2020 NEA Jazz Masters to be Honored at Events April 1-3 at SFJAZZ in San Francisco

Washington, DC—Join the National Endowment for the Arts in celebrating the 2020 NEA Jazz Masters—Dorthaan Kirk, Bobby McFerrin, Roscoe Mitchell, and Reggie Workman—at free, open to the public events April 1–3, 2020, at the SFJAZZ Center in San Francisco, held in collaboration with SFJAZZ. In addition to hearing from the masters themselves at a listening party and a master class, a one-night-only concert on Thursday, April 2, will feature performances that exemplify the honorees’ impact on jazz. Hosted by 2017 NEA Jazz Master Dee Dee Bridgewater, the concert will also be available via a live webcast and radio broadcasts. Tickets to the concert are available to reserve on Thursday, February 13, and tickets to the listening party and master class are available to reserve on Friday, February 14. Full details are below. NEA Jazz Masters Listening Party—Wednesday, April 1, 2020 On Wednesday, April 1, 2020, at 7:30 p.m., a listening party in honor of the 2020 NEA Jazz Masters will take place at the SFJAZZ Center’s Robert N. Miner Auditorium, 201 Franklin Street in San Francisco, California. This evening will include conversations with the honorees, moderated by Randall Kline, founder and executive artistic director of SFJAZZ, and feature music from their careers in jazz. Tickets to the listening party are free of charge and will be available to reserve beginning Friday, February 14, 2020, at 11 a.m. PT online, at the SFJAZZ Center Box Office (201 Franklin St., San Francisco, CA), or by phone (415-788-7353). NEA Jazz Masters Tribute Concert—Thursday, April 2, 2020 The 2020 NEA Jazz Masters Tribute Concert will take place on Thursday, April 2, 2020, at 7:30 p.m. PT at the SFJAZZ Center’s Robert N. Miner Auditorium (201 Franklin Street, San Francisco, CA) and also streamed live. 2017 NEA Jazz Master Dee Dee Bridgewater will host this concert, with performances by Ambrose Akinmusire, Terri Lyne Carrington, James Carter, Matt Clarke, Vincent Davis, Sullivan Fortner, Oliver Lake, Catherine Lee, Madison McFerrin, Taylor McFerrin, Kanoa Mendenhall, Junius Paul, Dana Reason, John Savage, Marcus Shelby, and Steve Turre (artists subject to change). The evening will also include remarks by the 2020 NEA Jazz Masters, as well as Mary Anne Carter, chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, and Randall Kline, founder and executive artistic director of SFJAZZ. Ticket details: Starting Thursday, February 13, 2020, at 11:00 a.m. PT, up to two tickets per household may be reserved for this free concert online, at the SFJAZZ Center Box Office (201 Franklin St., San Francisco, CA), or by phone (415-788-7353). Live webcast and radio broadcast details: The live webcast of the 2020 NEA Jazz Masters Tribute Concert will begin at 7:30 pm PT (10:30 pm ET) at arts.gov and sfjazz.org, as well as the websites for All About Jazz and Jazz Near You, BMI, National Endowment for the Humanities, NPR Music, Smithsonian Jazz, Voice of America’s Khmer, Chinese, and Tibetan services, and WBGO. An archive of the webcast will be available following the event at arts.gov. The live radio broadcast will be available nationwide on SiriusXM Channel 67, Real Jazz; in California on KCSM 91.1 FM; and in Washington, DC on WPFW 89.3 FM. Master Class with 2020 NEA Jazz Master Roscoe Mitchell—Friday April 3, 2020 On Friday, April 3, 2020, at 1-2:30 p.m. PT, at San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Recital Hall (50 Oak Street, San Francisco, CA), 2020 NEA Jazz Master Roscoe Mitchell will lead a master class on composition and improvisation with students from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Roots, Jazz, and American Music program. The public is invited to observe. Mitchell has taught at institutions such as the University of Illinois, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, California Institute of the Arts, and served as the Darius Milhaud Chair of Composition at Mills College in Oakland, California, until 2019. Tickets to the master class are free of charge and will be available to reserve beginning Friday, February 14, 2020, at 11:00 a.m. PT online, at the SFJAZZ Center Box Office (201 Franklin St., San Francisco, CA) or by phone (415-788-7353). Media who wish to request press access to any of these events should contact Liz Auclair at auclaire@arts.gov and Marshall Lamm at mlamm@sfjazz.org. Photos will be available for media use on request. About the NEA Jazz Masters Since 1982, the National Endowment for the Arts has awarded 157 fellowships to great figures in jazz, including Ella Fitzgerald, Sonny Rollins, Dianne Reeves, Miles Davis, Chick Corea, and George Wein. The NEA’s website features resources and content about them, including video biographies, and tribute concert videos, podcasts, and more than 350 NEA Jazz Moments audio clips. NEA Jazz Masters Fellows are nominated by the public, including the jazz community. Nominations are judged by an advisory panel of jazz experts, including administrators, performers, producers, and a knowledgeable layperson. The panel’s recommendations are reviewed by the National Council on the Arts, which sends its recommendations to the chairman, who makes the final decision. The Arts Endowment encourages nominations of a broad range of men and women who have been significant to the field of jazz, through vocals, instrumental performance, creative leadership, and education. NEA Jazz Masters Fellowships are up to $25,000 and can be received once in a lifetime. Visit the Arts Endowment’s website for detailed information and to submit nominations. The National Endowment for the Arts has also supported the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program, an effort to document the lives and careers of nearly 100 NEA Jazz Masters. In addition to transcriptions of the comprehensive interviews, the website also includes audio clips with interview excerpts. About the National Endowment for the Arts Established by Congress in 1965, the National Endowment for the Arts is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the Arts Endowment supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America. Visit arts.gov to learn more. About SFJAZZ Founded in 1983, SFJAZZ is a recognized international leader in jazz creation, presentation, and education. SFJAZZ explores the full spectrum of jazz—from the music’s origins in the African American community, to its diverse present-day expressions around the world. SFJAZZ works to develop the audience for jazz in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. SFJAZZ celebrates jazz as a living art form, built on a constantly evolving tradition. The West Coast’s biggest jazz presenter serves over 200,000 fans and students every year and has several award-winning resident jazz ensembles - the world renowned SFJAZZ Collective and the SFJAZZ High School All-Stars. SFJAZZ Center opened in 2013 in the vibrant performing arts district of San Francisco. The luminous SFJAZZ Center was designed by San Francisco architect Mark Cavagnero and the LEED-Gold certified center offers the superb acoustics of a great concert hall and the relaxed intimacy of a jazz club.

• NEA Jazz Masters Fact Sheet