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To continue safely serving our community of artists and audience members, Arts for Art is filming and releasing new performances on Tuesdays and Thursdays in January, February, and March. A pay-what-you-can donation is required to view each video. All donations will go towards AFA’s Artists & Friends Campaign. About Francisco Mora Catlett: Francisco Mora Catlett, drummer, composer and educator. Began his musical career in Mexico City where he worked as a session musician for Capitol Records 1968-1970. Studied at Music School of UNAM. With a grant from the Mexican government from 1970 to 1973 he study drums with Alan Dawson and composition at the Berklee School of Music in Boston. He left Mexico City with Sun Ra in 1973 and worked with him until 1980. In 1987 while in Detroit he released his first album as a leader, the Pan-Afro project “Mora!” Among several grants, he received one from the NEA to study with Max Roach in New York City. Mora Catlett worked with several Roach's percussion ensemble M'Boom, appearing on two Blue Moon LPs, 1990's “To the Max” and 1992's “Live at S.O.B.'s” and in addition to composing for Mr. Roach’s Uptown String Quartet. In 1993, he became a visiting professor at Michigan State University. Mora-Catlett played on Detroit’s Techno producer Carl Craig's 1996 jazz/electronica fusion project, “The Innerzone Orchestra” and 1999's “Programmed”. The same year, using Innerzone cohorts Craig Taborn and Rodney Whitaker, Mora Catlett issued a second album, “World Trade Music”. Following Mora Catlett's departure from Detroit in 2000 the Outer Zone Band’s first recording featuring Marshal Allen, Craig Taborn and Carl Craig was released. In New York City Mora-Catlett co-founded the “Oyu Oro Afro-Cuban Experimental Dance Company” with his wife Danys Perez Prades “La Mora” dance-music project experimenting with and music from the African Diaspora that performs nationally and internationally. Mora-Catlett has issued two releases with the “Freedom Jazz Trio. “ New Under The Sun”, recorded in 2010 featured Francesco Tristano, while “Live At The Bronx Museum” showcased Craig Taborn. A new ensemble, the Outer Zone Band’s issued “Andromeda M-31”, featuring Craig Taborn and JD Allen. Subsequent releases included: double Cd, “AfroHORN MX” (2012), AfroHORN "Rare Metal" (2013), and for AfroHORN "At the Edge of the Spiral (2015 -2016). A solo electronic music project recording (“Electric Worlds”) solo project to be released in 2021. Back to Berklee College of Music due to COVID -19 pandemic, enrolling in Composing and Producing Electronic Music I & II, and now preparing for a new Elctronic Music project 2022. In recent years, Mora-Catlett has been featured in “artist residencies” at University of Iowa, Wayne State University, and Booker T. WashingtonHigh School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Long Island University, Brookhaven College, Richard College and others where his presentations often explore the themes of jazz and creativity while highlighting the work of his parents, artists Elizabeth Catlett and Francisco Mora Senior. He has established his own label AACE in order to distribute several of these projects.

The 92nd Street Y, New York (92NY), one of New York's leading cultural venues, presents the The Bach-Mendelssohn Connection, a ten-day festival of concerts and salons that will explore the unexpected or hidden connections between Johann Sebastian Bach and Felix Mendelssohn. The festival will feature Jeremy Denk, Steven Isserlis, and more. Each performance and evening will explore the inspiration and influence in the world of two genius composers. Each concert will also be available via livestream and available for 72 hours from time of broadcast. Tickets for both the in-person and livestream options are $20-$50 and are available at 92ny.org/bach-festival.

MARIA WLOSZCZOWSKA, violin 
JEREMY DENK, piano 
Wednesday, June 8, 2022, 7:30 PM
Kaufmann Concert Hall/Online

World-renowned pianist and MacArthur "Genius" Grant recipient Jeremy Denk joins violin sensation and 2018 Bach International Violin Competition winner Maria Wloszczowska to perform Bach's intimate and wondrous Six Sonatas for Violin and Keyboard – music that was presented in the historical chamber music series Mendelssohn organized in Leipzig, and also in Fanny Mendelssohn's salons. Denk, who regularly collaborates with several of today's premier violinists, believe Wloszczowska to be one of the instrument's most exciting young artists. She makes her NY debut with this concert. 

