Author Archive
Wednesday, April 7th, 2010
 Felipa “Graciela” Pérez Gutiérrez, the legendary “First Lady of Afro-Cuban Jazz”, has passed at the age of 94 at New York Cornell-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City at 7:58 am, Wednesday, April 07, 2010.
A pioneer in music, as a black Cuban woman, in a `so-called man’s world’ she opened doors for all those who followed her. She performed around the world, recording and sharing the stage with her foster brother Machito (Frank Grillo) and brother-in-law, Mario Bauzá (originator of the genre Afro-Cuban Jazz) in the world renowned orchestra “Machito and the Afro-Cubans.” Some of her biggest hits include “Ay, José”, “Si, Si, No, No”, “Noche de Ronda”, and “Novio Mio” among many others. Her storied career lasted 77 years long. She died of renal and pulmonary failure with her dear friend and slave Mappy Torres by her side. Her `big’ heart never gave out.
Graciela was primarily known for her tremendous voice, risqué and sassy stage presence and sexy double entendre lyrics. She sang `jazzy’ guarachas as easily as handling the most romantic of boleros which she could deconstruct like no other. She could sing it all, not just one style or fashion like other singers, as many critics and musicologists have mentioned. Graciela’s versatility and virtuosity were un- matched. Though her last name was Pérez-Gutierrez, she was only known by her one name moniker before it was fashionable to do so in more modern times.
Born in Havana ,Cuba in August 23, 1915, she was christened a “singer” at age five by the trova singer/composer María Teresa Vera and taught to sing by her older foster brother Machito. Graciela commenced her career at 17 with the most popular of female orchestras “Anacaona” which was comprised of 10 sisters from the Castro family back in 1933. She traveled to New York, Paris, Latin America and the Caribbean with them for 10 years. They made their recording debut with the RCA/Victor label which traveled to Cuba to record several 78 records with them between 1936 and 1937.
She was summoned to New York in 1943 by Mario Bauzá, when Machito was drafted into the army. She joined the orchestra as lead singer until Machito returned in 1944 and from then on the three shared the stage together until their untimely split in 1975. For 32 years they were on top of the charts and were the orchestra not only to beat, but to emulate. Not only did they travel the USA and the rest of the world, but they were leaders and reigned supreme during the heyday of the Palladium (where blacks, whites, Jews, Italians and Latinos, and celebrities would converge to dance), from 1946 until it’s closing. Besides the Palladium, they would perform at the Royal Roost, Birdland, the Park Palace, the Corso and the Apollo Theater on a yearly week-long gig –and many other clubs and theatres in New York.
Graciela and the orchestra also performed on a yearly basis in Hollywood– specifically at the Crescendo nightclub. Graciela and the band were also a favorite of the famous dee-jay `Symphony Sid’ who had them on his weekly program several times a year, and was broadcast coast to coast in the `1940’s and 50’s. They were also the summer headliners in the Catskill resort hotel, the Concord, for more than 20 years. They recorded milestone albums, for several labels throughout the years, including three of her solo releases “Esta es Graciela”, “Intimo y Sentimental”, “Esa Soy Yo, Yo Soy Así”, plus others.
Respected and highly sought after by producers, composers and arrangers for her versatility, phrasing, and emotive delivery she was a favorite of Chico O’Farrill, Arsenio Rodríguez, José Antonio Mendez, Agustin Lara, Rafael Solano, René Hernandez, Cesar Portillo de la Luz and Mario Bauzá himself.
In the 1980’s and early 90’s Graciela was an integral part of Mario Bauzá’s comeback and recorded several albums with him including his last three Grammy nominated albums for Messidor records. Upon Mario’s death in 1993, Graciela unofficially `retired’ but had been coaxed back to the recording studio or the stage on special occasions, including with trombonist Steve Turre on a fabulous rendition of “Ayer lo ví Llorar”, “Oye Mi Rumba” on Chico O’Farrill’s last CD and also dueted with percussionist Cándido Camero on the Grammy and Latin Grammy nominated CD “Inovidable”. Her stage appearances, in recent years, have been primarily in the tri-state area.
The last few years for Graciela has had a wave of long time well deserved accolades from such organizations such as The International Latin Music Hall of Fame (1999, 2001), Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2007) and a slew of other honors and accolades from different organizations. Plus the United States government recognized her service in entertaining the troops during World War II.
Most recently Graciela’s 93rd birthday was celebrated in Lincoln Center’s Out of Doors festival along with the Caribbean Cultural Center where over ten thousand people jammed Damorsch Park to wish her well. Graciela performed five tunes for them to standing ovations. Needless to say she was overjoyed with the love that the public displayed for her. Since then she had been in the midst of recording a CD, writing her memoirs and filming a documentary on her groundbreaking, legendary life and career which spanned 77 years. Up until the end she was always a trooper, strong willed forceful and full of life.
