The Cabaret at Theater Square (only 250 seats!)
June 1st, 2012 – 8pm
Tickets: $38 – Buy Now!

Latin jazz is more than 50 years old: In 1942, Mario Bauza wrote his classic composition “Tanga” and four years later he introduced Dizzy Gillespie to Cuban percussionist Chano Pozo, giving rise to a series of historic cross-cultural collaborations featuring Machito, Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and others. Afro-Cuban rhythms have been embedded in the pulse of jazz ever since, but rarely have the two traditions melded as fluidly as they do in the music of Fort Apache.

First organized in the early 1980s by the Bronx-bred brothers Jerry Gonzalez (trumpet, flugelhorn, congas) and Andy Gonzalez (bass), Fort Apache was initially a large, flexible ensemble, boasting as many as 10 or 15 pieces and featuring such players as Kenny Kirkland, Sonny Fortune, Steve Turre, the late Jorge Dalto, Frankie Rodriguez, Milton Cardona, Hector Hernandez, Angel Vazquez, and others. The band’s first two albums were recorded live at European jazz festivals: The River Is Deep, 1982 in Berlin; Obatala, 1988 in Zurich. But it was 1989’s Rumba Para Monk, a quintet recording of Thelonious Monk masterpieces arranged by Jerry Gonzalez and the entire band, that brought the Fort Apache concept into focus. Named Jazz Record of the Year by the French Académie du Jazz, the album also resulted in the Fort Apache Band being voted the number one World Beat Group in Down Beat’s 55th annual Readers Poll.

Don’t miss this very rare Pittsburgh appearance!

The Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival (PJLIF) returns to downtown Pittsburgh’s Cultural District on June 1-3, 2012. The expansive weekend of music will include a JazzLive Crawl in 30 downtown venues, 3 outdoor stages, and feature both national and internationally renowned musicians and a visual art show. The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s PJLIF is produced in cooperation with the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, which runs from June 1 through June 10, 2012.

“The PJLIF hits four central themes, this June,” says Janis Burley Wilson, Vice President and Director of Jazz Programs for The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. “First, it’s literally a jazz explosion:  240 artists in 72 hours. Second, it’s a festival that preserves and celebrates Jazz and new music–America’s only classical music, by unifying a large audience with legendary, world-class musicians, emerging talent and commissioning new work. Third, it’s an event that enhances the regional economy, and finally the PJLIF is a happening that delivers world-class art and entertainment to the City of Pittsburgh, and is free and open to the community.”

The overarching theme for programming is “family.”  Janis Burley Wilson says, “Jazz appreciation is passed down through families.  Pittsburgh has families of musicians that have been trailblazers in jazz.  Also, there will be a number of families performing in the festival, brothers, sisters, children of important jazz figures of this city.”  The performances will take place in downtown restaurants, coffee shops and galleries, and on three large outdoor stages in the Cultural District. Some of the musicians featured at The PJLIF include:  Monty Alexander, Poogie Bell, The Clayton Brothers, Fort Apache with Andy & Jerry Gonzalez, Robert Glasper, Allan Harris, Lalah Hathaway, Sean Jones, Soul Cycle, Jeff “Tain” Watts, David Budway, Warren Wolf, and The Average White Band.The festival hires over 140 local musicians, as well.  Most of the concerts are free; however seating in restaurants for the JazzLive Crawl is available for dining patrons. In addition, Sean Jones, artist-in-residence for the new initiative, Sound & Spirit, is commissioned to write new music that will debut at the festival.

The program includes community and school workshops that involve Pittsburghers in the writing process, creating music truly inspired by the people of this city.

Founded in 1984, The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a non-profit arts organization whose mission is the cultural and economic revitalization of a 14-block arts and entertainment/residential neighborhood called the Cultural District. Over a period of 25 years, the Trust has restored historic theaters, constructed new performance venues, commissioned public art projects/galleries and developed unique urban parks and riverfront recreation spaces. The Cultural Trust is recognized across America as a unique model of how public-private partnerships can reinvent a city with authenticity, innovation and creativity.

The Pittsburgh JazzLive International weekend is presented with support from Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, Macy’s, Savoy Restaurant, the City of Pittsburgh and many in-kind sponsors. All artists and show times are subject to change. Please visit pittsburghjazzlive.com or call 412-456-6666 for updates and information.

Watch the video.

• 1st segment
• 2nd segment

Buy your tickets now at trustarts.org.

The first of these workshops takes place on Wednesday, November 9th, 2011 at 6pm.

Here is a flyer that you can post or email to interested students.  Please note that though this workshop is free, registration is required through a simple process and can be found at pgharts.org.

Any questions regarding this workshop may be directed to:
Megan Gilby, MAM ‘12
Program Coordinator
Education and Community Engagement | The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust

Janis Burley Wilson, VP of Education, and Director of Jazz Programs at the Trust, says, “The Trust has presented Sean Jones as part of the JazzLive series regularly since 2004.  As an artist, he has contributed to the planning of the Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival.  He has also served on the Education/Community Development advisory board since 2008 representing Duquesne University.  We, at the Trust, are thrilled to have Sean as an artist-in-residence for the festival, and welcome all the knowledge and talent he will continue to bring to the JazzLive program as a whole.”

The series kicks off with a free performance open to 1,200 students on Monday, October 3, 2011, with Jazz at Lincoln’s Center’s “Who is Mary Lou Williams“.   A partnership between the August Wilson Center and The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s Education and Community Engagement Department, Jazz at Lincoln Center’s “Who is Mary Lou Williams” will be performed by the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra.

Sean Jones will conduct workshops around the region on composition, jazz and new music, with students joining him on the journey to write music that the Trust has commissioned for the Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival.  The new music will launch the JazzLive Sound/Spirit Initiative, which involves, commissioning new work every year that will debut at the Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival.  The name of the program was inspired by the great jazz saxophonist, Sonny Rollins, who stated that, “…you can’t kill jazz… jazz is a spirit….”  Jones will write music each year, with the community involved in the writing process.  He will perform the new work, or it will be performed by another musician featured in the festival.

In addition to world-renowned trumpet career, Sean Jones is an Assistant Professor at Duquesne University, artistic director of the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra and Cleveland Jazz Orchestra, and the director of musical initiatives at August Wilson Center.

The JazzLive series, formerly, Downbeat in the District, began in summer of 2004.  The Trust has year-round jazz presence with the JazzLive series in the Cabaret Theater and Backstage Bar every Tuesday from September through May, and at Agnes R. Katz Plaza during the summer months.  During National Jazz Appreciation Month, the Trust presents national and international musicians each Tuesday evening, presenting a variety of new artists and established legends on the jazz scene.  The introduction of Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival in June of 2011, in cooperation with the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, made the Trust the biggest supporter of jazz in the region, with more resources and support going to regional and national jazz musicians, and more programming available to the community.  BNY Mellon is the lead sponsor for JazzLive only.  The Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival is sponsored by a host of other generous funders and in-kind supporters.

The “Center of Life” Jazz Band, performing at Pittsburgh JazzLive International.

Gregory Porter performing “Work Song” at Pittsburgh JazzLive International 2011