Maria Schneider's Data Lords is Pulitzer Finalist

BOUNDARY-DEFYING COMPOSER AND ORCHESTRA LEADER 

MARIA SCHNEIDER’s DATA LORDS IS A 2021 PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST IN MUSIC

Trailblazing composer and orchestra leader Maria Schneider is a 2021 Pulitzer Prize Finalist in Music for her revelatory double album Data Lords featuring the world-class Maria Schneider Orchestra. Inspired by conflicting relationships between the digital and natural worlds, the album is described in the Pulitzer press release as “an enveloping musical landscape of light and shadow, rendered by the many personalities of a large jazz ensemble, reflecting the promise of a digital paradise contrasted by a concentration of power and the loss of privacy.”  

 

The 2021 Pulitzer Prize in Music was awarded to “Stride,” by Tania León; Place,” by Ted Hearne was also a finalist.   

 

Released in July of 2020 via ArtistShare, Data Lords has earned broad critical acclaim including two Grammy Awards, Le Grand Prix de l’Académie du Jazz, the #1 spot in the 2020 NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll, as well as a place as one of the year’s best albums from Rolling Stone, Slate, Paste, Pop Matters, The Guardian, Chicago Tribune, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Boston Globe, Buffalo News, San Diego Union Leader, Denver Post, JazzTimes, Jazziz and many more.

© Briene Lermitte

“Now it's finally here, in the form of a magnificent double album, Data Lords. . . it parses into thematic halves, ‘The Digital World’ and, as an antidote, ‘The Natural World.’ On the whole and in the details, it amounts to the most daring work of Schneider's career, which sets the bar imposingly high. This is music of extravagant mastery, and it comes imbued with a spirit of risk."

– Nate Chinen, NPR

“Beyond the dualism in its format, Data Lords is a work of holistic creativity. The music of outrage and critique in the first album has all the emotion and conceptual integrity that the music of melancholy and reverence does in the second. I can’t conceive of anyone else creating this music, unless Delius has been writing with Bowie on the other side.”

– David Hajdu, The Nation 

“Data Lords…is her magnum opus, a riveting, remarkably intense double album, as profound as modern-day instrumental music gets.”

– Jon Bream, Minneapolis Star Tribune

“Data Lords is a major piece of work....The message, the rancour, the sense of injustice are deeply embedded in every moment of the first album. And yet Schneider’s craft and judgment are such that music in the eerie, dystopian world has the marvellous feeling for structure, pacing and often sheer beauty that listeners who know Schneider’s music will be expecting….The second disc Our Natural World is a complete contrast. It is epic, glorious.”

– Sebastian Scotney, TheArtsDesk.com

“Throughout, Schneider’s orchestral music reminds us of the virtuosity of her pen, the richness of her imagination and her extraordinary attention to instrumental detail.”

– Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

 

“Data Lords is a boldly conceptual immersion in a critical duality of modern life…”

– David Fricke, JazzTimes cover story

 

“Maria Schneider is the most brilliant big-band composer of our time, a master of stacked harmonies but also of propulsive rhythms, which she laces with stirring Americana or a Latin tinge… No one scores inner voices as rich as hers.”

– Fred Kaplan, Slate

“The prodigiously gifted composer, arranger, and bandleader Maria Schneider has a whole lot on her mind these days, and much of it has made its way into her impressive new double CD, Data Lords.… she exhibits a masterly control of bold and inventive tonal landscapes and subtler orchestral shadings.”

– Steve Futterman, The New Yorker

© Briene Lermitte

Maria Schneider’s music has been hailed by critics as evocative, majestic, magical, heart-stoppingly gorgeous, imaginative, revelatory, riveting, daring, and beyond categorization. Blurring the lines between genres, her varied commissioners stretch from Jazz at Lincoln Center, to The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, to the American Dance Festival, and include collaboration with David Bowie. 

With her first recording Evanescence (1994), Schneider began developing her personal way of writing for her 18-member collective made up of many of the finest musicians in jazz today, tailoring her compositions to the uniquely creative voices of the group. They have performed at festivals and concert halls worldwide, and she herself has received numerous commissions and guest-conducting invites, working with over 90 groups in more than 30 countries.