J.S. BACH: Six Sonatas for Violin and Keyboard, BWV 1014-1019

"The Bach-Mendelssohn Connection is the vision of our beloved colleague Hanna Arie-Gaifman," said Amy Lam, Vice President, Tisch Music, 92NY. "We're grateful to Hanna for continuing to share her deep musical intellect and passion with us, and for bringing some of classical music's most acclaimed artists to our stage this summer."

"This festival seeks to discover lesser-known connections between two composers from different eras," said Hanna Arie-Gaifman, Director Emeritus, Tisch Center for the Arts, 92NY. "The salons pay tribute to two seldom recognized salonieres - Sara Levi and Fanny Mendelssohn - musicians, composers and performers of rare quality who created the intimate human musical experiences we all crave these days."

The festival will continue with nine more days of music. A full list of performances and dates are listed below. Concerts are for fully vaccinated audiences. For more information, including purchasing tickets and COVID-19 protocols for in-person performances, please visit 92NY.org/Concerts.

About The 92nd Street Y, New York: The 92nd Street Y, New York (92NY) is a world-class center for the arts and innovation, a convener of ideas, and an incubator for creativity. 92NY offers extensive classes, courses and events online including live concerts, talks and master classes; fitness classes for all ages; 250+ art classes, and parenting workshops for new moms and dads. The 92nd Street Y, New York is transforming the way people share ideas and translate them into action all over the world. All of 92NY's programming is built on a foundation of Jewish values, including the capacity of civil dialogue to change minds; the potential of education and the arts to change lives; and a commitment to welcoming and serving people of all ages, races, religions, and ethnicities. For more information, visit www.92NY.org. 

Ambrose Akinmusire Saturday, January 22, 2022, 8 pm Vermont Jazz Center 72 Cotton Mill Hill #222 Brattleboro VT 05301 This concert will have ONLY a limited in-person audience.  There will NO livestream component. Akinmusire is a multiyear winner of Downbeat’s critics’ choice awards for Trumpeter of the Year (including 2021) and Jazz Artist of the Year. A visionary artist with six albums as a leader, he is a first call sideman found on recordings with Joni Mitchell, Brad Mehldau, Kendrick Lamar and many others. Ambrose Akinmusire is a truth-teller whose music is an expression of his personal journey as a Black man. Although he loves playing jazz standards, he has chosen to compose original music that draws attention to the realities of racism. It’s important to me to talk about the injustices that Black people experience, and the fear that I have walking around the United States and really a lot of places in the world. And that is why I called this last album a blues album – it’s trying to express beauty and pain at the same time, trying to express what is to me the most defining part: resilience. And that’s what all my records are trying to express.” Akinmusire’s sound on the trumpet is unlike anyone else’s. He masterfully bends notes up and down to make the air coming out of his horn sound like the melismas of a human voice. Along with the timbre of the voice, Akinmusire explores sonic possibilities such as unique forms, atypical instrumentation, extended techniques and varied textures. Akinmusire’s most recent album, his fifth for Blue Note Records, On the Tender Spot of Every Calloused Moment, has been nominated as Best Jazz Instrumental Album for the 2021 Grammy Awards. The list of his accolades include Thelonious Monk International Jazz Trumpet Competition Winner, Carmine Caruso International Trumpet Solo Competition Winner; Downbeat Critics Poll: Jazz Artist of the Year, Best Trumpet (numerous times); Jazz Times Critic’s Poll: Trumpeter of the Year (3 times), Artist of the Year, Record of the Year; New York Times Best Jazz Album of the year (2011), Jazz Journalist Association Trumpeter of the Year and others too numerous to mention. His discography includes 6 albums as a leader and sideman work with Kendrick Lamar, Joni Mitchell, Joel Ross, Brad Mehldau, the Blue Note All-Stars, Mary Halvorson, Jen Shyu, Somi, Marcus Miller, Dayna Stephens, Trilok Gurtu, Gerald Clayton, the Yellow Jackets, Jack DeJohnette, Archie Shepp, David Binney, Terri Lyne Carrington, Roy Hargrove, Mimi Jones, Esperanza Spalding, Linda May Han Oh, Tom Harrell and many others. Akinmusire is one of the most acclaimed jazz artists of his generation, a trumpeter of deep expressive resources and a composer of kaleidoscopic vision. —NPR Ambrose Akinmusire - trumpet Micah Thomas - piano Linda Oh - bass Tim Angulo - drums Sponsored by a Friend of the Vermont Jazz Center educational programs. $20-40 sliding scale Reservations online & by phone Proof of Covid-19 vaccination and photo ID required. www.vtjazz.org gingervjc@gmail.com 802 258 9088 https://vtjazz.org/upcoming-events/concerts/ https://vtjazz.org/upcoming-events/sliding-scale-ticket-policy/ https://vtjazz.org/2021-safety-protocols-for-in-person-activities/

