Pianist Larry Vuckovich’s new CD HIGH WALL: REAL LIFE FILM NOIR follows his acclaimed STREET SCENE film noir tribute that hit #1 on XM Satellite Radio and the top 10 of JazzWeek charts. It features the first jazz recording of a Bronislaw Kaper gem from the film noir High Wall, which inspired the CD title. Other tracks include four originals, a Barry Harris piece ”Lolita,” Crusaders’ funk and Rodrigo classical, plus two live concert tracks. Bassist Larry Grenadier returns from the STREET SCENE sessions for this CD as do percussionists Hector Lugo and Vince Delgado. Joining them are bassist Paul Keller and drummers Eddie Marshall and Chuck McPherson.

Scott Yanow, All Music Guide, has given HIGH WALL 4 1/2 stars. Chris Spector, Midwest Record, says: ”… this is a classy jazz piano date … Elegant and earthy with a surprising amount of funk … this is the kind of set you’ll be mad at yourself for missing … A real winning date. ” Reese Erlich, NPR’s Jazz Perspectives, says High Wall ”soars to new heights.” Look for a review in the 88s column of the September Jazz Times.

www.larryvuckovich.com
www.groovmarketing.com

Radio Promotion by GROOV Marketing and Consulting: (877) 476-6832
Mark Rini: [email protected]
Josh Ellman: [email protected]

NEA Partners with Jazz at Lincoln Center for NEA Jazz Masters Awards Ceremony and Concert

Washington, DC ¬ The National Endowment for the Arts today announced the recipients of the 2009 NEA Jazz Masters Award the nation’s highest honor in this distinctly American music. The six recipients will each receive a $25,000 grant award, and will be publicly honored in an awards ceremony and concert on Friday, October 17, 2008.

The six 2009 NEA Jazz Masters are: George Benson (vocalist and solo instrumentalist, guitar), Jimmy Cobb (rhythm instrumentalist, drums), Lee Konitz (solo instrumentalist, saxophone), Toots Thielemans (solo instrumentalist, harmonica and guitar), and Snooky Young (solo instrumentalist, trumpet). Recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder will receive the 2009 A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Award for Jazz Advocacy.

For the October presentation, the Arts Endowment will partner with Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City. The awards ceremony and concert at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center, will feature the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis in a program dedicated to the honorees’ works. Past collaborations between the NEA and Jazz at Lincoln Center include the NEA Jazz in the Schools curriculum available free of charge to high school teachers nationwide and the media announcement event for the 2008 NEA Jazz Masters class.

“Jazz is a vital part of our nation’s history and cultural heritage, said NEA Chairman Dana Gioia, “and I am delighted to announce the artists of the class of 2009, whose bodies of work have had, and continue to have, a decisive and enduring impact on the development of this art form.

Each member of the 2009 class fulfilled the selection criteria of being a distinguished artist whose excellence, impact, and significant contributions have helped to keep the important tradition of jazz alive:

A winner of ten Grammy Awards, George Benson created the innovative practice of playing a florid guitar melody accompanied by an identical, scatted vocal line.
An accomplished soloist and outstanding accompanist, jazz drummer Jimmy Cobb has worked with such renowned musicians as Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, and Sarah Vaughan.

A pioneer of “cool jazz” saxophonist Lee Konitz was part of Miles Davis’s famous nonet performances and recordings in the 1940s, before working with Lennie Tristano and Stan Kenton and eventually emerging as a highly acclaimed band leader.

Toots Thielemans has been credited with bringing the harmonica to jazz. The mastery of his instrument is evident in his performances with Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Quincy Jones, Billy Joel, and Paquito D¹Rivera. Arguably the greatest recording engineer in jazz history, Rudy Van Gelder¹s crystal-clear recordings have defined the sound associated with the legendary Blue Note record label since the early 1950s.

A master of the plunger mute, Snooky Young¹s distinctive sound made him the trumpeter of choice for the great jazz big band leaders Count Basie, Jimmie Lunceford, and Lionel Hampton, among others. He is currently a member of The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.

Profiles and downloadable high resolution photos of the 2009 NEA Jazz Masters can be found on the NEA¹s Web site: http://www.arts.gov/national/jazz/jazz09/index.html

Each year since 1982, the Arts Endowment has conferred the NEA Jazz Masters Award on a handful of living legends who have made major contributions to jazz. With this new class, the award has been given to 106 great figures in American music. Other NEA Jazz Masters include Count Basie, Art Blakey, Dave Brubeck, Betty Carter, Ornette Coleman, Miles Davis, Roy Eldridge, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Hampton, Herbie Hancock, Elvin Jones, Abbey Lincoln, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Cecil Taylor, Sarah Vaughan, Nancy Wilson, and Teddy Wilson.