In addition to her Grammy Awards, Schneider’s many awards include the nation's highest honor in jazz, “NEA Jazz Master” (2019) (NEA Jazz Master Speech found here), election into the 2020 American Academy of Arts and Sciences, numerous Jazz Journalists Association awards, DownBeat and JazzTimes Critics and Readers Poll awards, an honorary doctorate from her alma mater, the University of Minnesota, ASCAP’s esteemed Concert Music Award (2014), and, most recently, Le Grand Prix de l’Académie du Jazz for Data Lords.

A strong voice for music advocacy, Schneider has testified before the US Congressional Subcommittee on Intellectual Property on digital rights, has given commentary on CNN, participated in roundtables for the United States Copyright Office, has been quoted in numerous publications for her views on Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, Google, digital rights, and music piracy, and has written various white papers and articles on the digital economy as related to music and beyond. Musicians have been the canary in the coal mine,” Schneider says. “We were the first to be used and traded for data.

Data Lords is available exclusively at Mariaschneider.com

Maria Schneider Wins Two Grammy Awards

RAILBLAZING COMPOSER AND ORCHESTRA LEADER 

MARIA SCHNEIDER  WINS TWO GRAMMY AWARDS

“Best Instrumental Composition” for “Sputnik” from Data Lords

“Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album” for Data Lords

“On the whole and in the details, it amounts to the most daring work of Schneider's career, which sets the bar imposingly high. This is music of extravagant mastery, and it comes imbued with a spirit of risk.” – Nate Chinen, NPR Music

Boundary-defying composer and orchestra leader Maria Schneider has won two Grammy Awards: Best Instrumental Composition for “Sputnik,” and Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album for her revelatory double album Data Lords. Inspired by conflicting relationships between the digital and natural worlds, Data Lords (July 2020, ArtistShare) features the world-class Maria Schneider Orchestra.

“I’m so grateful for both of these Grammys,” said Schneider. “This album has the indelible mark of every individual in the band — their unique sounds, phrasing, expression, and improvisations. I couldn’t be more grateful for these 18 musicians and for the fans that helped make this record possible. I know with these awards we are all especially thinking of our pianist Frank Kimbrough whom we lost this year.  

When they said on the Grammys that we’ve lost close to 1000 musicians in this last year, I was shocked. It’s a year of such tremendous loss for the music world and world at large.”

Schneider, who has now earned seven Grammy Awards to date, is among a small few to receive Grammys in multiple genres. In 2004, Concert in the Garden became historic as the first recording to win a Grammy with Internet-only sales. Even more significantly, it blazed the "crowd-funding" trail as ArtistShare’s first release, and was eventually inducted into the 2019 National Recording Registry. Schneider has continued to “fan-fund” her recordings and commissions ever since.

Data Lords has earned broad critical acclaim including the #1 spot in the 2020 NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll, as well as a place as one of the year’s best albums from Rolling Stone, Slate, Paste, Pop Matters, The Guardian, Chicago Tribune, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Boston Globe, Buffalo News, San Diego Union Leader, Denver Post, JazzTimes, Jazziz and many more.

“Now it's finally here, in the form of a magnificent double album, Data Lords. . . it parses into thematic halves, ‘The Digital World’ and, as an antidote, ‘The Natural World.’ On the whole and in the details, it amounts to the most daring work of Schneider's career, which sets the bar imposingly high. This is music of extravagant mastery, and it comes imbued with a spirit of risk." – Nate Chinen, NPR

“Beyond the dualism in its format, Data Lords is a work of holistic creativity. The music of outrage and critique in the first album has all the emotion and conceptual integrity that the music of melancholy and reverence does in the second. I can’t conceive of anyone else creating this music, unless Delius has been writing with Bowie on the other side.” – David Hajdu, The Nation 

“Data Lords…is her magnum opus, a riveting, remarkably intense double album, as profound as modern-day instrumental music gets.” – Jon Bream, Minneapolis Star Tribune

“Data Lords is a major piece of work....The message, the rancour, the sense of injustice are deeply embedded in every moment of the first album. And yet Schneider’s craft and judgment are such that music in the eerie, dystopian world has the marvellous feeling for structure, pacing and often sheer beauty that listeners who know Schneider’s music will be expecting….The second disc Our Natural World is a complete contrast. It is epic, glorious.” – Sebastian Scotney, TheArtsDesk.com

“Throughout, Schneider’s orchestral music reminds us of the virtuosity of her pen, the richness of her imagination and her extraordinary attention to instrumental detail.” – Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

“Data Lords is a boldly conceptual immersion in a critical duality of modern life…” – David Fricke, JazzTimes cover story

