(l-r) Lew Tabackin, Toshiko Akiyoshi, and Bethany Kucia, BNY Mellon’s Chief of Staff, at the BNY Mellon Jazz 2018 Living Legacy Award honoring Toshiko Akiyoshi.

Baltimore, MD – October 25, 2018 – Pianist, composer, and band leader, Toshiko Akiyoshi was honored with the BNY Mellon Jazz 2018 Living Legacy Award in a special ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, D.C., on Friday, October 19, 2018. The Living Legacy Jazz Award honors jazz masters from the mid-Atlantic region who have achieved distinction in jazz performance and education.

Guests enjoyed a reception in the Kennedy Center Atrium including music by the youth jazz band, The Early Birds. Following the Award presentation, guests enjoyed a performance by 2017 Living Legacy awardee Odean Pope in the KC Jazz Club.

Previous Living Legacy Award winners (from 2017-1994) include: Odean Pope, Ron Carter, Gary Bartz, Joanne Brackeen, Nathan Davis, Muhal Richard Abrams, Phil Woods, 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.

The BNY Mellon Jazz 2018 Living Legacy Award is a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation and is sponsored by BNY Mellon. Additional support for the 2018 event was provided by The Japan Foundation-New York, Kay Kendall, PECO-an Exelon Company, and Mr. Roy Pfautch.

This program is made possible through a collaboration with The Kennedy Center.

About BNY Mellon
BNY Mellon is a global investments company dedicated to helping its clients manage and service their financial assets throughout the investment lifecycle. Whether providing financial services for institutions, corporations or individual investors, BNY Mellon delivers informed investment management and investment services in 35 countries. As of September 30, 2018, BNY Mellon had $34.5 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration, and $1.8 trillion in assets under management. BNY Mellon can act as a single point of contact for clients looking to create, trade, hold, manage, service, distribute or restructure investments. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). Additional information is available on www.bnymellon.com. Follow us on Twitter @BNYMellon or visit our newsroom at www.bnymellon.com/newsroom for the latest company news.

About Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation
Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation develops partnerships and programs that reinforce artists’ capacity to create and present work and advance access to and participation in the arts. 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, national, and international perspective. For more information on the Foundation’s programs and services, please visit: www.midatlanticarts.org.