New Camerata Opera (NCO) presents a series of free, educational, and interactive children's opera videos on YouTube adapted from their opera, Party at the Opera. The collection of six videos is an immersive, musical, and theatrical experience for children ages 18 months to 5 years. Watch the entire series with the family anytime, by visiting Camerata Piccola. https://www.newcamerataopera.org/. Excerpts from seven classic operas with original English texts will teach children the fundamentals of classical music, from rhythm, melody, and harmony, to subjects like emotion in music, and even set design. A diverse cast of approachable, funny characters leads the audience on an exciting musical adventure. Children can try their hands at conducting and playing a musical instrument and can find their own operatic voice in this welcoming invitation into the world of opera. Each of the six videos covers a different aspect of opera: Party at the Opera: Barry Baritone hosts the show along with 3 other opera singing friends, to take kids on an engaging tour through several music fundamentals: tempo, range, dynamics, and voice parts. The art of conducting is also introduced in an immersive and fun manner. Party at the Opera 2: Children learn about the different types of musical songs within an opera: an aria, a duet, a trio, a quartet, and a chorus. Party at the Opera 3: Barry Baritone and Sally Soprano learn how to make their performance much more interesting, through working with a stage director, Director Deb. Party at the Opera 4: The gang introduces emotions in music. Explore how the art form can make you feel a certain way, just through how the music sounds, and how it is performed. Party at the Opera 5: A special guest tries her hand at composing for the first time, and her new opera receives its worldwide premiere. Party at the Opera 6: Actual opera production designers star in this episode about the many folks who work behind the scenes to help make an opera come to life. In 2018, NCO produced and toured its early childhood development offering, Party at the Opera to young children in New York and Long Island. The production was an instant favorite for its accessible approach to opera, while also introducing timeless themes from some of the world's greatest operas, including Carmen and The Barber of Seville. When the world transitioned to a new 'socially-distanced' normal as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, NCO quickly reimagined this production into a series of free online videos. The organization hopes that this endeavor will help to ease the burden on parents and schoolteachers, if only for 8-12 minutes.  About New Camerata Opera New Camerata Opera is a New York City-based, cooperative company in its sixth season. Its mission is to engage, excite, and educate through immersive performances that break down barriers and inspire fans of the future. NCO offers mainstage operas, children's operas through Camerata Piccola, and produces short operatic films with CamerataWorks. For more information, visit newcamerataopera.org.

