TRIBUTE TO PHOEBE JACOBS, Thurs., May 24th, 1 PM, Jazz at Lincoln Center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 5/14/12      
  ™Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation
P.O. Box 3115, New York, NY 10163-3115
914-617-9320
 
Contact: Phil Leshin
914-617-9320
 pleshin@gmail.com

  
Jazz Greats & Friends Celebrate The Life of Phoebe Jacobs 
Tribute to Phoebe Jacobs, In Memoriam
May 24, 2012 - 1p.m.
Jazz at Lincoln Center
Broadway at 60th St., NYC

 The family of Phoebe Jacobs (June 21, 1918 - April 9, 2012), The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation, and Jazz at Lincoln Center invite you to the Tribute to Phoebe Jacobs, in memoriam. The event will be held at Rose Theater, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center on Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 1 p.m. There will be no printed tickets for this event. Doors will open at 12:30pm, and attendees will be seated on a first come, first served basis.

The Tribute to Phoebe Jacobs will feature the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis as well as Jimmy Heath, Jon Faddis, Lew Soloff, Mercedes Ellington, Bobby Sanabria, Antoinette Montague, Robert O'Meally, Victor Goines, Bob Stewart, Stanley Crouch, George Wein, Norma Miller, Brianna Thomas, and more. Immediately following the program will be a second line procession along Central Park South.

Ms. Jacobs' life was devoted to the perpetuation of jazz through The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation for which she served as the executive vice-president. She was one of the most important behind-the-scenes influence in jazz. Her phenomenal work touched many lives, especially those of young people through jazz education and outreach.

Phoebe established a unique legacy as a lifelong advocate of jazz. She garnered support and helped establish the Louis Armstrong Archives at Queens College and the Louis Armstrong House Museum; The Louis Armstrong Center for Music and Medicine at Beth Israel Hospital; the Jazz for Young People Concert Series at Jazz at Lincoln Center; Columbia University Center for Jazz Studies and Louis Armstrong Jazz Performance Program; the Louis Armstrong Legacy Program and Celebration (Chicago) ; the Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong Summer Jazz Camp (New Orleans) ; the Duke Ellington Center, the Jazz Foundation of America, and New York's original Jazz Museum. She was impetus for providing scholarships to high school and college students through various non-profit organizations. She worked with Duke Ellington and his son, Mercer Ellington. Ms. Jacobs was instrumental in the development of the Duke Ellington Center with Mercedes Ellington. She was co-producer of the Benny Goodman Centennial held in Chicago.

Indeed, it was Phoebe Jacobs' personal relationship to jazz and its musicians that fueled her commitment to its survival. Through her dedication, Phoebe Jacobs has helped assure that vital memories of jazz history and its contributing musicians will always live on.

Please join us in the celebration of one of the most influential women in jazz history.




Phoebe Jacobs was born June 21, 1918. Her love for jazz began early in life. She began working as a hat check girl at Kelly Stables a Manhattan Jazz nightclub owned by her uncle Ralph Watkins' at seventeen years old.

She would later go on to work as a promoter and contractor, even serving as Director of Public Relations and Producer of Special Events at the Rainbow Room and Rainbow Grill in New York City, where she was responsible for the appearances of many prominent entertainers, including Benny Goodman, Sarah Vaughan, Cy Coleman, Duke Ellington, and Ella Fitzgerald.

Ms. Jacobs is perhaps best known as a publicist for such prominent musicians as Ella Fitzgerald, Sy Oliver, Peggy Lee, Sarah Vaughan, Duke Ellington, and Della Reese. She worked very closely for many years with Louis Armstrong, for whom she began as a public relations specialist and, in 1969, assisted in organizing the Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation, according to the great musician's wishes. The foundation's mission is to support music education. She became a devout friend and confidant of Lucille Armstrong. Phoebe and Lucille traveled to many locations representing Armstrong and planting seeds for many important initiatives. Ms. Jacobs served as executive vice-president of the foundation until her death.

Phoebe Jacobs has made invaluable contributions to Armstrong's living legacy. In 1995, she saw her and Lucille Armstrong's efforts, along with the support of many, reach fruition when the United States Postal Service released a postal stamp for Louis Armstrong. In 2000, her dream came true, when the New Orleans Airport was renamed to the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, the first airport to be named for a jazz artist.  

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation online atwww.louisarmstrongfoundation.org, or checks can be mailed to P.O. Box 3115, New York, NY 10163-3115.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/christoph-a-geiseler/phoebe-jacobs-died_b_1414750.html?view=print&comm_ref=false
Christoph A. GeiselerSocial Entrepreneur, Filmmaker and DJ from Los Angeles

 Improvisation: Phoebe Jacobs' Wonderful Life
Posted: 04/10/2012 10:56 am
  
"I'm going to be your fairy godmother," was the first thing that Mrs. Jacobs said to me when she sat next to me in 2005 at a jazz conference in California. As quickly as she appeared in my life, she disappeared.