“Maria Schneider is the most brilliant big-band composer of our time, a master of stacked harmonies but also of propulsive rhythms, which she laces with stirring Americana or a Latin tinge… No one scores inner voices as rich as hers.” – Fred Kaplan, Slate

“The prodigiously gifted composer, arranger, and bandleader Maria Schneider has a whole lot on her mind these days, and much of it has made its way into her impressive new double CD, Data Lords.… she exhibits a masterly control of bold and inventive tonal landscapes and subtler orchestral shadings.” – Steve Futterman, The New Yorker

Maria Schneider’s music has been hailed by critics as evocative, majestic, magical, heart-stoppingly gorgeous, imaginative, revelatory, riveting, daring, and beyond categorization. Blurring the lines between genres, her varied commissioners stretch from Jazz at Lincoln Center, to The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, to the American Dance Festival, and include collaboration with David Bowie. 

With her first recording Evanescence (1994), Schneider began developing her personal way of writing for her 18-member collective made up of many of the finest musicians in jazz today, tailoring her compositions to the uniquely creative voices of the group. They have performed at festivals and concert halls worldwide, and she herself has received numerous commissions and guest-conducting invites, working with over 90 groups in more than 30 countries.

In addition to her Grammy Awards, Schneider’s many awards include the nation's highest honor in jazz, “NEA Jazz Master”, election into the 2020 American Academy of Arts and Sciences, numerous Jazz Journalists Association awards, DownBeat and JazzTimes Critics and Readers Poll awards, an honorary doctorate from her alma mater, the University of Minnesota, ASCAP’s esteemed Concert Music Award (2014), and, most recently, Le Grand Prix de l’Académie du Jazz for Data Lords.

A strong voice for music advocacy, Schneider has testified before the US Congressional Subcommittee on Intellectual Property on digital rights, has given commentary on CNN, participated in roundtables for the United States Copyright Office, has been quoted in numerous publications for her views on Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, Google, digital rights, and music piracy, and has written various white papers and articles on the digital economy as related to music and beyond. Musicians have been the canary in the coal mine,” Schneider says. “We were the first to be used and traded for data.

Data Lords is available exclusively at Mariaschneider.com

Maria Schneider Grammy Award History

 

• 2021 – Best Instrumental Composition – Sputnik 

 

• 2021 – Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album – Data Lords  

 

• 2015 – Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album – The Thompson Fields

 

• 2015 – Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals – Sue (Or In a Season of Crime) Collaboration with David Bowie.

 

• 2013 – Best Contemporary Classical Composition – Winter Morning Walks

The album also won awards in the categories of Best Classical Vocal Solo (Dawn Upshaw) and Best Engineered Album, Classical (David Frost, Brian Losch & Tim Martyn, engineers; Tim Martyn, mastering engineer).  

 

• 2007 – Best Instrumental Composition – Cerulean Skies from Sky Blue

 

• 2004 – Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album – Concert in the Garden

Schneider made history with her first Grammy for Concert In the Garden, the first album with Internet-only sales to receive a Grammy. The album was released through ArtistShare, the first Internet-crowd-funding label/site in existence.  And significantly, Concert In the Garden was also the first “crowd-funded” album to win a Grammy, before the term “crowd-funding” was even invented.  At that time, ArtistShare had labeled it “fan-funding.” Schneider has continued to “fan-fund” her recordings and commissions ever since.

Maria Schneider wins major French Award for 'Data Lords'

Revered composer and orchestra leader Maria Schneider wins

major French Award

 

Le Grand Prix de l’Académie du Jazz

 

Best Record of the Year for double album Data Lords

with the Maria Schneider Orchestra available via ArtistShare

Boundary-defying composer and orchestra leader Maria Schneider has won Le Grand Prix de l’Académie du Jazz for her revelatory double album Data Lords. Inspired by conflicting relationships between the digital and natural worlds, Data Lords (July 2020, ArtistShare) features the world-class Maria Schneider Orchestra.

“I am grateful to l’Académie du Jazz for this tremendous honor,” says Schneider. “To receive this award from this excellent organization in France, a country that is awake to the ravages of big tech companies on our lives and our rights, is of special significance to me. I am grateful to my incredible band who truly make the music what it is. I would like to dedicate this award to pianist Frank Kimbrough, who was such an important part of my band for so many years, and whom we lost suddenly this year.” 

