NEA Jazz Masters Awards
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Paquito de Riviera on the clarinet |
On January 14, my husband, who is on the national board of the National Endowment for the Arts, and I had the great privilege of going to the NEA Jazz Masters Awards in NYC.
We had lunch with Jimmy Heath, who with his brother, Percy, created the Modern Jazz Quartet. We sat with Ahmad Jamal, the seminal pianist who coined the term American Classical music for jazz. And we had dinner with McCoy Tyner, who has played with all the great jazz musicians of the 20th century. All these musicians and the other jazz masters who came to the event are in their 80s. Their walk on to the stage betrayed their age, but when they played, oh my! Their fingers flew, ageless and flexible. The music inside them leaped out.
Sheila Jordan told the story of being too young to go in to the jazz clubs. So she sat outside the stage door, which Dizzy Gillespie had opened for her so she could hear the music. She then sang Sheila’s Blues for us, the story of how she became a jazz singer, complete with a scat duet with Ron Carter on the bass, singing these words, “And that’s why I am standing here before you today at 84, singing the blue -ooh -ues!”
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Jimmy Heath and Ahmad Jamal chatting at lunch |
I want to be singing at 84, too! I want to sing until I die. All of these octogenarians will play until they die. Ahmad Jamal said that the music keeps them alive. Words to live by.
Your article “The power of song” in today’s Monitor inspired me to look at your blog. I also believe I heard you sing with two other women at the music school Christmas noontime performance. It was great! Keep on sharing your talent to inspire those of us who are not “good singers”. i LOVE the effect your singing has on your mother and the other people in her residence. How fortunate they are to have you come and visit and share your gift.
Sharon,
Yes I performed in December with two other women. We call ourselves Trillium. Thanks so much for your comments.
Peggo