Detroit Jazz Festival Announces
Pat Metheny as 2015 Artist-in-Residence
Metheny to Perform in Various Settings with
Antonio Sanchez, Scott Colley, Kenny Garrett,
Ron Carter, Gary Burton, and more
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Photo Credit: Jimmy Katz
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Festival to Run September 4 - 7, 2015
The Detroit Jazz Festival, the world's largest free jazz festival, announced today that guitarist/composer Pat Metheny will be its 2015 Artist-in-Residence.
Metheny is the latest in a long line of jazz greats to take the mantle
of the prestigious Detroit Jazz Festival Artist-In-Residence Program,
which will include different musical incarnations at this year's
festival, as well as education and mentorship activities throughout the
year. The 2015 Artist-In-Residence Program is sponsored by Absopure Water Company. Metheny has 20 Grammy® Awards to his name and has sold more than 20 million records, including three gold albums.
"It's very humbling to not
only be asked to perform at the Detroit Jazz Festival, but to also serve
as its Artist-in-Residence," said Metheny. "I'm honored and look
forward to my visits to Detroit, a place with such rich music history.
Getting involved with the Festival's educational programs and performing
in the heart of downtown will be a memorable experience."
Each year the festival's
Artist-in-Residence assists the Detroit Jazz Festival in its efforts to
foster an appreciation of jazz and nurture young talent, specifically in
relation to Detroit. This year, Absopure is enhancing its festival
support by sponsoring the program and helping bring such a well-known
jazz musician to the city. As the festival's ambassador, Metheny's
duties include headlining the second performance of opening night,
playing collaborative sets with special guests throughout the weekend -
including homecoming jam sessions with native Detroiters - and
participating in Festival education initiatives leading up to Labor Day
Weekend performances including:
- The Pat Metheny Trio with Antonio Sanchez and Scott Colley and special guest Detroit native, Kenny Garrett
- An intimate acoustic duo with Detroit native, Ron Carter
- A much-anticipated reunion with Gary Burton in a special quartet put together just for this festival with Scott Colley and Antonio Sanchez
- An ambitious large ensemble, consisting of the Detroit Jazz Festival Orchestra and the North American premier of Metheny's latest 30 minute suite - a tribute to German bassist Eberhard Weber
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Photo Credit: Jimmy Katz
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"Metheny is an incredible
artist. He has been a heavyweight in the jazz world for decades and
revolutionized what it means to play 'jazz guitar,'" said Chris Collins,
artistic director of the Detroit Jazz Festival. "His experimentation
with sound and style--and jazz itself--truly taps into why this medium
can be so moving and inspiring. Our goal with the Artist-in-Residence
program is to connect people, to draw them in to our city and take them
on unique musical journeys, and Pat will definitely help us do that. We
have some special performances on tap that highlight his incredible
musicianship and composing ability."
"We are thrilled to assist
the festival in bringing an iconic musician to the forefront of the
Detroit Jazz Festival scene. Metheny's body of work speaks for itself,"
said William Patrick, Absopure. "With his nearly
universal acclaim and unwavering commitment to artistry, he'll make a
great ambassador for the festival. To bring him to Detroit, a place very
much engrained in the roots of jazz, is special."
Metheny was born in Kansas
City and by the age of 15 was working regularly with the best jazz
musicians in the city, quickly climbing the ranks. In 1974, he burst
onto the international jazz scene in part due to his three-year stint
with Gary Burton. Since then, he's put out numerous albums and performed
with greats like Steve Reich, Ornette Coleman, Herbie Hancock and David
Bowie. Metheny, who has created compositions for solo guitar, small
ensembles, electric and acoustic instruments, ballet pieces and more, is
known for continuously redefining his sound by embracing instrument
innovations and the many different sounds a guitar can offer.
The 36th annual Detroit Jazz Festival will take place September 4 - 7, 2015.
The festival spans several city blocks in downtown Detroit - from Hart
Plaza to Campus Martius - with four stages and more than 100
performances.
About the Detroit Jazz Festival
The Detroit Jazz Festival is
an independent, non-profit that presents jazz and educational workshops
throughout the year. Recently voted number two in North America in a
JazzTimes reader's poll, the Detroit Jazz Festival is the largest free
jazz festival in the world and a major tourist attraction for the City
of Detroit, with 23 percent of its audience coming from out of state.
The Festival receives
support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Erb Family
Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Kresge
Foundation. Major corporate partners include JPMorgan Chase & Co.,
Opportunity Detroit, Carhartt and Mack Avenue Records. Additional
partners include Absopure Water Company, Comcast, Detroit Marriott,
Fathead, Great Lakes Beverage, McDonalds, MGM Grand Detroit, MotorCity
Casino Hotel, Panasonic and Quicken Loans. Media partners include DownBeat, JazzTimes,
Fox 2 Detroit and WJR AM. The festival's Greening Program is supported
by a generous grant from the DTE Energy Foundation. For more
information, visit www.detroitjazzfest.com.
About Absopure Water Company
Absopure Water Company is
one of the top 10 water companies in the United States. Founded in
Detroit in 1908, Absopure makes and distributes bottled water and water
cooler products (including natural spring, steam-distilled, purified,
Cap10 sparkling mineral and natural fluoride infant water). Absopure
also offers coffee as part of its home and office refreshment delivery
services in the Midwest, and is a leader in recycling plastic bottles.
For more information visit www.absopure.com.
For media information, please contact:
DL Media · 610-667-0501
Maureen McFadden · maureen@dlmediamusic.com
Matthew Jurasek · matthew@dlmediamusic.com
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