Data Lords – which was made, funded and documented through ArtistShare, the world’s first crowd-funding internet platform – has earned two Grammy nominations and broad critical acclaim:

“Now it's finally here, in the form of a magnificent double album, Data Lords. . . it parses into thematic halves, ‘The Digital World’ and, as an antidote, ‘The Natural World.’ On the whole and in the details, it amounts to the most daring work of Schneider's career, which sets the bar imposingly high. This is music of extravagant mastery, and it comes imbued with a spirit of risk." – Nate Chinen, NPR

“Beyond the dualism in its format, Data Lords is a work of holistic creativity. The music of outrage and critique in the first album has all the emotion and conceptual integrity that the music of melancholy and reverence does in the second. I can’t conceive of anyone else creating this music, unless Delius has been writing with Bowie on the other side.” – David Hajdu, The Nation

“Data Lords is a major piece of work…. The message, the rancour, the sense of injustice are deeply embedded in every moment of the first album. And yet Schneider’s craft and judgment are such that music in the eerie, dystopian world has the marvellous feeling for structure, pacing and often sheer beauty that listeners who know Schneider’s music will be expecting…. The second disc Our Natural World is a complete contrast. It is epic, glorious.” – Sebastian Scotney, TheArtsDesk.com

“Data Lords is a boldly conceptual immersion in a critical duality of modern life…” – David Fricke, JazzTimes cover story

“The prodigiously gifted composer, arranger, and bandleader Maria Schneider has a whole lot on her mind these days, and much of it has made its way into her impressive new double CD, Data Lords.… she exhibits a masterly control of bold and inventive tonal landscapes and subtler orchestral shadings.” – Steve Futterman, The New Yorker

4-stars. “With Data Lords – a steeliness and even bleakness now shares a stage with her familiar pastoral side. . . . The inner tensions behind this compelling session promise a revealing new phase in Schneider's remarkable work.” – John Fordham, The Guardian

Maria Schneider’s music has been hailed by critics as evocative, majestic, magical, heart-stoppingly gorgeous, imaginative, revelatory, riveting, daring, and beyond categorization. Blurring the lines between genres, her varied commissioners stretch from Jazz at Lincoln Center, to The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, to the American Dance Festival, and include collaboration with David Bowie. She is among a small few to receive Grammys in multiple genres, having received the award in jazz and classical, as well as for her work with David Bowie.

With her first recording Evanescence (1994), Schneider began developing her personal way of writing for her 18-member collective made up of many of the finest musicians in jazz today, tailoring her compositions to the uniquely creative voices of the group. They have performed at festivals and concert halls worldwide, and she herself has received numerous commissions and guest-conducting invites, working with over 90 groups in over 30 countries.

Unique funding of projects has become a hallmark for Schneider through the trend-setting company, ArtistShare. And, in 2004, Concert in the Garden became historic as the first recording to win a GRAMMY with Internet-only sales. Even more significantly, it blazed the "crowd-funding" trail as ArtistShare’s first release, and was eventually inducted into the 2019 National Recording Registry.

Schneider’s many honors also include: 14 Grammy nominations, 5 Grammy Awards, numerous Jazz Journalists Association awards, DownBeat and JazzTimes Critics and Readers Poll awards, an honorary doctorate from her alma mater, the University of Minnesota, ASCAP’s esteemed Concert Music Award (2014), the nation's highest honor in jazz, “NEA Jazz Master” (2019) (NEA Jazz Master Speech found here), and election into the 2020 American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

A strong voice for music advocacy, Schneider has testified before the US Congressional Subcommittee on Intellectual Property on digital rights, has given commentary on CNN, participated in roundtables for the United States Copyright Office, has been quoted in numerous publications for her views on Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, Google, digital rights, and music piracy, and has written various white papers and articles on the digital economy as related to music and beyond.  “Musicians have been the canary in the coal mine,” Schneider says. “We were the first to be used and traded for data.” 

