A "Congo Square" Evening Explores the Roots of Jazz with Donald Harrison Jr. and His Band, Congo Nation
September 18, 2006
Donald Harrison, Jr.
Day kicks off with Koresh Dance Company's Free in the Plaza performance at 11am for kids ages one to four, and a Free in the Plaza performance by Latin Fiesta Ensemble at 1pm
Mardi Gras Indians once gathered in Congo Square to play the drums, dance and chant. These 19th century African Americans masked themselves as American Indians to join New Orleans' Mardi Gras revelry. Now, Donald Harrison Jr. and his band, Congo Nation, bring Congo Square to the Kimmel Center, as he opens the Mellon Jazz Up Close Series with an exploration of the Roots of Jazz on Saturday, October 14, 2006 at 7:30pm in Perelman Theater. Harrison's music will take an up close musical look at the African rhythms that landed on our shores and met with Native Americans, Cajun, Caribbean, French and Spanish settlers.
An Artist Chat will take place during intermission of the Congo Square performance with Donald Harrison, members of Congo Nation, Mellon Jazz Up Close Artistic Advisor Danilo Pérez, and Mervon Mehta.
This is the first concert of the Melon Jazz Up-Close Series: The Roots of Jazz. The next concert is "The Blues" with Henry Butler and Corey Harris on December 2, 2006.
Tickets for "Congo Square" are $37 and $43 and can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, online at www.kimmelcenter.org, or at the Kimmel Center box office, open daily from 10am to 6pm and later on performance evenings. (Additional fees may apply). For group sales call 215-893-5883.
A limited number of $10 tickets are available for every Kimmel Center Presents performance at the Kimmel Center. Tickets go on sale the day of the event and can be purchased at the Kimmel Center box office beginning 2.5 hours prior to curtain time and 11:30am for matinees. Limit one ticket per person.
Born in New Orleans in 1960, alto saxophonist Donald Harrison Jr. was exposed to the city's unique cultural expressions from the start. His father, the late Donald Harrison Sr., was the Big Chief of a Mardi Gras Indian tribe, known as the Guardians of the Flame. Young Harrison was brought up within that tradition, singing and dancing with his father's people. Since then, Harrison has become a graduate of NOCCA Academy and the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He spent the formative years of his career in New York City, where he honed his musical talents with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Within that context, he also came into contact with fellow New Orleanian Terence Blanchard, with whom he formed a group that produced a series of acclaimed recordings, such as the classic hybrid sound of "New York Second Line." Mr. Harrison’s musical influences are such a range of bebop, R&B, funk, traditional jazz, hip-hop and Mardi Gras Indian chants that he calls his style "nouveau swing." More recently, Mr. Harrison has moved back to his home of New Orleans, where he recently starred in Spike Lee's documentary When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts that aired on HBO. Today Harrison participates in the tradition that inspired him as a child. His band, Congo Nation, is his own Mardi Gras Indian tribe.
Kimmel Center Presents also offers with more than fifty Free at the Kimmel community performances during the 2006/07 5th Anniversary season. These include Free in the Plaza with local artists performing classical, jazz, pop, country, world, dance and family fun on the Commonwealth Plaza stage, as well as Artist Chats with Kimmel Center Presents performers, education events and Organ Postludes in Verizon Hall. On Saturday, October 14 at 11am kids between the ages of one to four can dance and stretch with Koresh Dance: Mommy & Me; On Saturday, October 14 at 1pm Kimmel Center celebrates Hispanic Heritage with the acclaimed Latin Fiesta Ensemble featuring Maria del Pico Taylor, which will invigorate audiences with hot salsa; classical, contemporary Latin; Baroque and Afro-Cuban conga pieces, followed by organist Cherry Rhodes ticketed performance in Verizon Hall. Please check online for additional information and a performance schedule.
Kimmel Center Presents' 2006/2007 season is supported by: Mellon Financial Corporation, University of Pennsylvania Health System, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, ARC Properties, the National Endowment for the Arts, and The William Penn Foundation. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Kimmel Center Presents. Toyota is the Official Vehicle of Kimmel Center Presents Jazz and World Pop programming. NBC-10 is a Media Partner for Kimmel Center Presents. The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Philadelphia Daily News, and Philly.com are media sponsors for the Great Orchestras on Tour series.
KIMMEL CENTER PRESENTS
Mellon Jazz Up-Close: The Roots of Jazz
Saturday, October 14, 2006 | 7:30pm
Perelman Theater
Donald Harrison, alto saxophone
Carl Allen, drums
Luques Curtis, acoustic and electric bass
Zaccai Curtis, piano and keyboards
George Smith
Christian Scott, trumpet
************
FREE AT THE KIMMEL EVENTS
Saturday, October 14, 2006, 11am
Koresh Dance Company
Mommy & Me
Saturday, October 14, 2006, 1pm
Latin Fiesta Ensemble
With
Maria del Pico Taylor
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