Jazz Great Randy Weston Premieres “An African Nubian Suite” at NYU on April 8

April 6, 2012 - PRLog -- The NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts will host the premiere of “An African Nubian Suite” by Randy Weston with his African Rhythms Orchestra on Easter Sunday, April 8 at 7:00pm (566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square South).

Randy Weston is an internationally renowned pianist, composer, bandleader and cultural ambassador, whose compositions encompass the vast rhythmic heritage of Africa. Still a true innovator and visionary after 60 years of active work, Weston continues to inform and inspire. He has made more than 40 albums and performed throughout the world. Weston has been inducted into the ASCAP Jazz Wall of Fame, designated a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts, and named Jazz Composer of the Year three times by DownBeat magazine. He is the recipient of many other honors and awards, including France’s Order of Arts and Letters, the Black Star Award from the Arts Critics and Reviewers Association of Ghana, and a five-night tribute at the Montreal Jazz Festival.

“You have to go back to Africa, where music was created as a spiritual force. Music was created to bring human beings together,” said Weston. “Music is the creation of the creator.”

The concert will feature special appearances by poet Jayne Cortez, historian Robin D. G. Kelley and special guest Wayne B. Chandler, author and program narrator. The following books will be available for purchase and signing by the authors: African Rhythms: The Autobiography of Randy Weston and Africa Speaks, America Answers: Modern Jazz in Revolutionary Times by Robin D. G. Kelley.

“An African Nubian Suite” was developed with support of the Guggenheim Foundation.

Ticket prices: $15 (regular); $10 (NYU students, faculty, staff). For more information, please visit www.nyuskirball.org/calendar/weston. To purchase tickets, please visit the Skirball website or call 212.352.3101/866.811.4111. Subway lines: A, B, C, D, E, F, M (W. 4th St.); 1 (Christopher St.); N, R (8th St.); 6 (Astor Place, Bleecker Street).

NYU Skirball Center
The Jack H. Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is the premier venue for the presentation of cultural and performing arts events for New York University and lower Manhattan.  Led by executive producer Jay Oliva (President Emeritus, NYU) and senior director Michael Harrington, the programs of the Skirball Center reflect NYU's mission as an international center of scholarship, defined by excellence and innovation and shaped by an intellectually rich and diverse environment.  A vital aspect of the Center's mission is to build young adult audiences for the future of live performance. For more, go to: www.nyuskirball.org.

PHOTO CREDIT:  Cheung Ching Ming