Data Lords is available exclusively at Mariaschneider.com.

l’Académie du Jazz (The French Jazz Academy) is the oldest and most respected music awards institution in France. Its successive presidents are well known in the world of arts and music (Jean Cocteau, André Hodeir, Maurice Cullaz, Stéphane Grappelli, Martial Solal, Claude Carrière, and current president François Lacharme). A non-profit association, the Academy is fiercely independent and collects votes from some 60 journalists, photographers, writers and radio/TV producers. Due to Covid, this year’s ceremony turned into a broadcast on Wednesday, March 10 via French radio FIP’s "Club Jazz à FIP” program. Only a few recipients attended and performed due to pandemic restrictions, but the rich history of the Académie du Jazz was discussed and the winners announced. The podcast of the program is available on fip.fr.  Previous recipients of the Grand Prix de l’Académie du Jazz include Brad Mehldau, Joe Lovano, Eddie Daniels & Roger Kellaway, Ambrose Akinmusire, and Christian McBride, among many others.

Maria Schneider Website

March 2-10: NEC presents 'Grow Your Art' with Maria Schneider

Multi-Grammy Award-winning composer and bandleader Maria Schneider

works with NEC students in Grow Your Art, a collaborative music and business residency and performance

Tuesday, March 2 – Thursday, March 4; concert to air on Wednesday, March 10

New England Conservatory’s Jazz & Entrepreneurial Musicianship programs present Grow Your Art, a week-long music and business residency with groundbreaking multi-Grammy Award winning composer and bandleader Maria Schneider. The residency will include a pitch night, as well as masterclasses, workshops and panel discussions on the music business and entrepreneurship, culminating in a concert with the NEC Jazz Orchestra. Grow Your Art takes place Tuesday, March 2 - Thursday, March 4, with the pre-taped concert video broadcast on Wednesday, March 10. The events are free and open to the public virtually. For information, visit Grow Your Art Residency: Public Events

'Grow Your Art' details

Tues, March 2, 2021 – Pitch Night Competition

7:00–9:00PM

Watch as NEC students and alumni pitch their ventures live for a chance to win up to $7,500 in grant funding plus project guidance from NEC’s Entrepreneurial Musicianship team. Pitch Night offers a chance for students and professionals to learn more about how to craft strong grant proposals, whether on paper or pitched live.  Maria Schneider will adjudicate along with panel of NEC faculty and staff. Visit...

Wed, March 3, 2021 | Music Business Workshop with Maria Schneider, Ken Schaphorst and Andrew Worden

1:00–3:00PM  

Maria discusses how producing and sharing her music has evolved with the music industry. What does it take to produce a recording today? And grow an audience? How do you share your music widely while also protecting yourself? What’s important to spend money on when investing in a record? NEC students can join the virtual discussion which will be streamed to the public via...

Thursday, March 4, 2021 – Music Business Panel Discussion with Maria Schneider, Booking Agent Mike Epstein and Publicist Ann Braithwaite

1:00–3:00PM  

In this panel moderated by Andrew Worden, NEC students and the virtual audience can learn the ins and outs of the business of music. What’s the difference between a manager and an agent?  When do you invest in building out your team? What does it take to share your music in a meaningful way in 2021? NEC students can join the virtual discussion which will be streamed to the public via...

Ann Braithwaite is the owner of Braithwaite & Katz Communications, a full-service public relations firm specializing in promoting the foremost jazz artists and events of our time. She and her team have helped to expand visibility for a myriad of exceptional musicians including Maria Schneider as well as organizations including the Montreal International Jazz Festival and NEC’s Jazz and CI departments.

Mike Epstein is the President of Epstein & Company, an international booking agency representing award-winning artists since 2013. The agency works with artists of all genres and has developed a unique process for helping clients achieve important career goals by taking an entrepreneurial approach to an ever-changing industry.

Wednesday, March 10, 2021 – Concert – Maria Schneider & the NEC Jazz Orchestra

7:30 PM  

Maria Schneider conducts the NEC Jazz Orchestra in a program of her compositions including The Pretty Road, Data Lords, Walking By Flashlight, Gumba Blue, Sputnik and Choro Dancado. The concert will be recorded on March 4 with a video broadcast on March 10.  View concert at this link.

Maria Schneider’s music has been hailed by critics as evocative, majestic, magical, heart-stoppingly gorgeous, imaginative, revelatory, riveting, daring, and beyond categorization. Blurring the lines between genres, her varied commissioners stretch from Jazz at Lincoln Center, to The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, to the American Dance Festival, and include collaboration with David Bowie. She is among a small few to receive Grammys in multiple genres, having received the award in jazz and classical, as well as for her work with David Bowie.

 

With her first recording Evanescence (1994), Schneider began developing her personal way of writing for her 18-member collective made up of many of the finest musicians in jazz today, tailoring her compositions to the uniquely creative voices of the group. They have performed at festivals and concert halls worldwide, and she herself has received numerous commissions and guest-conducting invites, working with over 90 groups in over 30 countries.

