Jazz at Lincoln Center (J@LC) will present acclaimed pianist ARTURO
O’FARRILL and his LATIN JAZZ QUINTET in the 2001-02 Jazz in the Schools
Tour, entitled “ARROZ CON BEBOP.” From March 11 through March 21, 2002, the
ensemble will lead educational performances in 14 New York City area sites –
including public and private schools, hospitals, and community programs – in
Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, Roosevelt Island, and New Jersey
(please see below for complete itinerary). These performances will
demonstrate Latin music’s role in helping to shape and influence jazz – and
vice versa – with a strong emphasis on audience participation and
interaction.
The son of legendary Afro-Cuban jazz bandleader, composer, and arranger
Arturo “Chico” O’Farrill, ARTURO O’FARRILL (piano, music director) is one of
the most dynamic pianists of his generation, as well as a talented educator.
The rest of the Latin Jazz Quintet personnel includes PETER BRAININ (tenor
saxophone, flute), ANDY GONZALEZ (bass), PHOENIX RIVERA (drums, percussion),
and JOSEPH GONZALEZ (congas, bongos, percussion).
Through narration, demonstration, and participatory activities, O’Farrill
and the ensemble will discuss the common roots of jazz and Latin music,
their stylistic characteristics, similarities, and differences, and
important artists such as Scott Joplin, Jelly Roll Morton, Benny Goodman,
Dizzy Gillespie, Machito, Mario Bauza, Chico O’Farrill, and Tito Puente.
Musical selections will include “Timonbo,” “Manteca,” “Mambo Inn,” “Oye Como
Va,” and other bebop standards, ragtime songs, habaneras, and danzons.
In addition to the 20 daytime performances (2 performances at 10 venues),
there will be four special evening performances, which are being produced in
collaboration with the non-profit organization Midori and Friends. Founded
in 1992 by the renowned classical violinist, Midori and Friends promotes
music education throughout New York City.
This is the seventh year J@LC has produced the Jazz in the Schools Tour,
which exemplifies the organization’s mission to promote appreciation for
jazz– including Latin jazz – in neighborhoods and communities, especially
those that might not otherwise have access to world-class performers.
The “Arroz con Bebop” schedule is:
Daytime Dates (2 performances at each venue):
Monday, March 11, 2002 Polyprep Country Day (Brooklyn)
Tuesday, March 12, 2002 I.S. 25 (Brooklyn)
Wednesday, March 13, 2002 Convent of the Sacred Heart (Manhattan)
Thursday, March 14, 2002 Free Arts for Abused Children Program
(Manhattan)
Friday, March 15, 2002 Grace Church School (Manhattan)
Monday, March 18, 2002 Community Works Program (Merkin Hall)
Tuesday, March 19, 2002 Rumson Fair Haven High School (New Jersey)
Wednesday, March 20, 2002 Coler & Goldwater Hospitals (Roosevelt
Island)
Thursday, March 21, 2002 P.S. 108 (Bronx)
Friday, March 22, 2002 P.S. 243 (Bedford-Stuyvesant – Change 4 Kids
Program)
Evening Dates in collaboration with Midori & Friends (1 performance at each
venue):
Tuesday, March 12, 2002 P.S. 91 (Queens)
Tuesday, March 19, 2002 P.S. 180 (Manhattan)
Wednesday, March 20, 2002 P.S. 160/48 (Queens)
Thursday, March 21, 2002 P.S. 229 (Queens)
Arturo O’Farrill was born on June 22, 1960 in Mexico City and grew up in New
York City. Educated at the Manhattan School of Music and the Brooklyn
College Conservatory, O’Farrill performed with the Carla Bley Big Band from
1979 through 1983. He then went on to develop as a solo performer and
sideman with a wide array of artists including Wynton Marsalis, Dizzy
Gillespie, Steve Turre, Papo Vasquez, The Fort Apache Band, Lester Bowie,
and Harry Belafonte. In 1995, O’Farrill agreed to direct the band that
preserved much of his father’s music, Chico O’Farrill’s Afro Cuban Jazz
Orchestra, which has been in residence at New York City’s Birdland for the
past few years as well as touring worldwide. Besides recording two albums
as a leader for Milestone Records, Bloodlines and A Night in Tunisia, he has
appeared on numerous records, including the soundtrack to the critically
acclaimed movie Calle 54. A widely respected educator, O’Farrill states,
“I’m always looking for opportunities to transcend international or racial
boundaries.” He has participated in numerous Jazz at Lincoln Center events,
including a January 2000 lecture on the Latin Jazz Rhythm Section and the
2001 Awards Gala & Benefit Concert “The Spirit of Tito Puente,” where he
accepted the annual J@LC Artistic Achievement Award on behalf of his father.
Thu Feb 21 2002 (9:54:06 PM)