Jan 13, 2026 2:09 PM
More Trump-Kennedy Center Cancellations
The fallout from the renaming of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to include President Donald…
Clockwise from top: Lorraine Gordon (Photo: Eric Ogden), Mose Allison (Photo: Michael Wilson), Eddie Palmieri and Lou Donaldson (Photo: Bob Lasky)
(Photo: )The National Endowment for the Arts announced the names of the 2013 NEA Jazz Masters, the nation’s highest honor in jazz, on July 18. The honorees are pianist Mose Allison, saxophonist Lou Donaldson, Village Vanguard jazz club owner Lorraine Gordon and pianist/bandleader Eddie Palmieri.
The four recipients will join a list of 124 NEA Jazz Masters who have been honored for their contributions to jazz. Previous recipients include Count Basie, Roy Eldridge, George Benson, Dizzy Gillespie and Ella Fitzgerald. Each honoree will receive a one-time award of $25,000 and will be recognized during the annual NEA Jazz Masters awards ceremony on Jan. 14, 2013. The NEA will once again partner with New York’s Jazz at Lincoln Center to present the ceremony at its Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola.
“Each of the 2013 NEA Jazz Masters has made an indelible mark on jazz as we know it today,” said NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman. “Mose Allison’s fusion of jazz and blues has created a new sound uniquely his own, influencing scores of musicians and songwriters after him. Lou Donaldson has been a major force not just as a musician but also as a scout for new talent for the Blue Note label. Eddie Palmieri successfully combines the sounds of his Puerto Rican heritage with the jazz music he grew up with as a first-generation American. And Lorraine Gordon continues to provide a haven for jazz musicians to present their art at the Village Vanguard. I look forward to celebrating their achievements and contributions to this important American art form.”
The audience at Dizzy’s for the Jan. 14 ceremony will be limited to the friends and family of the NEA Jazz Masters. The event will be webcast live at arts.gov and on the Jazz at Lincoln Center website. Sirius XM Satellite Radio will simulcast the ceremony.
The 2012 NEA Jazz Masters are saxophonist Von Freeman, vocalist Sheila Jordan, bassist Charlie Haden, trumpeter Jimmy Owens and drummer Jack DeJohnette.
For more information on the honorees, visit the NEA website.
—Hilary Brown
Belá Fleck during an interview with Fredrika Whitfield on CNN.
Jan 13, 2026 2:09 PM
The fallout from the renaming of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to include President Donald…
Peplowski first came to prominence in legacy swing bands, including the final iteration of the Benny Goodman Orchestra, before beginning a solo career in the late 1980s.
Feb 3, 2026 12:10 AM
Ken Peplowski, a clarinetist and tenor saxophonist who straddled the worlds of traditional and modern jazz, died Feb. 2…
The success of Oregon’s first album, 1971’s Music Of Another Present Era, allowed Towner to establish a solo career.
Jan 19, 2026 5:02 PM
Ralph Towner, a guitarist and composer who blended multiple genres, including jazz — and throughout them all remained…
Rico’s Anti-Microbial Instrument Swab
Jan 19, 2026 2:48 PM
With this year’s NAMM Show right around the corner, we can look forward to plenty of new and innovative instruments…
Richie Beirach was particularly renowned for his approach to chromatic harmony, which he used to improvise reharmonizations of originals and standards.
Jan 27, 2026 11:19 AM
Richie Beirach, a pianist and composer who channeled a knowledge of modern classical music into his jazz practice,…