Yesterday, New York's reigning jazz queen and founder of the Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation, Mrs. Phoebe Jacobs, passed away at age 93. As the torchbearer of Louis Armstrong's continuing legacy she touched innumerable lives with her love, eye for talent, dry wit, largesse, incomparable energy and photographic memory. I was lucky to become her friend and would like to share some of her wisdom with the fondest of memories.

1. A NOTE IS A NOTE IN ANY LANGUAGE

Mrs. Jacobs repeated her favorite stories, especially the story about how Louis Armstrong went to Africa as a jazz ambassador and couldn't speak any of the local languages. When she asked him, "If you couldn't speak the same language as the locals, how did you communicate?" Louis replied, "I picked up my horn and blew. A note is a note in any language. Music is the international language!"

2. THE GLASS IS ALWAYS HALF FULL

"Louis was the most positive person that I ever met," explained Mrs. Jacobs. Her goal in life was to share the same love that Louis shared with the world, especially for children. Quoting Louis, she always said; "I want to give back to the world some of the goodness that it gave to me."

3. DAPPER IS THE NORM

I never saw Mrs. Jacobs without make-up or jewelry at her home or in public. Mrs. Jacobs embodied elegance and represented a period of our musical heritage that was very noble. She taught me that if you dress appropriately in New York, people will treat you in the same way.

4. BRING FLOWERS

Every time that Mrs. Jacobs invited me to come visit her at her home, she specifically asked me not to bring flowers, which I brought with me every time. Mrs. Jacobs helped me develop the habit of paying your respects to older friends with small tokens of appreciation and never showing up to someone's home without a small gift.

5. THANK YOU CARDS

A hand-written note is worth its weight in gold. Mrs. Jacobs sometimes wrote me letters to say thank you when I called to check in on her. When I received her letters, I felt like I was receiving special attention, and not the other way around. I learned that thank you cards and hand-written letters solidify a friendship.

6. PUT SESAME SEEDS IN YOUR MISO SOUP

Mrs. Jacobs encouraged me to sprinkle sesame seeds on my miso soup just like the way that she taught Sarah Vaughan. She said, "I took Sarah Vaughan to this restaurant next to the Blue Note and introduced her to sushi."

7. THE CRICKETS ARE OUT OF TUNE

Mrs. Jacobs mentioned once that Louis Armstrong hated sleeping around crickets because they would play out of tune.

8. SALAD IN PARIS

Mrs. Jacobs told me a story about Louis Armstrong's honeymoon in Paris with Lucille. When Louis and Lucille arrived at their luxurious hotel, they dressed up in their respective tux and ball gown. Instead of going to a fancy opera, they ordered room service. The waiter brought the appetizer with a great deal of pomp and ceremony. When the waiter returned to clear the plates, Louis exclaimed that he loved the first dish and said to the waiter, "It's solid!" The waiter rushed out of the room and returned with another plate and displayed the same pomp and ceremony as before. Then he produced the same appetizer. Louis finished the dish and exclaimed again, "That was solid!" When the waiter rushed to bring back a third serving of the same green SALAD, Lucille intervened as a translator.

9. ALWAYS BE THE MIDDLE MAN

Mrs. Jacobs warned me about the perils of working in the music industry. She explained that it is imperative to be the middle man in a negotiation when you are trying to bring two independent parties together to produce an event. She said that the moment you take a step away from the discussion, people will cut you out of the equation.

10. IF YOU LEAVE NEW YORK, YOU'RE GOING NOWHERE

Two months ago I asked Mrs. Jacobs (at age 93!) if she ever wanted to live anywhere else besides New York City. She looked at me and exclaimed, "Are you nuts?! If you leave New York, you're going nowhere!"

Mrs. Jacobs taught me how to infuse every moment of every day with a love for the unexpected: improvisation. She showed me that improvisation is more than just a form of musical expression; rather, improvisation is a mindset to help us adapt to the good and the bad times in life. I believe that she stayed forever young through her incredible ability to have fun at every moment.

I only saw Mrs. Jacobs shed a tear one time. I was spending an afternoon with her chatting about the beauty of music and the legacy of Louis Armstrong. I played a song entitled, "Remembering" by Avishai Cohen. She closed her eyes and a tear rolled down her cheek. Now it's our turn.

Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services T: 845-986-1677 E-Mail: jim@jazzpromoservices.com
http://www.jazzpromoservices.com/

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