Jim Ridl is in high demand as a New York City jazz pianist, composer, teacher and band leader. His ongoing residency at the internationally known jazz club The 55 Bar is in its fifth year, where he and his quartet perform his original compositions monthly. Jim performs worldwide with a variety of jazz artists, including The Joe Locke Quartet, The Dave Liebman Big Band, The Paul Jost Quartet and the Mingus Big Band. He has toured with the US State Department American Music Abroad program (’12 and ’15), performing in Russia, South Korea, China, the Philippines, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Slovenia and Malta. As a composer and leader, Jim has released 7 recordings, the latest titled Door in a Field,Volume 2. Jim was a Princeton University Visiting Artist for three separate semesters (’12, ’14, ’16), coaching jazz ensembles in repertoire and performance. Jim continues as adjunct educator in Jazz Piano Studies at The City College of New York and the New York Jazz Workshop in Manhattan. From 1994 – 2004, Jim performed with jazz guitar legend Pat Martino, receiving critically acclaimed reviews of performances around the world, and producing four outstanding recordings: Interchange, Night Wings, The Maker and Nexus. Jim was raised on a farm and ranch in North Dakota, and discovered his love for piano and jazz at an early age. He attended the University of Colorado at Denver, where he earned his Bachelor Degree in Scoring and Arranging, and was awarded its Student Achievement Award for composing “Ocean Sojourn,” an orchestral tone poem, performed with the Denver Symphony Orchestra, James Setapen conducting. Joe Locke Long known to be a soloist capable of stunning physical power and broad emotional range, it was not until the last decades that he emerged as the composer, bandleader and conceptualist that he is considered today. This is in no small part due to his solo projects since the beginning of the 2000s. This is in no small part due to his prolific solo projects, notably Four Walls of Freedom, a 6 movement suite featuring the late tenor saxophonist Bob Berg; Live in Seattle (Origin) by The Joe Locke / Geoffrey Keezer Group which won the 2006 EarShot award for Concert of the Year and his eloquent and vibrant quartet Force Of Four (Origin). In 2011 Joe joined the Motéma label for four intrinsically different albums bearing witness of his immense stylistic versatility and ability to create artistic depth in a variety of contexts: After Signing, the long-awaited follow-up studio album of Live In Seattle, 2012 also saw the release of Joe Locke’s first ever symphonic project, Wish Upon A Star, featuring Locke‘s Quartet with the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra (NE), and the Jazz radio charts #1 Blues & Ballads album Lay Down My Heart in 2013. In 2015 Locke released Love Is A Pendulum - a suite based on a poem by Barbara Sfraga - is already being hailed the most important work of his career. Locke’s latest album, Subtle Disguise (2018) is being celebrated “a crowning achievement from a certified vibraphone master” by Jazziz Magazine and means very much a happy continuation of his search to unite his love of composition with the connective qualities of melody and groove. Locke is a six-time recipient of the Jazz Journalists Association’s “Mallet Instrumentalist of the Year” Award and has won numerous further awards and polls. In 2016 he was honoured with the induction into the Music Hall of Fame of his hometown Rochester, NY. He is an active clinician and educator in the United States and in Europe and is holding the title of Honorary Associate of London’s Royal Academy Of Music (Hon ARAM) since 2013.

5BMF marks a triumphant return to live concert performance and the grand finale of its 2020-2021 Digital Mainstage Season with the New York City and online premieres of Terra Nova, a concert-length song cycle composed by the members of ORACLE HYSTERICAL and performed in collaboration with HUB NEW MUSIC. Commissioned by Hub New Music and 5BMF, Terra Nova will be presented live in partnership with BPL PRESENTS on May 15th in a free, outdoor performance on the steps at Brooklyn Public Library’s majestic Grand Army Plaza location, and also filmed at the historic NEWHOUSE CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY ART AT SNUG HARBOR, Staten Island, for its online premiere on June 17th. ABOUT THE PROJECT Terra Nova is inspired by a range of ambitious, gritty (and sometimes naive, cruel, and myopic) explorers: a fanciful view from Amelia Earhart’s cockpit by Majel Connery, a playful setting of John James Audubon’s descriptions of wood warblers by Brad Balliett, Dylan Greene’s speculative tone poem of the pre-Columbian exploration of North America by Chinese mariners, Elliot Cole’s haunting setting of Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott’s final letter home, and Agamemnon, Doug Balliet’s tension-filled spoken-and-sung cantata depicting the ill-fated king’s reunion with Clytemnestra; plus many more. These adventurers, captivated by unchartered territory, share an often combustible mix of guts, ego, greed, and unwavering determination, their discoveries ranging from the beautiful to the terrible. Both venues share deep connections with the musical material. Terra Nova will be in its element on the grounds of Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza, one of the city’s great monuments to the printed word, whose collection contains all of the texts that inspired these new works. The Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art, by contrast, shares in the songs’ spirit and history; now a museum for contemporary art, it was once a dormitory for sailors, with frescoed walls that still read “Rest after dangerous Toil,” a 188-year-old space, existing then and now for intrepid explorers and explorations. Program: Terra Nova A collection of songs inspired by new lands, and the people who ventured into them Majel Connery – All the way down (2021) Inspired by the musings of Amelia Earhart Brad Balliett – Wood Warblers (2021) Excerpts from the writings of naturalist John James Audubon Dylan Greene – When China Discovered the World (2021) Instrumental after the book by Gavin Menzies Majel Connery – Fallen Angel (2021) From Milton’s Paradise Lost Doug Balliett – The Gothic Pater Noster (2021) From the Gothic Bible, ca. 390 AD Doug Balliett – Agamemnon Crosses the Line (2021) Loosely based on Aeschylus’s Oresteia Dylan Greene – laundry and cooking (2021) Adapted from the poem by Bret Harte Elliot Cole – Terra Nova (2021) From the journals of Robert Falcon Scott Oracle Hysterical: Doug Balliett, bass/viola da gamba Brad Balliett, bassoons Majel Connery, keyboards/vocals Elliot Cole, guitars/keyboards/vocals Joe Bergen, guest percussion Hub New Music: Michael Avitable, flute Nicholas Brown, clarinet Alyssa Wang, violin Jesse Christeson, cello Sound Engineer: Chris Botta Videography: Eric Jenkins-Sahlin, Meristem Pictures

