Danilo Pérez Presents “Things To Come: 21st Century Dizzy” Performances | 2010

DL Media announces performance dates for Panamanian pianist, composer, and educator Danilo Pérez and his new project, Things to Come: 21st Century Dizzy.
With performances in Philadelphia, Toronto, New York, Ann Arbor,
Minneapolis, and Chicago, these performances will feature an all-star
cast of musicians: David Sánchez on tenor saxophone; Rudresh Mahanthappa on alto saxophone; Amir ElSaffar on trumpet and voice; Jamey Haddad on percussion; Ben Street on bass (John Patitucci will substitute for Street on the first three dates); and Adam Cruz on drums.
 
Pérez, who recently signed with Mack Avenue Records
in 2009 and is expected to release his label debut in August, has
brought together this diverse and global group of musicians to
celebrate the music and bountiful inspiration of his mentor, Dizzy
Gillespie. Pérez’s hand-picked all-stars, with roots in Afro-Cuban,
be-bop, Indian, African, and Middle Eastern music, will more than honor
Dizzy’s legendary vision and keep true to the music that they’ve grown
into all their lives.
 
Things To Come: 21st Century Dizzy
showcases music that simultaneously addresses the culture of Panama,
the culture of Latin music as it is interpreted by jazz musicians, and
classic jazz repertoire together with the leader’s own original
compositions (in addition to performing new arrangements of classic
Gillespie tunes).
 
As the youngest member of the final edition
of Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nation Orchestra, Pérez learned first-hand
how Gillespie embraced musical and personal collaborations through the
world. Pérez reflects, “One of the greatest experiences was working
with Dizzy Gillespie, certainly the greatest master that I had the
chance to play with.”
 
Dizzy’s bands were a constant melting
pot of styles, genres, and pan-global collaborations. Pérez uses this
premise as a foundation for his endeavors.
 
Pérez states, “The
purpose of the music I’m doing right now is to really find common tones
in the world; how we, through music, actually come together and become
one in this day of acknowledging differences. I am acknowledging the
common tones in the world and that oneness feeling. All those layers
you see in this, how we as human beings, as individuals come together
and create communities. That’s the feeling I want to create.”
 
An extraordinary artist, Pérez is among the most influential and
dynamic musicians of our time. In just over a decade, his distinctive
blend of Pan-American jazz (covering the music of the Americas,
folkloric and world music) has attracted critical acclaim and loyal
audiences from all around the world. A long standing member of the
Wayne Shorter Quartet, Pérez has recorded and performed with the likes
of Steve Lacy, Roy Haynes, Jack DeJohnette, Charlie Haden, Michael
Brecker, Joe Lovano, Tito Puente, and Wynton Marsalis, among others.
Pérez is the Artistic Director of the Berklee College of Music‘s
newly formed Global Jazz Institute (a unique focused area of study at
the college designed to foster creativity and musicianship through
various musical disciplines) as well as the annual Panama Jazz Festival. Additionally, he serves as the Artistic Director of the Kimmel Center’s “Jazz Up Close” series.
 

· Friday, March 19: Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA
 
· Saturday, March 27: The Royal Conservatory Telus Centre for Performance and Learning, Toronto, Canada
 
· Thursday, April 1 – Sunday, April 4: Jazz Standard, New York, NY
 
· Thursday, April 8: University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
 
· Saturday, April 10: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
 
· Friday, May 21: Symphony Center, Chicago, IL