Bobby McFerrin and Chick Corea Make Walt Disney Concert Hall Debuts

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008, AT 8 PM

Acura is the Sponsor for the Concert - All Acura Vehicles Park Free for the Evening

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association’s 2007/2008 Jazz Series continues on Wednesday, April 16, at 8 p.m. with jazz greats Bobby McFerrin, Chick Corea and Jack DeJohnette, performing together as a trio for the first time. McFerrin and Corea make their Walt Disney Concert Hall debuts.

Bobby McFerrin, a 10-time Grammy-winner, is one of the world’s foremost vocal innovators and improvisers, a world-renowned classical conductor, and perhaps best known as the creator of “Don’t Worry, Be Happy,” one of the most popular songs of modern day music. With a four-octave range and a vast array of vocal techniques, McFerrin is no mere singer – he is a vocal explorer who combines jazz, folk and a multitude of world music influences with his own ingredients.

Bobby McFerrin and Jack DeJohnette have been friends for decades, and together share a thirst for musical exploration. McFerrin participated on DeJohnette’s 1994 Blue Note/Capitol recording Extra Special Edition. DeJohnette is widely regarded as one of jazz music's greatest drummers. He has collaborated with most major figures in jazz history including Herbie Hancock, Betty Carter, Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson, Michael Brecker, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, Thelonious Monk, Chet Baker and many more.

Longtime friend and collaborator Chick Corea recorded two albums with McFerrin for Blue Note and Sony Records, Play and The Mozart Sessions. Corea is one of the most prolific composers of the second half of the 20th century. In the four decades of his recording career, Corea has been at the forefront of jazz as a renowned pioneer continually forging new musical ground.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Jazz Series, under the guidance of Creative Chair for Jazz Christian McBride, offers a four-concert series featuring major artists from the world of jazz. The 2007/08 series concludes on May 16 with The Movement Revisited, McBride’s musical tribute to the civil rights movement.

CHICK COREA's four-decade career is the stuff of jazz lore. His earliest compositions were recorded during one of his first professional stints, three years with trumpeter Blue Mitchell ('64-'66), which led up to the pianist's first project as a leader, Tones For Joan's Bones. After a year accompanying Sarah Vaughan, he rose to true prominence by joining Miles Davis' band playing electric piano. From there, Chick formed his own avant-garde improvisational group, Circle. In 1971, after three years of Circle, Chick changed his focus. Jazz has never been quite the same since the birth of Return to Forever. The group spearheaded the mid-'70s fusion movement with such innovative albums as Where Have I Known You Before, the Grammy-winning No Mystery and Romantic Warrior. When RTF disbanded in 1975, Corea delved into a diverse series of recordings - electronic ensembles, solo piano, classical music, and high-powered acoustic duos - with artists like Herbie Hancock and Gary Burton. Other Corea projects leading up to his mid-'80s formation of the Elektric Band were the Grammy winning Leprechaun, My Spanish Heart, and Musicmagic (the last of which was a new Return to Forever project with vocalist Gayle Moran), followed by Mad Hatter, RTF Live, and work with Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Hubert Laws, Chaka Khan, and Nancy Wilson, among countless others. In 1997 Chick teamed up again with Gary Burton. It had been over 20 years since their Crystal Silence duet recording and the two thought it was time to do another. Native Sense - The New Duets was released on Stretch Records in 1998 and gave Chick his ninth Grammy. Moving forward is something at which Chick is well adept. Toward the end of 1997, Chick decided to again a another new group - Origin - in which he could once again perform on acoustic piano. Corea’s latest release is The New Crystal Silence, a live 2-CD set marking the 35th anniversary of Crystal Silence, his landmark album with vibraphonist Gary Burtons.

JACK DeJOHNETTE is one of the finest drummers in jazz today. His approach to the drums is that of a complete musician, exploring the varied colors and timbres of his instruments, rather than simple time-keeping. Born in 1942 in Chicago, DeJohnette studied classical music and piano for 10 years as a youth. In the mid-'60s he joined Muhal Richard Abrams and Roscoe Mitchell as a member of AACM, Chicago's pioneering avant-garde ensemble of creative improvising musicians. He headed to New York in 1966, playing first with Jackie McLean, Betty Carter, and Abbey Lincoln, before joining the Charles Lloyd Quartet. By 1967, he was playing with many of period's greatest improvisors including Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, and Stan Getz, before joining Miles Davis in 1968 to record the quintessential jazz-rock fusion record, Bitches Brew, along with John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, and Dave Holland. After a few years with Miles, DeJohnette moved on and began recording as leader and sideman with most of the finest players in jazz. In the 1970s, he founded New Directions featuring John Abercrombie, Eddie Gomez, and Lester Bowie, followed by Special Edition, and then the Gateway Trio with Dave Holland and John Abercrombie, which is still an active trio today. In 1972 he began a 25-year recording collaboration with ECM Records, where he has played on over 40 recordings with his varied groups as a leader, as a sideman, and the trio with Jarrett and Peacock.

BOBBY McFERRIN is one of the natural wonders of the music world. His recordings have sold over 20 million copies, and his collaborations including those with Yo-Yo Ma, Chick Corea, the Vienna Philharmonic, and Herbie Hancock have established him as an ambassador of both the classical and jazz worlds. Throughout McFerrin’s innovative career as a solo vocalist, audiences have been captivated. With a comedian's sense of timing, an unrestrained zany streak, and an infectious love of every genre of music, McFerrin created a new kind of concert - not a "performance" but a communal sharing and celebration of music. As a conductor, Bobby is able to convey his innate musicality in an entirely different context. He has worked with such orchestras as the New York Philharmonic, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Vienna Philharmonic. Those familiar with McFerrin's shows, whether as a conductor or a vocalist, know that each one is a unique event that resonates with the unexpected. He is that rare artist who has the ability to reach beyond musical genres and stereotypes for a sound that is entirely his own. As one of the foremost guardians of music's rich heritage, he remains at the vanguard with his natural, beautiful and timeless music that transcends all borders and embraces all cultures.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, presents the finest in orchestral and chamber music, recitals, new music, jazz, world music and holiday concerts at two of the most remarkable places anywhere to experience music — Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. In addition to a 30-week winter subscription season at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the LA Phil presents a 12-week summer festival at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and home of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. In fulfilling its commitment to the community, the Association’s involvement with Los Angeles extends to educational programs, community concerts and children's programming, ever seeking to provide inspiration and delight to the broadest possible audience.

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008, at 8 PM

WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL, 111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles



Jazz Series



BOBBY McFERRIN, vocals

CHICK COREA, piano

JACK DeJOHNETTE, drums



Acura is the sponsor for the concert - all Acura vehicles park free for the evening.

Tickets ($35-95) are on sale now online at LAPhil.com, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office, or via credit card phone order at 323.850.2000. A limited number of $10 rush tickets for seniors and full-time students may be available at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office two hours prior to the performance. Valid identification is required; one ticket per person; cash only. Groups of 10 or more may be eligible for special discounts for selected concerts and seating areas. For information, please call 323.850.2000.

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