PANAMA: Annual Panama Jazz Festival Receives Official Decree From the Republic of Panama and Will Receive Annual Funding Starting in 2018

 

Annual Panama Jazz Festival Receives  

 Official Decree From the Republic of Panama 

and Will Receive Annual Funding Starting in 2018

Festival Dates: January 10 - 14, 2017 

On September 5, 2016, in recognition of the important contributions by the Panama Jazz Festival, the Republic of Panama established Law 312, guaranteeing the event's annual funding beginning in 2018. It stipulates that "the government of Panama recognizes the Panama Jazz Festival is an event that creates a space for cultural exchange, that provides education and social awareness, where people of all ages, cultural and social backgrounds meet to share interdisciplinary ideas about music of the highest academic quality."

 

Uniting internationally acclaimed jazz artists and renowned educators with fans from around the globe, the 14th Annual Panama Jazz Festival will be held January 10-14, 2017 at The City of Knowledge in Panama City. The festival honors Panamanian vocalist Violeta Green, a versatile singer who mixed calipso and jazz for decades.

 

An All-Star Gala Night will feature collaboration between Cultural Ambassador of Panama, Danilo Pérez, and special guest Esperanza Spalding. Also featured will be the premier of new music by the Children of The Light Trio, featuring bassist John Patitucci, and drummer Brian Blade performing with the Global Jazz Big Band, directed by esteemed conductor and arranger Bill Dobbins. 

 

Other headliners include Dianne Reeves and Romero Lubambo Duo, Terri Lyne Carrington with the Berklee Global Jazz Ambassadors, John Patitucci's Electric Guitar Quartet featuring Adams Rogers and Steve Cardenas. Other featured bands include Rony Eytan Quartet from Israel, Retro Jazz from the Dominican Republic, Lefteris Kordis from Greece, and a list of over 40 national musicians.

 

Furthermore, the festival will host the V Latin American Music Therapy Symposium, bringing music therapists from the Chile, Argentina, Panama, Colombia (among other Latin American countries) and the United States together to present on the therapeutic effects of music.

 

Since its inception in 2003, the Panama Jazz Festival has attracted over 240,000 jazz fans from around the globe and has announced over 4 million dollars in scholarships to international programs. Last year, the festival welcomed 5,000 students from around the world who participated in the educational events.

 

Participating schools include Boston-based institutions, Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory, which will be holding auditions for admission and scholarships. The Thelonious Monk Institute and New York Jazz Academy are also participating. The innovative Berklee Global Jazz Institute will hold master classes, perform social work with Panamanian youth, playing in various settings throughout the festival, and will hold auditions for the Master of Music in Contemporary Performance - Global Jazz Concentration.

 

 

The festival is produced by Panama Jazz Productions to benefit the Danilo Pérez Foundation. The festival is organized thanks to the support of Panama's National Authority of Tourism, the National Institute of Culture, The City of Panama, City of Knowledge, BAC, Copa Airlines, Alamo Rent A Car, Cable & Wireless, Heineken, The Embassy of Israel, among many others.

 

 

For more information on the Panama Jazz Festival, visit: panamajazzfestival.com

Tickets for the Panama Jazz Festival are available online at http://ticketplus.com.pa

For more information on Danilo Pérez, visit: daniloperez.com

 

 

For media information, please contact:

DL Media  ·  610-667-0501

Greg Angiolillo ·  greg@dlmediamusic.com 

Don Lucoff  ·  don@dlmediamusic.com

 

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PANAMA: IV Central American Percussion Festival

Panama , Aug 16 ( PL ) Lectures , music therapy, concerts and a wide selection of international and local artists will join the IV Central American Percussion Festival ( Fepece ) to be held here from 20 to 22 August.
This meeting , which will be divided between the Ciudad del Saber and Casco Antiguo , intends to bring people closer to  music and establish the country as a cultural capital , announced Panamanian pianist Danilo Perez, the major event sponsor .