Graciela was under excellent care at New York-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell Medical Center. In her final months, she was attended to by the Cardiac Catheterization team of Dr. Bergman, Dr. Wong, and staff for a specialized experimental valve procedure of the heart which was a great success. Unfortunately, while in physical rehabilitation, her other organs deteriorated. But her heart never gave out. Graciela wanted to thank them by doing a benefit concert for the Partners Trial of which she was a part of at New York-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell Medical Center, the entire Cardiac Care team, and all those that work in 4 North, 4 South and 10 North along with dear friend Dr. Emilio Carrillo, vice-president Community Health Development at the hospital and Dr. Erica Jones, cardiologist and director of the Inpatient Telemetry Unit.
Graciela’s wishes were to be cremated and to celebrate her life and not mourn her death. Details of her life’s celebration will be released in the coming days. Dissemination of her ashes will be held in private. Graciela leaves behind no immediate family and is survived by only her dear friends and fans.
Graciela’s extraordinary career was also shared with such friends as Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald, Miguelito Valdéz, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, Benny Carter and many others. Though never married and not having children of her own she never lacked love in her life and she had many great romances. She was in deed very special woman.
Posted in Music News | 9 Comments »
Monday, April 5th, 2010
50 Great Voices
Ella Fitzgerald: First Lady Of Song
In the 1930s and ’40s, band singers were mostly blond, sophisticated and attractive. Ella Fitzgerald was awkward, gawky and even a bit chubby by comparison — in the words of one newspaper writer, “a big, light-colored gal.” But could she sing.
And could she ever: Susan Stamberg’s profile of the great vocalist is this week’s entry in NPR’s 50 Great Voices series. Also, don’t miss a video of Hiromi at NPR, a solo performance by guitarist Martin Taylor and the Michael Wolff trio with — there he is again — Steve Wilson on sax. Enjoy.
—Patrick Jarenwattananon, NPR Music
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NPR.org/jazz »
Studio Sessions
Hiromi: A Melodic (And Headbanging) Travelogue
Her new album, Place To Be, was conceived as a journal in sound. In a solo performance at NPR headquarters, the energetic jazz pianist shows how she translates street scenes to melodies, with her typical effervescence.
Favorite Sessions
Martin Taylor: Solo Jazz Guitar
Not only is Martin Taylor widely acclaimed as one of the finest solo acoustic jazz guitarists alive, he’s always great company. In a session from Jazz24, Taylor performs “Stompin’ at the Savoy” and talks about teaching guitar online.
JazzSet with Dee Dee Bridgewater
Michael Wolff Trio With Steve Wilson On JazzSet
Michael Wolff says he approaches the piano like a saxophone, to combine his “physical impulsiveness [to put] a certain energy into the musical ideas.” Highlighting this Washington, D.C. set, is “Joe’s Strut,” for Wolff’s friend Joe Zawinul.
Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz
Bucky Pizzarelli On Piano Jazz
The guitarist is known for playing the great songs of the ’30s on his seven-string instrument. As part of the 30th Anniversary celebration, Bucky Pizzarelli returns to Piano Jazz with guest host John Pizzarelli, his son and fellow guitarist.
Posted in Music News | 8 Comments »
Thursday, April 1st, 2010
 The Centennial Gala and the Inaugural Conferring of The Shepard Medallion featuring Branford Marsalis and the NCCU Jazz Ensemble will take place on Saturday, May 22,2010, at 6 p.m., Durham Performing Arts Center.
Additional details coming soon…
Posted in Public Affairs | 7 Comments »
Thursday, April 1st, 2010
Bobby Broom was born in Harlem on January 18, 1961, and raised on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. His birth name is Robert Broom, Jr. He is an American jazz guitarist, composer and educator.
Broom was playing onstage at the Billie Holiday Theatre with a group of teenage musicians in Young, Gifted, and Broke, a musical by Weldon Irvine (lyricist of the classic To Be Young, Gifted, and Black), when he was approached by Aurell Ray. Although Ray was Rollins’ guitar player at the time, he recommended Broom to the saxophonist and arranged for him to participate in a rehearsal with Rollins, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and drummer Eddie Moore.
