Thelonious Monk Institute Of Jazz Presents Newark’s Top High School Musicians in Concert With Jazz Greats Jimmy Heath And Antonio Hart

Published on Wednesday, 20 June 2012 06:34 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

-( Business Wire )-

The Prudential Foundation:

What:		The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz and the Newark Public Schools present the Arts High Jazz Sextet in concert with internationally acclaimed jazz saxophonists Jimmy Heath and Antonio Hart. It is free and open to the public.
		The concert is made possible through funding from The Prudential Foundation to the Monk Institute to provide year-round music programs at Arts High and other Newark public schools.
		Heath and Hart will be artists-in-residence at Arts High on the three days leading up to the concert.
When:		Wednesday, June 20, 2012
		7 p.m.
Where:		Horizon Theater
		NJPAC Center for Arts Education
		24 Rector Street
		Newark, NJ
Who:		Thelonious Monk, Jr., Board Chairman, Thelonious Monk Institute; jazz legend Jimmy Heath and Antonio Hart, one of the top alto saxophonists on the scene today.
		The Arts High Sextet: Lawrence Liggins, flutist and music director; Shadic Anderson, 18, trombonist; Justin Charles, 18, trumpeter; Sabrina Dias, 17, drummer; Rahsaan Pickett, 16, guitarist; Joseph Quiles, 16, bassist; and Keryn Williams, 18, pianist
		Jazz musicians from Barringer and East Side high schools

BACKGROUND

The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz is a nonprofit education organization established in memory of Thelonious Monk, the legendary jazz pianist and composer. Monk was one of the primary architects of bebop and his impact as both performer and composer has had a profound influence on every genre of music. His more than 70 compositions are classics that continue to inspire artists in all disciplines. Monk believed the best way to learn jazz was from a master of the music. The Institute follows that same philosophy by bringing together the greatest living jazz musicians to teach and inspire young people, offering the most promising young musicians college level training by world-renowned jazz masters through its fellowship program in Jazz Performance at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music in Los Angeles, and presenting public school-based jazz education programs around the world. Helping to fill the tremendous void in arts education left by budget cuts in public school funding, the Institute’s programs are provided free to the public and use jazz as the medium to encourage imaginative thinking, creativity, a positive self-image, and respect for one’s own and others’ cultural heritage. Jazz great Herbie Hancock serves as the Institute’s chairman. www.monkinstitute.org.

About The National Performing Arts High School Jazz Program

The Institute’s National Performing Arts High School Jazz Program has been designed to facilitate the education of gifted music students who are currently attending public performing arts high schools across the nation. The program offers them the opportunity to participate in a pre-conservatory, highly specialized performance-based jazz curriculum, study with some of the world’s most eminent jazz artists and educators, perform in a jazz combo comprised of their peers, and prepare for entry into the country’s most distinguished conservatories and university schools of music. Included is instruction in Jazz Improvisation, Theory, Composition, History, and Styles and Analysis. The Institute provides each participating school with consultation regarding curriculum development and instructional methodology, residencies by Institute staff, high-profile performance opportunities, and funding for visiting guest artists and clinicians. The program also includes the presentation of peer-to-peer jazz informances around the country whereby the students, in conjunction with major artists, play and talk about jazz in an effort to educate their peers about America’s indigenous art form and the values it represents: teamwork, unity with ethnic diversity, democracy, and the vital importance of really listening to one another.

About Arts High School

Newark’s Arts High School is a college-preparatory, tuition-free public performing arts high school that provides advanced instruction in dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and television communications, in addition to a rigorous academic curriculum. Boasting such impressive alumni as Connie Francis, Melba Moore, Woody Shaw, Wayne Shorter, and Sarah Vaughan, Arts High was the first magnet school of its kind in America, opening its doors in 1931. Students are selected by audition or portfolio review. The school’s principal is Lynn Irby-Jackson. James Manno serves as the Performing Arts Department Chair. Flutist Lawrence Liggins directs the jazz program. James Sheeley serves as Director of the Newark Public Schools District’s Office of Visual and Performing Arts.

www.nps.k12.nj.us/art

About The Prudential Foundation

The Prudential Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation supported by The Prudential Insurance Company of America, a subsidiary of Prudential Financial, Inc. The Prudential Foundation focuses its grant making strategy in the areas of education, economic development and arts and civic infrastructure; and it supports community engagement efforts of Prudential employees through Matching Gifts and other programs that recognize their volunteer work. Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial services leader with approximately $943 billion of assets under management as of March 31, 2012, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Prudential’s diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds and investment management. In the U.S., Prudential’s iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit http://www.news.prudential.com.

For more information, full-length bios, and photos, or to schedule an interview with one of the artists and/or students, please contact: JB Dyas at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 323-270-3904; to speak with someone at The Prudential Foundation, please contact Karen Oliver Moore, 973 802-8533, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

JB Dyas323.270.3904 (cell); 310.284.8200 (office) This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.