Duke Ellington Jazz Series Returns to Lyric
LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 18, 2012) — Courtesy of the work of some University of Kentucky School of Music faculty members, a popular local arts performance group will help showcase the sounds of Duke Ellington at a jazz series at the Lyric Theatre. The Kentucky Jazz Repertory Orchestra, directed by UK School of Music professors Miles Osland and Dick Domek, will help bring the jazz legend's music to life again tonight.
The "Duke" returned to Lexington as part of the Lyric Theatre’s Duke Ellington Jazz Series earlier this year. The music of the "Duke" will return again this weekend as soloists from the American Spiritual Ensemble, the Kentucky Jazz Repertory Orchestra, professional tap dancer Lee How, and world-renowned jazz pianist Harry Pickens join forces for the second installment in the Duke Ellington Jazz Series, featuring musical selections rarely performed in the region. This time the “Duke” will bring what is “Hip, Harlem, and Hollywood” into focus at the Lyric at 8 p.m. Friday, May 18.
The Kentucky Jazz Repertory Orchestra (KJRO) is a 17 piece band co-directed by Osland and Domek, which is suited for and highly skilled at recreating authentic swing era arrangements. They are one of the few bands in the region and even in the country that captures the energy, excitement, rhythmic feeling and pulse of the big band music in the swing era. KJRO, consisting of the finest and most talented faculty, alumni and musicians from Kentucky area colleges and universities, has released two CDs, the "Ellington Celebration" and "Flying Home."
All of Duke’s music is “hip,” meaning ever-popular, ever-meaningful and never out of style. This program is designed to highlight Ellington’s instrumental and vocal performances during the years he lived and worked in Harlem and then on the movie sets of Hollywood, leaving room for several other treasured numbers that are too hip to pass up.
"Ellington's "Harlem Suite" is one of his many extended-length pieces that were never intended, in terms of content, scope, as well as length, to fit on a single three minute recording. It's a fun and engaging piece and has a ‘serious’ side as well as a swinging aspect. It's a musical portrait of life in Harlem, where Ellington spent much of his working life. Like many of his extended works, it doesn't get played enough," said Domek, co-director of the KJRO and professor of music theory at UK College of Fine Arts. "I'd be surprised if this piece has ever been performed live in Lexington or indeed in this part of the Midwestern-Southeastern U.S. We're fortunate that KJRO has a copy of this piece and that our KJRO musicians are up to its musical challenges. I think it's significant that a live performance of the "Harlem Suite" will be taking place in Lexington at its Lyric Theatre. It's especially appropriate that we'll feature it on this concert, with so much of its music coming from Duke's association with the neighborhoods and life of Harlem."
Harry Pickens is an improvisational pianist, an educator, and a visionary. He has performed internationally with many of the finest artists in the jazz field, including Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, Milt Jackson and Freddie Hubbard. An alumnus of Davidson College and Rutgers University, Pickens blends an active performance career, which has taken him to 17 countries on four continents, with a deep passion for making a difference as a teacher, consultant and professional speaker.
Lee Howard, better known by his stage name Lee How, is a rapper, songwriter, music producer and tap dancer from Chicago. He began his professional career more than 10 years ago by starting out as a tap dancer and is considered one of the world's best of his generation.
The Duke Ellington Jazz Series is presented by PNC Bank and Friends of the Lyric with additional support from Kentucky Utilities.
General admission tickets to this concert are $20 and VIP tickets, which include a reception in the Lyric Theatre Art Gallery, are $45. To purchase tickets contact the Lyric Theatre Box Office at 859-280-2218. Box office hours are 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. You may also purchase tickets online by going to www.lexingtonlyric.com
In addition to performing in Friday night's concert, on Saturday, May 19, the professional tap dancer, Lee How, will instruct beginner and advanced dance classes at the Lyric Theatre. All ages and skill levels are welcome to join this free dance class.
The mission of the Lyric Theatre and Cultural Arts Center is to preserve, promote, present and celebrate diverse culture with special emphasis on African-American cultural heritage through artistic presentations of the highest quality, educational programming and outreach, film, and opportunities for community inclusion. For more information, visit www.lexingtonlyric.com.