (UK), with the Guy Barker Big Band & the BBC Concert Orchestra, which will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 2. Then he's off to Köln, GERMANY for a concert with the WDR Big Band. Next up is San Francisco for the SFJAZZ Gala in honor of Joni Mitchell, a benefit concert for SFJAZZ's artistic & education programs. Then the KEQ with Anat Cohen presents Passion World at Harvard University. From May 20-24, Kurt performs Kurt Elling Swings Sinatra with Tommy Smith & the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra in ENGLAND and SCOTLAND. And finally, on May 30-31, the KEQ performs two concerts with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra during the opening weekend of the Melbourne International Jazz Festival. From June 10-13, the Kurt Elling Quintet celebrates the CD Release of Passion World with 8 gala shows at Birdland in the heart of New York! All of Kurt's gigs into January 2016 are on the Touring page on his website. That's where you'll always find the most current information. Please check there often, as new dates are always being added. Bringing Kurt to a stage near you Kurt is on the road about 180 nights a year. To hear Kurt and the band play in your city, region, or country, please ask your favorite venues or festivals to book them through Kurt's booking agency. Thank you!
|
| |
 Short Takes
Harold Mabern's Afro Blue will be released April 14, 2015 on Smoke Sessions Records.Kurt performs two tunes, Bird's bop icon "Billie's Bounce" in a rip-roaring sojourn in scat, and a poignant take on L. Russel Robinson & Gordon Burdge's exquisite "Portrait of Jennie." Order now on Amazon and iTunes.
Jazz & Colors
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York, NY
April 24, 2015
Jazz & Colors. Fifteen ensembles. Fifteen galleries. One setlist.
Lose yourself at the Met and find dazzling masterpieces of art and jazz!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