About NEA Jazz Masters: NEA Jazz Masters are selected from nominations submitted by the public. Musicians selected as NEA Jazz Masters receive a one-time grant award of $25,000, are honored at a public awards ceremony, and may be offered opportunities for participation in NEA-sponsored promotional, performance, and educational activities under the NEA Jazz Masters National Initiative program. Only living musicians or jazz advocates may receive the NEA Jazz Masters honor.

The National Endowment for the Arts has supported jazz artists and organizations since 1969, providing millions of dollars in grants and awards. In 2004, the NEA significantly expanded its NEA Jazz Masters program and in 2005 created the NEA Jazz Masters Initiative, a comprehensive program of jazz support that includes the NEA Jazz Masters Award; NEA Jazz Masters Live, a series of multiple event engagements in selected communities, featuring NEA Jazz Masters; radio programming featuring NEA Jazz Masters; a compilation CD produced by Verve Music Group; educational resources through the NEA Jazz in the Schools program produced by Jazz at Lincoln Center; and publications and reports. For more information on NEA Jazz Masters, the public is invited to visit the web site, at www.neajazzmasters.org.

About Jazz at Lincoln Center: Jazz at Lincoln Center is dedicated to inspiring and growing audiences for jazz. With the world-renowned Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and a comprehensive array of guest artists, Jazz at Lincoln Center advances a unique vision for the continued development of the art of jazz by producing a year-round schedule of performance, education and broadcast events for audiences of all ages. These productions include concerts, national and international tours, residencies, hall of fame induction ceremony, weekly national radio and television programs, recordings, publications, an annual high school jazz band competition and festival, a band director academy, jazz appreciation curriculum for students, music publishing, children’s concerts, lectures, adult education courses, student and educator workshops and interactive websites. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis Jazz at Lincoln Center will produce nearly 3,000 events during its 2008-09 Season in its home in New York City, Frederick P. Rose Hall, and around the world. Please visit our website at www.jalc.org.

Nu Jazz Entertainment Announces the Launch of the World’s First Jazz Record Label with Audio & Video Content Exclusively for Digital Download

(New York, NY) – Nu Jazz Entertainment–a long time producer of high quality audio and video content in the genre of jazz–announced the launch of two new labels, dedicated to the production and distribution of audio & video recordings–exclusively for digital download.

“Nu” Jazz for a “Nu” Era

Nu Jazz Entertainment founder Jerald Miller, has announced the formation of two separate labels, to release high definition video and audio content–exclusively for digital download in the genre of jazz. Nu Jazz Records and Nu Jazz Video are the first labels of their type in the industry-dedicated to providing high quality audio and video releases of emerging, and soon to be, legends in jazz.

Nu Jazz Entertainment will release over 30 audio & video projects per year.

he current slate of releases include projects from: Award-winning Tenor & Soprano saxophonist, Jimmy Greene; a rising star in percussion, Drummer, Geoff Clapp; longtime Wynton Marsalis sideman, Alto Saxophonist, Wess “Warmdaddy” Anderson; a fiery new Baritone saxophonist, named Jason Marshall; and one of the original Tough Young Tenors, and current Jazz at Lincoln Center member, Walter Blanding, Jr., on Tenor saxophone. “With the emergence of new technologies over the last 10 years, it’s important to make great performances in Jazz available to all who wish to see them”, says Mr. Miller. “By making all of our audio and video products available exclusively for digital download, we’re able to bring new performances to jazz lovers around the world on a consistent, and almost instantaneous basis.”

“Furthermore”, Miller continues, “by maintaining our own production staff, we become the first jazz label to have audio and video assets for 100% of our in-house produced releases.”

Delivering “Nu” Music in a “Nu” Way

All releases will be available for digital download directly from both the label’s website (www.nujazzentertainment.com), and major music download services (iTunes, Zune Marketplace, Amazon, eMusic, etc.). Additionally, music and video content from Nu Jazz Entertainment will be available on over 450 other download services, in over 50 countries, around the globe. In a forward thinking approach to music distribution, the label will also become the first jazz label in the industry to offer all of their releases for purchase on specially manufactured “Digital Music Cards”.

Digital Music Cards”, explains label founder Jerald Miller, “are pre-manufactured plastic cards, which contain album artwork on the front, and a unique download ‘scratch off’ code on the back, with instructions on how to redeem the cards.”

Purchasing Product from the Nu Jazz Website Jazz fans will be able to purchase product directly from the Nu Jazz website in virtually any format necessary for their portable or home music system.

