![]() After accepting an invitation from impresario George Wein to perform at the prestigious Newport Jazz Festival, Joey brought audiences to their feet with his playful musicality and keen sense of swing. ![]() Promoters were skeptical but soon recognized his ability to delight audiences. Wishing to encourage development of his prodigious playing, his parents sold the family business in Jakarta and relocated to the United States. “There has never been anyone that you can think of who could play like that at his age,” said Marsalis of Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. debut appearance at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Rose Hall in 2014, where he amazed the audience with his musicality. Joey later said to Hancock, “You told me that you believed in me, and that was the day I decided to dedicate my childhood to jazz.”Īn invitation from jazz legend Wynton Marsalis led to his U.S. Joey’s musicianship and grasp of jazz fundamentals developed at a remarkable pace, and at age 8 UNESCO invited him to play solo piano for an elated Herbie Hancock during the piano great’s visit to Indonesia. ![]() ![]() He was immediately able to pick out the melody of Thelonious Monk’s “Well, You Needn’t,” and his dad nurtured his gift of swing and improvisation by taking him to jam with veteran musicians in Bali and Jakarta. At the age of 6, he began teaching himself to play piano using an electronic mini-keyboard given to him by his father. At such a young age, Joey has performed at the 58th annual Grammy Awards and impressed the “Today” show, “60 Minutes,” CNN, The New York Times, and a host of other television, radio and print media.īorn June 25, 2003, on the island of Bali, Joey originally learned about jazz from his dad and a variety of classic albums, according to his website. Hosted by the center’s own artist-in-residence Eric Essix, this performance will focus on the future of jazz. Faculty and staff may receive a 20 percent discount on single tickets. Limit one ticket per student, and a limited number of tickets are available for each show. UAB students may purchase $10 tickets with valid student ID at the ASC Box Office. UAB faculty may purchase $25 tickets a limited number of $25 tickets are available for most performances. The performance is presented by the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center. Washington Performing Arts performances at Sixth & I are made possible by the Abramson Family Foundation.Pianist Joey Alexander, just 14 years old, and his trio will star in the sixth and final installment of “The Essentials,” an innovative series devoted to honoring the history of jazz. With luminary fans and champions including Herbie Hancock and Wynton Marsalis, an acclaimed debut disc ( My Favorite Things) released in May, and glowing attention from major media like NBC’s Today and the New York Times, Alexander has exploded onto the international jazz scene with a rare combination of dazzling technique and, in the Times’ words, “a sophisticated harmonic palette and a dynamic sensitivity.” In a similar vein, JazzTimes hailed the Bali-born, New York–dwelling pianist as “magnificent not only for his virtuosity-plenty of prodigies have outsized chops-but for his maturity and perception.” Don’t miss this chance to experience one of the most promising artists of the next jazz generation in this intimate trio performance. “I want you to understand something: This is the future of this music.” So proclaimed veteran jazz radio announcer Gary Walker (WBGO, New York) of 12-year-old piano prodigy Joey Alexander, who takes the stage this fall at Sixth & I-and, in the process, becomes the youngest headline artist ever presented by Washington Performing Arts.
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