PANAMA: Rubén Blades-Son De Panamá (feat. Roberto Delgado & Orquesta) (2015)

Musicians:Roberto Delgado: bass and voice; Luis Enrique Becerra: keyboards; Juan Carlos “Wichy” López: trumpet; Francisco Delvecchio: trombons; Carlos Pérez Bidó: timbales; Juan Berna: piano; Marcos Barraza: congas; Raúl “Toto” Rivera: bongó, campana, güiro and maracas; Ademir Berrocal: drums; Carlos Ubarte: sax baritone.


Guests: Eduardo Pineda: piano; José Ramón Guerra: congas; Mayito Travieso: tres; Medoro Madera: vocal
www.rubenblades.com

11th Annual Panama Jazz Festival Led by Artistic Director Danilo Pérez Announces 2014 Lineup

 

 11th Annual Panama Jazz Festival

Led by Artistic Director Danilo Pérez

Announces 2014 Lineup

Festival Dates: January 13-18, 2014

Festival Honors 500th Anniversary of the 

Rediscovery of the Pacific Ocean and 

100th Anniversary of the Panama Canal

Danilo Pérez and the Panama Jazz Festival featured in The Boston Globe

Uniting internationally acclaimed jazz artists, renowned educators and jazz fans from around the globe, the 11th Annual Panama Jazz Festival will be held January 13-18, 2014 at The City of Knowledge in Panama City. The festival honors the 500th Anniversary of the re-discovery of the Pacific Ocean, as well as the 100th Anniversary of the Panama Canal.

Among the headliners for this year's festival is founder and Artistic Director Danilo Pérez and his recently assembled Panama 500 band, featuring violinist Alex Hargreaves, bassist John Patitucci, drummer Adam Cruz and percussionist Roman Diaz. The group will perform music from the pianist's forthcoming album, Panama 500 (February 4, Mack Avenue Records).

"Balboa's re-discovery of the Pacific Ocean and the construction of the Panama Canal have had a tremendous importance in the world because they created and connected the new great sea route between America, Europe and Asia," explains Pérez. "Panama has become a path of adventure that unites the world and it makes great sense to celebrate it with Jazz. The history of Panama is connected with globalization like no other country and this is why we want to celebrate Panama's unique contributions to the world through jazz music." 

Additional headliners include vocalist Lizz Wright, the Kenny Garrett Quintet, jazz fusion collective HBC Trio (guitarist Scott Henderson, bassist Jeff Berlin and drummer Dennis Chambers), Peruvian drummer Jorge Pérez with special guest saxophonist George Garzone, vocalist Nedelka Prescod, guitarist Shea Welsh, vocalist Michelle Coltrane (daughter of John Coltrane), and pianist Kevin Harris.

Larger ensemble performances include Puerto Rican percussionist Eguie Castrillo with the Panama Jazz Festival Latin Band and special guest vocalist Wichy Camacho, along with the John Patitucci Latin Jazz Project in collaboration with the Berklee Global Jazz Institute. Four national bands will be featured at this year's festival: Osvaldo Ayala Transismico Project, Luci and The Soul Brokers, Señor Loop and The Danilo Pérez Foundation Band.

Furthermore, the festival will host The 2nd Latin American Music Therapy Symposium, bringing music therapists from the Chile, Argentina, Panama, Venezuela, Costa Rica (among other Latin American countries) and the United States together to present on the therapeutic effects of music.

Since its inception in 2003, the Panama Jazz Festival has attracted over 200,000 jazz fans worldwide and has announced over three million dollars in international scholarships. Last year, the festival welcomed 1,700 students from around the world who participated in the educational events. This year, the festival continues its commitment to education by hosting the Golandsky Institute, a not-for-profit organization based in New York. They will offer master classes for jazz and classical pianists as well as other instrumentalists, emphasizing the application of the Taubman approach to build technical ease and to explore musical interpretation. This approach has proven to be highly effective in the resolution of technical and artistic limitations, as well as in curing and preventing repetitive stress injuries in musicians.

Other participating educational institutions include Boston-based schools, Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory, which will both be holding auditions for admission and scholarships. The Berklee Global Jazz Institute will hold master classes, perform social work with Panamanian youth and perform in various settings throughout the festival. The school will also start a program where students will earn one college performance credit to Berklee. In addition to these various universities, Crossroads High School (Los Angeles) will be participating in this year's events.