 

Unique funding of projects has become a hallmark for Schneider through the trend-setting company, ArtistShare. And, in 2004, Concert in the Garden became historic as the first recording to win a GRAMMY with Internet-only sales. Even more significantly, it blazed the "crowd-funding" trail as ArtistShare’s first release, and was eventually inducted into the 2019 National Recording Registry.

 

Schneider’s many honors also include: 14 Grammy nominations, 5 Grammy Awards, numerous Jazz Journalists Association awards, DownBeat and JazzTimes Critics and Readers Poll awards, an honorary doctorate from her alma mater, the University of Minnesota, ASCAP’s esteemed Concert Music Award (2014), the nation's highest honor in jazz, “NEA Jazz Master” (2019) (NEA Jazz Master Speech found here), and election into the 2020 American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

 

A strong voice for music advocacy, Schneider has testified before the US Congressional Subcommittee on Intellectual Property on digital rights, has given commentary on CNN, participated in roundtables for the United States Copyright Office, has been quoted in numerous publications for her views on Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, Google, digital rights, and music piracy, and has written various white papers and articles on the digital economy as related to music and beyond.

 

Her latest double-album, Data Lords (2020), has melded her advocacy and art: Nate Chinen of NPR writes: “Now it's finally here, in the form of a magnificent double album, Data Lords. . . it parses into thematic halves, ‘The Digital World’ and, as an antidote, ‘The Natural World.’ On the whole and in the details, it amounts to the most daring work of Schneider's career, which sets the bar imposingly high. This is music of extravagant mastery, and it comes imbued with a spirit of risk."

 

David Hajdu for THE NATION writes, “Beyond the dualism in its format, Data Lords is a work of holistic creativity. The music of outrage and critique in the first album has all the emotion and conceptual integrity that the music of melancholy and reverence does in the second. I can’t conceive of anyone else creating this music, unless Delius has been writing with Bowie on the other side.” 

 

NEC’s Jazz Studies Department is one of the top jazz education programs in the world. It was the brainchild of Gunther Schuller, who moved quickly to incorporate jazz into the curriculum when he became president of the Conservatory in 1967. He soon hired saxophonist Carl Atkins as the first department chair, as well as other greats including NEA Jazz Master George Russell, pianist Jaki Byard and Ran Blake. The foundation of its teaching and success begins with the mentor relationship developed in lessons between students and the prominent faculty artists. In addition to its two jazz orchestras, faculty-coached small ensembles reflect NEC’s inclusive approach to music making, with ensembles focused on free jazz, early jazz, gospel music, Brazilian music, and songwriting, as well as more traditional approaches to jazz performance.

 

Students are encouraged to find their own musical voices while making connections and collaborating with a vibrant community of creative musicians, and ultimately to transform the world through the power of music. The program has spawned numerous Grammy-winning composers and performers and has an alumni list that reads like a who's who of jazz, while the faculty has included six MacArthur "genius" grant recipients (three currently teaching) and four NEA Jazz Masters.

 

NEC’s Entrepreneurial Musicianship Department complements the conservatory education with the resources and tools integral to building a life in music: creative and critical thinking, communication, financial management, artistic programming, audience development, and more. EM is available to students through individual advising, experiential learning, career services, and opportunities to incubate new work. 

 

Grow Your Art: A Music and Business Residency was made possible thanks to a generous gift from an NEC supporter.

Maria Schneider named an NEA Jazz Master

© Kyra Kverno

Each year, the National Endowment for the Arts bestows the nation’s highest honor in jazz—the NEA Jazz Masters Fellowships—on individuals who have made significant contributions to the art form. Today, the NEA is announcing the four newest recipients of this lifetime honor—Bob Dorough, Abdullah Ibrahim, Maria Schneider, and Stanley Crouch, who is the recipient of the 2019 A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship for Jazz Advocacy (bestowed upon an individual who has contributed significantly to the appreciation, knowledge, and advancement of the art form of jazz). Sadly, Bob Dorough passed away shortly after being notified of his Jazz Masters honor. The 2019 recipients will be celebrated at a free tribute concert, which will take place on Monday, April 15, 2019 at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, and streamed online.

