Jan 15, 2021 9:00 AM
John Coltrane, Out Of Obscurity
In late June of 1964, in between Impulse Records studio dates for Crescent and A Love Supreme, saxophonist John…
Drummer Albert “Tootie” Heath is among the 2021 NEA Jazz Masters.
(Photo: Ghylian Bell & Mychal Watts)The National Endowment for the Arts recently announced the 2021 class of Jazz Masters, which includes drummers Albert “Tootie” Heath and Terri Lyne Carrington, and reedist Henry Threadgill. Radio host Phil Schaap was announced as the next recipient of the A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship for Jazz Advocacy.
“Following up on 2020’s joyful and inspiring virtual concert, we look forward to working with SFJAZZ to celebrate these honorees next April in an evening that will showcase their incredible contributions to jazz,” said Mary Anne Carter, chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts, in a press release.
Heath—whose brothers were the late saxophonist Jimmy Heath and the late bassist Percy Heath—performed alongside giants of the genre, including John Coltrane, Nina Simone and Dexter Gordon. Carrington, a bandleader, educator and activist, this year topped the DownBeat Critics Poll in the category Jazz Artist; her ensemble Social Science was voted the Jazz Group of the year, and the group’s debut album, Waiting Game, won honors as Jazz Album of the Year in the poll. Threadgill continues to premiere demanding work deep into his 70s and in 2016 was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his album In For A Penny, In For Pound (Pi). Grammy-winner Schaap, for his part, has hosted a jazz show on WKCR for 50 years and founded the educational Swing University initiative at Jazz At Lincoln Center.
A ceremony to celebrate the 2021 nominees is set for April 21, 2021.
The 2020 honorees, who were acknowledged during an online bash, included vocalist Bobby McFerrin, saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell and bassist Reggie Workman, as well as curator/producer Dorthaan Kirk. DB
John Coltrane’s Blue World takes its name from a contrafact of Harold Arlen’s “Out Of This World.”
Jan 15, 2021 9:00 AM
In late June of 1964, in between Impulse Records studio dates for Crescent and A Love Supreme, saxophonist John…
Chick Corea (1941-2021)
Feb 11, 2021 4:39 PM
Chick Corea, one of the most beloved and decorated jazz artists in history, passed away Feb. 9. He was 79.
In a post…
Junior Mance (1928–2021)
Jan 18, 2021 9:35 AM
Junior Mance, who enjoyed a long career as a pianist and educator, has died at age 92.
As a leader, Mance recorded…
Ed Palermo has been known to embody a larger-than-life persona during his big band’s live shows.
Jan 21, 2021 8:45 AM
Palermo’s namesake big band has earned a reputation as a virtual circus of jazz-rock medleys, mashups, jump-cuts and…
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
Feb 2, 2021 8:35 AM
If ever there were a time for the blues, it was 2020. In the United States, more than 300,000 people died, and many…