“The best young guitarist in the business.” — The New York Times

Acclaimed jazz guitarist Mark Whitfield brings his formidable trio to Zinc on Monday, January 30. He’s supported by Mark Lewandowski on bass and Charles Goold on drums.

Mark Whitfield graduated from Boston’s prestigious Berklee College of Music, the world’s foremost institution for the study of Jazz and modern American music in the spring of 1987. Shortly thereafter, he returned to his native New York to embark on a career as a Jazz Guitarist that afforded him the opportunity to collaborate with legendary artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Quincy Jones, Ray Charles, Herbie Hancock, Carmen McRae, Gladys Knight, Burt Bacharach, Jimmy Smith, Clark Terry, Shirley Horn, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Joe Williams, Stanley Turrentine and his greatest teacher and mentor George Benson.

Showtimes are at 7:00 pm & 8:30 pm. Tickets: $25 in advance / $30 day of show. For more info, visit https://www.zincjazz.com.

The Dance Clarinets—an ensemble of a dozen clarinets of all shapes and sizes plus drums, led by J. D. Parran—performs a music from the Ragtime era by the seminal bandleader, union organizer, and advocate of African-American music and culture, James Reese Europe. A set of music with clarinets and a jazz rhythm section follows the large ensemble.

Europe was the musical director for the 369th Infantry Brigade, an all African-American and Puerto Rican military unit that was sent to the front lines in France at the end of World War I and that became the single most decorated unit of the war, that never lost a battle, and that was nicknamed “the Harlem Hellfighters” for their ferocity. They revolutionized music by presenting an African-diasporic revisioning of marching band music that amazed European audiences and that provided a link between marching band music and jazz big band music.

Join us for the 15th annual Ailey Day celebration at NJPAC! This full day of immersion into dance includes a variety of movement classes taught by this year’s talented group of professional artists, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater alumni, and faculty and students.

Dancers at all skill levels are invited to take part — you can take your first steps into dance performance, or show off the moves you already have, at this joyful event. In addition to the classes, you’re invited to join us for a group warm up session, and a panel discussion with our visiting instructors. When you aren’t dancing, join our engaged partners for arts and wellness activities, including children’s book readings, health screenings, and mosaic art making. At the end of the day, you’re invited to demonstrate what you’ve learned, and see performances by a cohort of local dance companies at the Show & Share.

For any questions, please reach out to Daniela Fonseca at dfonseca@njpac.org

Discounted tickets for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s May 12+13 performances will be available for sale.

Due to weather, the Pup Pride Parade has officially been rescheduled for a new date, Wed Jun 28th from 4PM-5PM at the South Orange Downtown Farmers Market (Sloan Street Parking Lot -12 Sloan Street South Orange, NJ 07079)! Plus, don't miss a Pride themed storytime hosted by The South Orange Public Library from 3PM-4PM right before the Pup Pride Parade begins at the South Orange Downtown Tent.

When you arrive, pet parents are invited to sign up their pet to walk the red carpet for a chance to win some great prizes courtesy of Pet Wants. Style up your pup, hamster, cat or lizard with rainbows, glitter, and more to celebrate Pride with us! Please find the South Orange Downtown tent at the market to sign up your pet. Attire is encouraged that captures you and your pet's true colors and to commemorate Pride. Prize categories include: Most Sparkle, Most Creative and Best in Show! Enjoy giveaways, crafts, treats, photos and more!
All pets are welcome! This event is free and open to all!