May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins Passes Away at 95
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
Jazz Appreciation Month kicked off in Washington, D.C., Monday with piano great Ramsey Lewis taking center stage during the festivities.
Lewis called for a renewed commitment for jazz education in the schools as a bridge for ensuring future generations of players and audiences before he made a donation of archival materials from his career to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The items included photographs, publicity materials, news clippings and awards such as his 2007 designation as a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts.
As part of the festivities, the pianist then sat down for a conversation with guitarist Larry Coryell about their careers. John Hasse, curator of American Music at the Smithsonian, and David Baker discussed “Jazz On The Nile,” a recent tour of Egypt by the Smithsonian Jazz Materworks Orchestra. And, harmonica virtuoso Frédéric Yonnet’s trio performed to an enthusiastic audience.
“Jazz is a truly American style of music that has played an important role in our heritage,” said Brent D. Glass, director of the National Museum of American History. “Through the Smithsonian’s Jazz Appreciation Month activities, we will highlight jazz and its history and how the genre has an important function in global diplomacy.”
Jazz appreciation Month began in 2001 as the brainchild of Hasse as a way to elevate the image of Jazz to wide audiences in the United States. Since that time, the celebration has blossomed into events in all 50 states and 33 nations around the globe.
More info: smithsonianjazz.org
Onstage, Rollins would move about restlessly, thrusting his tenor sax in the air as he blew.
May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
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