"In the past 10 years, the festival has provided scholarships for admissions to various universities around the world. These scholarships have often gone to youth from poverty-stricken neighborhoods."

Pérez concludes, "with the diversity and quality of artists that we bring to Panama, our first commitment has always been to showcase the best of what jazz can offer."

About Danilo Pérez

Pianist, composer, educator and social activist, Danilo Pérez is among the most influential and dynamic musicians of our time.

Born in Panama in 1965, Pérez started his musical studies when he was three years old with his father, a bandleader and singer. By age 10, he was studying the European classical piano repertoire at the National Conservatory in Panama. After receiving his bachelor's degree in electronics in Panama, he studied at the prestigious Berklee College of Music. From 1985-88, while still a student, he performed with Jon Hendricks, Terence Blanchard, Claudio Roditi and Paquito D'Rivera. Quickly established as a young master, he soon toured and/or recorded with artists such as Dizzy Gillespie (with the trumpeter's United Nations Orchestra, 1989-1992), Wayne Shorter, Steve Lacy, Jack DeJohnette, Charlie Haden, Michael Brecker, Joe Lovano, Tito Puente, Wynton Marsalis, John Patitucci, Tom Harrell, Gary Burton, and Roy Haynes.

In 1993, Pérez turned his focus to his own ensembles and recording projects, releasing eight albums as a leader, earning Grammy® and Latin Grammy® nominations for Central Avenue (1989), Motherland (2000) and Across The Crystal Sea (2008). Additionally, Pérez released Providencia, his debut for Mack Avenue Records, in August of 2010. The album was also nominated for a 2011 Grammy® Award in the category of "Best Instrumental Jazz Album."

Pérez, who served as Cultural Ambassador to the Republic of Panama and Goodwill Ambassador to UNICEF, has received a variety of awards for his musical achievements, activism and social work efforts. He currently serves as UNESCO Artist for Peace, Founder and Artistic Director of the Panama Jazz Festival, and Artistic Director of the Berklee Global Jazz Institute in Boston's Berklee College of Music. His latest album, Panama 500 (Mack Avenue Records) is scheduled for release on February 4, 2014.

Herbie Hancock discusses the Panama Jazz Festival

The 2014 Panama Jazz Festival is sponsored by: 

Master Card

Autoridad del Turismo de Panama (Turism Authority of Panama)   

Instituto Nacional de Cultura (National Institute of Culture)

Ciudad del Saber (City of Knowledge)

As well as: Alcaldia de Panama, Telefonica Mas Movil, Copa Airlines, 

Alamo Rent A Car, La Nota, Revista Escapes, Heineken, Revista Lobby, 

The Visitor, La Prensa Mi Diario, SerTV, GECU

  

For more information on the Panama Jazz Festival, visit:   

panamajazzfestival.com 

daniloperez.com

Tickets for the Panama Jazz Festival are available online at tuboleto.com 

For media information, please contact:

DL Media ·  610-667-050

Amy Miller ·  amy@dlmediamusic.com

Don Lucoff ·  don@dlmediamusic.com  

  

Panama Jazz Festival 2013

The Artist Roster Includes: Herbie Hancock Wayne Shorter Quartet Ruben Blades Susana Baca Bill Frisell John Patitucci Brian Blade Danilo Perez   The Venues: ATLAPA combines the cultural and artistic inheritance of a town with the most advanced technology to give as resulting, an impressive convention, congresses and fairs center, with excellent facilities and services for events of world category. In this majestic complex of 8 hectares with a total capacity of more than 10,000 people with a beautiful theater / auditorium with a capacity of 2806 people and a hall of 34,445 square feet, free of columns. City of Knowledge The City of Knowledge is the cornerstone for development based on innovation, entrepreneurial culture and sustainability. In 1994, Panamanian industrialist Fernando Eleta Almarán proposed the creation of a Socratic Square, a center for knowledge exchange, in the so-called Reverted Areas, and turning what was then the Panama Canal College into the University of the Americas. El Panama Hotel Hotel El Panama with a dominant location in Panama City, is the perfect site to achieve a successful business, along with enjoying your leisure time.