Regular audio track downloads (MP3) retail between $.99 and $1.99 depending upon song length, while high-quality audio tracks (WAV) retail between $1.49 and $2.49. All video single tracks (MPEG4 or MOV) retail between $1.99 and $2.99, while an entire video album (MPEG2, MPEG4, or MOV) retails for $12.99.
For those fans who still want physical product, there will be an option to purchase a CD on demand for $12.99 or DVD on demand for $16.99. Consumers are also able to purchase Baseball caps, T-shirts, Sweatshirts–or a variety of other artist and label related merchandise–from the Nu Jazz Store on the label website.

Digital Music Cards

Two versions of the digital music cards will be available for each release.

One version contains the “Digital Music Album”, and allows the purchaser to download the audio files with specially developed bonus features–such as audio interviews or photos–and retails for $9.99. The second version allows the purchaser to download the entire audio album–plus a full-length concert video–with bonus features. Each card contains different artwork and different bonus items, in addition to a digital discount coupon from the Nu Jazz Store–to be used for purchases of merchandise from the company’s website.

To deliver content on the digital music cards, Nu Jazz Entertainment has partnered with FizzkicksTM — the ground breaking digital music delivery system, helmed by Aaron Burton. “We’re excited to be working with Jerald Miller and the Nu Jazz family, in helping to expand the reach of jazz to its fans around the world.” says Burton. “The depth and variety of audio and video content produced by Nu Jazz Entertainment, is perfect for our system – and can help translate digital sales to revenue for brick and mortar retailers around the globe.”

Fans will be able to purchase these cards through select retailers, via Amazon.com , directly from the label’s website, or from any of the artists at their performances.

Forthcoming “Nu Jazz” Projects

Nu Jazz Records and Nu Jazz Video will feature a variety of projects from across the many styles of jazz. Featuring both “Nu” and well established artists, Nu Jazz Entertainment is poised to become a major player in the deliverance of high quality audio and video recordings to the marketplace.
First up is The Overcomer’s Suite, a new album from the award winning Tenor saxophonist, Jimmy Greene. With several albums under his belt at other labels, and a constant tour schedule, the first tome on Nu Jazz Records – Jimmy Greene: The Overcomer’s Suite [NJE #1001] is a bold statement from an emerging artist. The Overcomer’s Suite comprises a four-part composition that delves into biblical themes. “Each movement depicts a person who, in God’s care, overcame a daunting task, trial, or situation”, says composer Jimmy Greene. Originally commissioned by Chamber Music of America, it debuted at the International Association of Jazz Educator’s (IAJE) conference in New York, in front of a crowd of over 6,000 people. The album contains over 60 minutes of music, including a moving tribute commissioned by ASCAP in honor of National Endowments of the Arts Jazz Master, Ornette Coleman, entitled Anthem of Hope. Jimmy Greene is backed by Xavier Davis on Piano, Luques Curtis on Bass, and Kendrick Scott on Drums.

Other upcoming releases include projects from: a fiery new Baritone saxophonist, Jason Marshall (Jason Marshall: Introducing… Jason Marshall [NJE #1011, #1013]); a tome from long-time Wynton Marsalis sideman Wes “Warmdaddy” Anderson, (Wessell Anderson: Warm It Up Warmdaddy! [NJE 1021, #1023]); as well as a, yet to be named, project from Tenor saxophonist, Walter Blanding, Jr.–a current member of Wynton Marsalis’ Septet and Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, and many more.
Late in 2008, Nu Jazz Entertainment will launch their Jazz Legends series–featuring previously unreleased audio tracks from historic figures such as Duke Ellington, among others, on digital music albums–combined with bonus photos and original video content–developed and produced exclusively for each featured artist.

“Nu” Digital Partnerships for “Nu Jazz”

Nu Jazz Entertainment has developed extensive partnerships and online promotional campaigns with such partners as: Youtube, Myspace, Facebook, Imeem, Download.com , Metacafe, Revver, and a host of other digital portals, in the most ambitious digital marketing campaign by any jazz label today. From the creation of special artist “video” trailers, to the anticipated giveaway of over 100,000 downloads in 2008, Nu Jazz plans to remain extremely active in creating an awareness of their product in the digital landscape–all while introducing new consumers to their artists. As a special 2008 promotion, Nu Jazz Entertainment will be launching one new release every week for digital download on their website.

Contact Info:
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.nujazzentertainment.com
To hear the free snippets album visit: http://music.download.com/jimmy_greene
To watch Free video clips visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wI-KJ2nBU8
For more information on Nu Jazz Entertainment, Nu Jazz Records, or Nu Jazz Video visit www.nujazzentertainment.com/press or email: [email protected]