Following the rehearsal, Rollins offered to take Broom on tour with the band. Broom declined the offer, explaining that he was still a senior in high school. “I’ll call you when I come back to New York,” Broom remembers Rollins telling him. The saxophonist did, and Broom found himself playing a one-night concert at Carnegie Hall in 1977 with Rollins, Cranshaw, Moore, Ray, pianist Mike Nock, and trumpeter Donald Byrd. Rollins called again in 1981 and took Broom on the road for six years. He rejoined Rollins in 2005 and remains a member of his group. He can be heard on the Rollins albums No Problem (Milestone, 1981), Reel Life (Milestone, 1983), Sonny, Please (Doxy, 2006), and Road Shows, vol. 1 (Doxy, 2008), plus the 2008 Doxy DVD release Sonny Rollins in Vienne.
Broom almost was the first and only guitar player ever to become a member of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. He and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis had been sitting in with the drummer’s band at Mikell’s on 97th Street in New York City. Blakey asked both teenagers to join his group. Marsalis accepted. Broom passed. “I wasn’t really aware of the potential significance of my playing with Blakey,” Broom admits.
Music education also has been a constant for Broom, who earned a B.A. in music from Columbia College and an M.A. in jazz pedagogy from Northwestern University. He has taught at the University of Hartford, the American Conservatory of Music, Roosevelt University, and DePaul University. For the past decade, he has instructed music students in public high schools throughout Chicago as part of a jazz mentoring program sponsored by the Ravinia Festival Organization. One of his students from the program is now attending Juilliard. Broom, who says he “has a reputation for being strict about fundamentals,” is a sought-after private instructor.
Playing with Dr. John and then with Chris Foreman in the Deep Blue Organ Trio put Broom back in touch with the blues roots of jazz that he feels he had neglected early in his career. “I kind of dismissed the blues after I became a ‘jazz student,’ thinking that it was somehow beneath jazz intellectually,”he says. “I know now that the intellect can operate within different formats and that the vocabulary of the blues is as rich and deep as a person is willing to make it. To play fluently and authentically in either style, the blues or jazz, one has to devote a precious lifetime.
“Delving into Thelonious Monk also has been a way to connect with my musical heritage,” says Broom. With Bobby Broom Plays for Monk, he, Dennis Carroll, and Kobie Watkins make that connection, providing fresh insights into Monk’s music while capturing its timeless spirit.
Posted in Artist of the Month | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010
 North Carolina Central University will hold its 61st Annual Honors Convocation on Friday, April 9, in the McDougald – McLendon Gymnasium at 10:15 a.m. The keynote speaker will be Ernie Suggs, reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Nieman Fellow at Harvard University.
Suggs is a 1990 graduate of NCCU. As a student, he served as sports editor and editor-in-chief with the award winning Campus Echo. His extensive background in journalism includes work with Gannett Westchester Newspapers in White Plains, N.Y., and the Durham Herald-Sun, where he covered higher education.
While working at the Herald-Sun, Suggs was awarded an Education Writers Association fellowship and completed the groundbreaking series, “Fighting to Survive,” a 17-story, eight-day series on black colleges that earned him several national and state awards, including Journalist of the Year by the N.C. Black Publishers Association, the N.C. Press Association and the National Association of Black Journalists.
He is now the primary reporter on race and civil rights at the Journal Constitution. In 2005, he served as national vice president of the National Association of Black Journalists, the largest organization of journalists of color in the world.
As a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, Suggs spent a year studying in the university’s African and African-American Studies Department before being appointed to the Nieman Foundation’s Board of Trustees.
The Honors Convocation celebrates academic excellence by NCCU students. Honor recipients are recognized in the following categories: Chancellor’s Award for Academic Excellence, University Award for Academic Excellence, departmental academic honors, performing arts distinctions, community service, and membership in professional and academic honor societies. Students receive a lapel pin that will distinguish them as an honor student and will be worn during the week of convocation and on Convocation Day. University and Centennial choirs will perform and a reception will follow in the A.E. Student Union.
“This is an opportunity to celebrate our students,” said Dr. Tim Holley, director of the honors program. “If retention and graduation is the end goal, then honors convocation serves as the means to the end.”
Posted in Public Affairs | Comments Off on Giving Honor Where Honor is Due
Sunday, March 28th, 2010
The 20th Annual NCCU Jazz Festival, April 15-17, marks a milestone for the Jazz Studies Program at North Carolina Central University. The festival concept, “Education Beyond the Classroom,” was developed to expose students and the NCCU community to noted jazz musicians of the highest quality.
Below you will find the festival schedule of events. For more information, visit <www.nccu.edu/jazzfestival>.
Bobby Broom w/ the NCCU Jazz Faculty
THURSDAY, APRIL 15, 8 P.M., B.N. DUKE AUDITORIUM, TICKETS: $10
Broom, a Chicago-based jazz guitarist, was a teenager performing in a Weldon Irvine musical, when he was first offered the chance to tour with jazz composer and tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins.