Contact:    Panama Jazz Productions  Edificio 224, Oficina P1-A  Ciudad Del Saber  Clayton, Ancon,  Ciudad de Panama, Republica de Panama.  Teléfono: (507)317-1466      Patricia Zárate  Executive Director  patricia@panamajazzfestival.com  Boston  Po Box #7  Wollaston MA 02170  Tel: 617-934-4949     Gail Boyd International  Coordinator  gail@panamajazzfestival.com  New York, NY  Tel: 212-777-5714     Yariela Gonzalez National Coordinator  yarielag@panamajazzfestival.com     Elizabeth Stoiaken  Auditions Coordinator    Paul Demanche  Clinics Coordinator      Yuri Namkung  Classical Music Program Coordinator  yuri@panamajazzfestival.com              For More Information:  Panama Jazz Festival   Gail Boyd Artist Management

http://www.davestryker.com

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

Danilo Pérez to be named UNESCO Artist for Peace

 

The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, will appoint the renowned Panamian pianist and jazz composer Danilo Pérez as UNESCO Artist for Peace on 20 November (12.00 am. Hall Ségur – Ground floor)

Danilo Pérez will be named “in recognition of his efforts to provide outreach music programmes to children living in extreme poverty in Panama, especially in his capacity as President of the Danilo Pérez Foundation, and his dedication to the ideals and aims of the Organization”.

Born in Panama in 1965, Danilo Pérez’ has influenced contemporary music through his distinctive Pan-American jazz. He currently directs the Berklee Global Jazz Institute at Berklee College of Music (Boston, Massachusetts), and is the President of the Danilo Pérez Foundation which provides outreach music programmes to children living in extreme poverty in Panama. Danilo Pérez is also the Artistic Director for the Panama Jazz Festival.

Danilo Pérez has received numerous awards for his social work in Panama, including the Orden Vasco Núñez de Balboa and the Key to the City of Panama. 

UNESCO Artists for Peace are internationally-renowned personalities who use their influence, charisma and prestige to help promote UNESCO’s message and programmes. UNESCO works with them in order to heighten public awareness regarding key development issues and to inform the public what our Organization's action is in these fields. 

                                                           ****

The ceremony will be followed by a short performance and a reception. Journalists wishing to cover the ceremony should seek accreditation with UNESCO’s Press Service: 

UNESCO

Roni Ben-Hur, Santi Debriano-Our Thing (Motema 2012)

The idea and inspiration for Our Thing was born in the summer of 2011 within the walls of the beautiful Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-la-Sardaigne, a 12^th century church atop the tiny village of Saint Cezaire, France, where guitarist/composer Roni Ben-Hur and bassist/composer Santi Debriano co-lead a much-lauded annual jazz camp.  This duo's eagerly awaited annual concert has become the centerpiece event of Festi-Jazz, the festival held in this quaint French village each summer, founded, curated and conducted by Ben-Hur and Debriano with Fred Rouquier and the Festi Jazz Committee.  Our Thing producer Timothy L. Porter was amongst the sold-out crowd of locals and internationals this particular evening (with a portion of the overflowing audience seated under the stars on the steps of the chapel and in the parking area).  He sets the scene in the album's liner notes, "as the concert got underway, and indeed throughout the mesmerizing performance, the audience was enthralled, and their excitement as well as our own fueled the resolve of Ted Sanella, my co-producer, and me to share the experience more broadly by arranging for the recording and release of this debut album documenting the long time collaboration of Roni Ben-Hur and Santi Debriano."
Motema
http://www.ronibenhur.com