“The National Endowment for the Arts is proud to celebrate jazz, an art form born in the United States that has since been embraced worldwide,” said NEA Acting Chairman Mary Anne Carter. “These four new NEA Jazz Masters have been key players in jazz throughout their lives and careers, ensuring that the music will continue to grow and reach new audiences.”

The 2019 NEA Jazz Masters are:

• Stanley Crouch —Jazz Historian, Author, Critic, Co-founder Jazz at Lincoln Center (2019 A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship for Jazz Advocacy)

Crouch is the author of eight critically acclaimed books and of hundreds of uncollected articles, essays, album liner notes, and reviews on jazz that has influenced the music and championed it for the general public. He also co-founded and served as artistic consultant for Jazz at Lincoln Center.

• Bob Dorough —Vocalist, Composer, Arranger, Pianist

Dorough’s career spanned more than 70 years in jazz as a singer, pianist, composer, and arranger. His distinctive vocals, clever lyrics, and strong melodies were well-known in the jazz world even before his compositions and vocals for the animation series Schoolhouse Rock!.

• Abdullah Ibrahim — Pianist, Composer

Ibrahim combines the rhythmic influences of South Africa with the improvisation of jazz to create his spiritually enriching music, whether performing solo, with a trio, a full band, or an orchestra. This blend of the traditional and the modern is reflected in his distinctive style, harmonies, and musical vocabulary.

• Maria Schneider —Composer, Arranger, Bandleader

Schneider’s music has been hailed by critics as “evocative,” “majestic,” “heart-stoppingly gorgeous,” and “beyond categorization.” Primarily known for her highly original and provocative big band compositions written over the past three decades, she is unique in having written classical works as well, even stepping into rock through a collaboration with David Bowie.

2019 NEA Jazz Masters Tribute Concert
The 2019 NEA Jazz Masters Tribute Concert—produced in collaboration with the Kennedy Center, whose artistic director for jazz is Jason Moran—will take place on Monday, April 15, 2019 at 8:00 p.m. at the Kennedy Center’s Concert Hall and also will be streamed live. The concert will feature performances in honor of the 2019 NEA Jazz Masters and will be free and open to the public. More information on how to reserve tickets will be available in Spring 2019; email publicaffairs@arts.gov to be added to the list to receive information when tickets become available.

About the NEA Jazz Masters
Since 1982, the National Endowment for the Arts has awarded 153 fellowships to great figures in jazz, including Ella Fitzgerald, Sonny Rollins, Dianne Reeves, Miles Davis, Chick Corea, and George Wein. The full list of NEA Jazz Masters and materials about them—including videos, podcasts, NEA Jazz Moments audio clips, and more—are available at arts.gov.

Recipients are nominated by the public, including the jazz community. Nominations are judged by a panel of experts, including previously-named NEA Jazz Masters. The panel’s recommendations are reviewed by the National Council on the Arts, which sends its recommendations to the NEA chairman, who makes the final decision. The NEA 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. The NEA is currently accepting nominations for the 2020 class of NEA Jazz Masters Fellowships. The deadline is October 31, 2018. Visit the NEA's website for more information and to submit a nomination.

The NEA also supports the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program, an effort to document the lives and careers of NEA Jazz Masters. In addition to transcriptions of the comprehensive interviews, the website also includes audio clips with interview excerpts. This project has transcribed the oral histories of nearly 100 NEA Jazz Masters.

About the National Endowment for the Arts

Established by Congress in 1965, the NEA 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 NEA 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 NEA.

About Kennedy Center Jazz

Kennedy Center Jazz, under the leadership of Artistic Director Jason Moran, presents legendary artists who have helped shape the art form, artists who are emerging on the jazz scene, and innovative multidisciplinary projects throughout the year. The KC Jazz Club, launched in 2002 and dubbed “the future of the jazz nightclub” by JazzTimes, hosts many of these artists in an intimate setting; while the Crossroads Club, launched in 2012, is a nightclub dance venue. Annual Kennedy Center jazz events include the professional development residency program for young artists, Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead; NPR’s A Jazz Piano Christmas, the Kennedy Center holiday tradition shared by millions around the country via broadcast on NPR; and the Mary Lou Williams Jazz Festival, created in 1996 by the late Dr. Billy Taylor (Kennedy Center Artistic Director for Jazz, 1994–2010). The Center co-produces the annual NEA Jazz Masters Tribute Concerts, celebrating iconic figures in the music.

Maria Schneider