[VISIT BOBBYBROOM.COM] [PURCHASE TICKETS]
Nnenna Freelon w/ the NCCU Jazz Ensemble
FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 8 P.M., B.N. DUKE
AUDITORIUM TICKETS: $15
Known as the “international voice of jazz,” Freelon has released 11 CDs and shared the stage with legendary artists from every genre.
[VISIT NNENNA.COM] [PURCHASE TICKETS]
Christian McBride & Inside Straight
SATURDAY, APRIL 17, 8 P.M., B.N. DUKE AUDITORIUM, TICKETS: $20
Called a wunderkind, McBride has been featured on hundreds of albums and received a commission from Jazz at Lincoln Center to compose “Bluesin’ in Alphabet City,” performed by Wynton Marsalis with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.
[VISIT CHRISTIANMCBRIDE.COM] [PURCHASE TICKETS]
Posted in Music News | 5 Comments »
Thursday, March 25th, 2010
 University of North Carolina President Erskine Bowles recently appointed Dr. Harvey L. McMurray, chair, Department of Criminal Justice, North Carolina Central University, to represent the University of North Carolina on the Governor’s StreetSafe Task Force. The task force was established last year to explore ways to help people released from prison make successful transitions back into community life.
McMurray said, “I am hopeful that the StreetSafe Task Force will seize this opportunity to have frank discussions about balancing public safety with social justice.”
He applauds the Governor’s foresight in establishing the Task Force and insists that at the end of the day, its success will be measured by advocating for home comers and by giving them a second chance. His goals are to reduce recidivism and ensure that the limited fiscal resources available are invested efficiently and effectively.
On September 19, 2009, Governor Bev Perdue named 34 members to the StreetSafe Task Force. Attorney General Roy Cooper and Department of Correction Secretary Alvin Keller serve as co-chairs. StreetSafe will bring together faith-based organizations, nonprofits, local and state government agencies, business leaders and members of the community to develop a plan to combat recidivism and reintegrate offenders safely into the community.
North Carolina Central University is the first publicly supported liberal arts college for African-Americans and this year, U.S. News & World Report ranked NCCU among the top ten HBCUs in the country. As NCCU celebrates its Centennial Year, a diverse student body of more than 8,500 students is enrolled in programs such as law, business, library science, nursing, education,
Posted in Public Affairs | 14 Comments »
Monday, March 22nd, 2010
 The Campus Echo, North Carolina Central University’s student newspaper, has won nine Excellence in Journalism awards from the Black College Communications Association.
The Echo won Best Overall HBCU Student Newspaper, Best Headline Writing, Best Individual Page Design, Best Editorial Cartoon and Best HBCU Online Student Newspaper. The paper also took second place in Best Overall Design, Best Opinion/Editorial Section and Best Multimedia Package, and Honorable Mention for Best Photo Essay.
Led by faculty advisor Dr. Bruce dePyssler, the publication has won more than 134 national awards, including the Mark of Excellence award from the Society of Professional Journalists for best all-around online student newspaper. “These awards, which are given by industry professionals, are a testament to the hard work of our students,” said dePyssler. “Their commitment to the Campus Echo — and to learning how to produce a professional newspaper — has inspired me since the day I began advising the Echo 10 years ago.”
With a staff of 15 that includes reporters, copy editors, photographers and a cartoonist, the print publication has a circulation of 4,000 to 30 campus newsstands.
Last year, the Echo completed a redesign of its online edition, integrating it into College Publisher 5 (CP5), a content management system owned by MTV that is the standard for university online newspapers. The switch has sped up production, integrated local advertising and simplified adding multimedia content to the publication. MTV provides CP5 to the Echo in exchange for prime advertising positioning.
“Our primary goal, as always, is to never lose any ground,” dePyssler said. “Given the never-ending graduation of our best-trained students, it would be easy to slip into mediocrity. After that, our goal is to continue to integrate multimedia into the online edition. That’s where we need to put our efforts.”
Editor-in-chief Carlton Koonce said he is thrilled to have the hard work of his colleagues recognized. A graduating senior from Greenville, N.C., Koonce spends many hours working on the publication, even as he juggles a fulltime job, parenthood and classes, all while maintaining a 3.9 GPA. “When I go over to the NCCU archives and look up the Echo, I see my name listed among the other editors, and that is the legacy that I’ll leave,” he said. “I was the centennial editor.” His advice to his yet-to-be-named successor, is simple: “Push but don’t shove — use please and thank you.”
Posted in Public Affairs | 6 Comments »
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