PANAMA: Jazz breaks down barriers in Panama

Panama has the fastest growing economy in Latin America, but it is also split by class conflicts between rich and poor. Jazz pianist Danilo Perez tries to heal some of those conflicts through free music education.
Nineteen-year-old Isai Henriquez sits down quietly to play an improvised jazz composition at a grand piano. Henriquez, who comes from a working class family, could never afford to buy such a magnificent instrument. His parents couldn't even afford high-quality music lessons.
So Henriquez made his way to the Danilo Perez Foundation, located in the poor Santa Fe neighborhood of Panama City. Created by jazz pianist Danilo Perez in 2005, the Foundation encourages free music education.
"Everything at the Foundation is free for all students," Henriquez told Deutsche Welle. "Classes like this would be very expensive with teachers like Danilo Perez and others."
Henriquez and other students volunteer by answering phones and cleaning floors at the Foundation in lieu of paying fees. But it's still hard for students from poor backgrounds.
"It takes me more or less two hours each way by bus to get to the Foundation. But it doesn't seem far because I do it every day," he said.
Cultural education
The Foundation also sponsors the annual Panama Jazz Festival. Danilo Perez is particularly proud of students like Henriquez who come from the working class and may end up performing professionally at the festival.

For Danilo Perez music is a healer in more sense than one
"Jazz is becoming relevant to the new generation in Panama," Perez told Deutsche Welle in an exclusive interview. "The festival has a positive impact. Someone from (the poor barrio of) El Chorrillo doesn't normally interact with someone from the Union Club. We have broken all those barriers. I can show you parents who have no jobs and some who own a big factory. And they are both here working as volunteers."
Perez strongly believes that music can help many people, even those who don't become professional musicians
"Music makes visible things that are invisible," he said. "For example, if you have insecurities, music brings it out. Through music, you can work out. I like the therapy of music."
Healing process
That music therapy can also apply to the sometimes conflicted relationship between the US and Panama. The US has a long history of military domination here, including the 1989 invasion that overthrew former military governor General Manuel Noriega. Beginning in 1904, the US also imposed racial segregation on the country. This lasted into the 1960s and was based on the Jim Crow laws, which mandated segregation in public places in southern US states from 1876 until 1965.
Panamanian saxophonist Carlos Garnett grew up in separate housing and attended segregated schools. His father, a dark skinned Panamanian, worked for the Canal Zone as a supervisor. His father "did the same job as the white Americans but received lower pay," Garnett said.
But, he continued, the Americans also brought jobs, clean water and some positive culture to Panama. For example, Garnett learned jazz from the American soldiers based here.
"I grew up a very naïve man," said Garnett. "I was in an idyllic state. Even though prejudice surrounded me it never affected my thoughts or what I wanted to do. In retrospect, the US forces in Panama contributed a lot to the economics of the country."

Panamanians have combined a cross-section of musical influences
Over time, Panamanians combined the influences of Africa, Spain, the US and the country's indigenous people into a unique musical culture.
Ricuarte Villarreal teaches and performs folkloric music. He notes that during Spanish colonial rule, slaves came mostly from the Congo. They brought unique drum rhythms.
"Here we see the African influences in the folkloric music," he said.
Getting in the swing
In recent years, Panamanians have combined those folkloric traditions with jazz. Danilo Perez explains that he uses a traditional beat in his latest album, Providencia.
"Galactica Panama is based on a rhythm called tambor norte," he said. "It's not the traditional Cuban clave rhythm that underlies much of Latin jazz. We have a whole different rhythm because of the rolling motion of the drums."
Perez says he teaches his students that good music is more than just good technique. Each song must tell a story, he says.

"I have chosen to tell a story of hope and optimism. I would like the music to be a healing factor for those historical moments we lived through, using the past as a flashlight for the future."
Author: Reese Erlich, Panama City
Editor: Rob Turner/ Rob Mudge
© 2012 Deutsche Welle

USA, Panama: Jazz Festivals News 2012

Purdue Jazz Festival, Jan. 20 and 21 -- From high school bands to living legends, the Purdue Jazz Festival has it all. Sandwiching the high school band competitions and clinics are three huge concerts: Danilo Perez & Friends will pay tribute to Dizzy Gillespie at 8 p.m. Jan. 20 at Loeb Playhouse. The festival will conclude with concerts from vibes master Dick Sisto (noon) and trumpeter Carl Saunders and saxophonist Denis DiBlasio (5:30 p.m.) at Loeb. See www.purdue.edu/bands/jazzfest.






