Press Releases
Saxophonist Phil Woods Named BNY Mellon Jazz 2011 Living Legacy Awardee
Award to be Presented Friday, October 14, 2011
at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Baltimore, MD - June 1, 2011 - Saxophonist Phil Woods will be honored with the BNY Mellon Jazz 2011 Living Legacy Award in a special ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Friday, October 14, 2011. The BNY Mellon Jazz 2011 Living Legacy Award is a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation and is sponsored by BNY Mellon, the global leader in investment management and investment servicing. The Award honors living jazz masters from the mid-Atlantic region who have achieved distinction in jazz performance and education. The celebration will include a reception, the award ceremony, and a performance by the 2010 Legacy Awardee, Roy Haynes, in the Terrace Theatre.
"We are pleased to support the 2011 BNY Mellon Jazz Living Legacy Award that will be honoring Phil Woods, a phenomenal saxophone player," said Jim McDonald, BNY Mellon's Managing Director of Global Philanthropy and Employee Programs. "Mr. Woods is a true jazz master."
Born in 1931 in Springfield, Massachusetts, Phil Woods is considered a master jazz alto saxophonist whose lineage is clearly rooted in the tone and phrasing of the great Charlie Parker, Benny Carter and Johnny Hodges. After graduating from high school at age 16, Woods moved to New York City and enrolled in the Juilliard School, where he remained through 1952, majoring in clarinet performance. In the 1950s, he led his own groups and toured the Near East and South America with one of his musical idols, Dizzy Gillespie. Woods went on to perform in Buddy Rich's quintet and toured Europe with Quincy Jones (1959-60) and Russia with Benny Goodman (1962). He also played and recorded with Clark Terry, Bill Evans, Oliver Nelson, Charlie Barnet, and Thelonious Monk.
From 1964 to 1967, Woods took a break from the bandstand, teaching at the Ramblerny performing arts camp in New Hope, Pennsylvania, which was the beginning of his continued dedication to jazz education and advocacy in his home state. Woods talent as a composer blossomed in 1968 when he moved to France and formed the European Rhythm Machine quartet, wrote music for Danish and Belgian radio, and composed a ballet for French television. In 1972, Woods returned to Pennsylvania and formed a jazz group with Mike Melillo, Steve Gilmore, and Bill Goodwin. With this ensemble, he became recognized as the finest alto saxophonist in mainstream jazz, confirmed by performances with Michel Legrand and on Billy Joel's hit recording Just the Way You Are. He has been the recipient of four Grammy® Awards and the NEA Jazz Master Award. Woods remains active internationally as a bandleader, composer-arranger, soloist, and recent steward to younger players such as the emerging saxophonist Grace Kelly. Mr. Woods lives with his wife Jill in Delaware Water Gap, Pennsylvania.
Previous BNY Mellon Living Legacy Award winners include Roy Haynes, Dr. Frank Foster, Kenny Barron, Benny Golson, Oliver Lake, Rufus Reid, Randy Weston, Keter Betts, Jimmy Heath, Joe Kennedy, Jr., Shirley Scott, Reggie Workman, Dr. Donald Byrd, Larry Ridley, Barry Harris, Robert "Boysie" Lowery, and Clark Terry. A Millennium Award was conferred on Dr. Billy Taylor in 2000.
For more information on the BNY Mellon Jazz Living Legacy Award and the 2011 event, please go to http://www.midatlanticarts.org/funding/artists_programs/living_legacy/index.html
About BNY Mellon
BNY Mellon is a global financial services company focused on helping clients manage and service their financial assets, operating in 36 countries and serving more than 100 markets. BNY Mellon is a leading provider of financial services for institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals, offering superior investment management and investment services through a worldwide client-focused team. It has $25.5 trillion in assets under custody and administration and $1.2 trillion in assets under management, services $11.9 trillion in outstanding debt and processes global payments averaging $1.7 trillion per day. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. Additional information is available at www.bnymellon.com.
About Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation
Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation fosters and supports arts programming for the benefit of arts organizations, artists and audiences and encourages exchanges that link the arts resources of the mid-Atlantic region to the rest of the nation and the world. The Foundation was created in 1979 and is a private non-profit organization that is closely allied with the region's state arts councils and the National Endowment for the Arts. It combines funding from state and federal resources with private support from corporations, foundations, and individuals to address needs in the arts from a regional perspective. The region includes nine states and jurisdictions: The District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, the U.S.Virgin Islands, Virginia and West Virginia.
|