Panama Prepares Jazz Festival, Omara and Chucho to Perform
Panama, Jan 2 (Prensa Latina) The ninth edition of the Panama Jazz Festival will take place from 16 until 21 January and among the main guests are the Cubans Chucho Valdes and Omara Portuondo, who will perform as a duet, organizers said.


9th Panama Jazz Festival

“From the heart of America to the world..”  comes the 9th edition of the Panama Jazz Festival 2012, to be celebrated from 16 to the 21 of January.

For 6 consecutive days the Panama Jazz festival embellishes our country, offering an event of the highest musical quality of our times, entertaining us with the musical notes of each instrument that accompanies the artist. This is the biggest event in our country that gathers more than 25,000 people in 6 days, a number that we reach in the 2011 edition,  as well as our dear sponsors that make this possible.

Art, Education and Culture,  identifies this festival in which we’ll have, like in past editions, local and international artists of renown musical trajectory  in there genre, students and professors form the most prestigious institutions in music as: Berklee College of music, New England Conservatory, Conservatorio de Musica de Puerto Rico and the Golandsky Piano Institute.

For the 9th edition we’ll dedicate the festival to the Panamanian tenor player Carlos Gartnett, with his ensemble form New York. This year we celebrate with great joy 9 years of Jazz, education and culture in an interdisciplinary, multicultural and touristic environment.

We cordially invite everyone to participate in the clinics that we’ll have in 2012 in the City of Knowledge. Join us to enjoy the music of John Scofield and his trio, from Cuba Omara Portuondo y Chucho Valdes, the Puerto Rican Charlie Sepulveda, from Costa Rica Luis Bonilla & NEC. This year as a sponsor we have ACER that proudly presents Tito Puente Jr with the Panama Jazz Festival Ensemble under the direction of The Riquena and our guest of honor Carlos Garnett and his ensemble and the singer Teri Roiger in a duet with John Menegon.

Also share with us the nights of the Panama Jazz festival Club at the Salon Portobelo of the Hotel El Panama , headquarters of the event, starting Monday January 16 to Friday the 20 from 11 pm.

PANAMA: Ninth Annual Panama Jazz Festival Led By Artistic Director Danilo Pérez Announces 2012 Lineup

Festival Dates: January 16 - 21, 2012

Headlining Artists Include:

Omara Portuondo & Chucho Valdes, John Scofield, Tito Puente, Jr., 

Luis Bonilla, Charlie Sepulveda, Jed Levy, Teri Roiger & John Menegon

Festival Dedicated To Saxophonist Carlos Garnett 

One of Panama's most significant cultural events, the Ninth Annual Panama Jazz Festivalwill be held on January 16-21, 2012. Already a reference in the global jazz calendar and attracting more than an estimated 100,000 people since its inception, this year's festival is dedicated to tenor saxophonist Carlos Garnett, one of the most prolific Panamanian-Americans in jazz, known for working with artists such as Miles Davis, Charles Mingus and Art Blakey, among others.

 Among this year's headliners are a Cuban duo featuring world renowned vocalist Omara Portuondo, whose career has spanned over half a century (known for her work with Buena Vista Social Club™, among others), with multi-GRAMMY® Award winning pianist Chucho Valdes; guitarist John Scofield, a stylistic chameleon consistently expressing himself in the vernacular of bebop, blues, jazz-funk, organ jazz, acoustic chamber jazz and orchestral idioms; drummer and bandleader Tito Puente, Jr., presented by ACER - son of legendary mambo musician Tito Puente with the Panama Jazz Festival Ensemble, under the direction of La Riqueña; Costa Rican trombonist Luis Bonilla with the New England Conservatory Jazz Ensemble; Puerto Rican, latin jazz trumpeter Charlie Sepulveda; Carlos Garnett's ensemble; saxophonist Jed Levy and his quartet, presented with the support of the U.S. Department of State and Jazz at Lincoln Center; and a duo featuring vocalist Teri Roiger and bassist John Menegon.

For more information on the Panama Jazz Festival, visit:   panamajazzfestival.com danilopérez.com  Tickets for the Panama Jazz Festival are available online at tuboleto.com. 

For media information, please contact:DL Media · 610-667-0501 Jordy Freed · jordy@dlmediamusic.com