The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation and WBGO Children's Concert Series Present Pianist/Singer/Composer/Bandleader DAVELL CRAWFORD
in "A Musical Journey from New Orleans to Newark,”
at Newark Symphony Hall, Saturday, November 16, 2024, 1:00 pm
During the 13th Annual TD James Moody Jazz Festival
The Concert is Free and Open to the Public
NEWARK, NJ, November 8, 2024 - New Orleans and Newark are nearly 1300 miles apart, but that distance disappears when New Orleans’ native son, pianist, composer and bandleader Davell Crawford and his quartet return to the TD James Moody Jazz Festival to perform “Davell Crawford: a Musical Journey from New Orleans to Newark at Newark Symphony Hall, 1020 Broad Street on November 16, 2024, at 1:00 pm. The concert is presented by the Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation (LAEF) and the WBGO Children’s Concert Series.
Crawford, who performed with Gladys Knight at the festival last year, unveils his Crescent City pianism – a great gumbo of gospel, jazz, blues, R&B and Caribbean influences – and musically narrates a scintillating and syncopated tale of two cities, featuring the music of New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong, Professor Longhair, Jon Batiste, and Newark’s James Moody, Sarah Vaughan and Whitney Houston.
Also known as the “Piano Prince of New Orleans,” Crawford was born in 1975 with The Big Easy in his blood. “I tell people that my mom had triplets,” Crawford told WBGO’s Sheila Anderson on the Salon Sessions podcast. “She had me, a little grand piano and a microphone.” He alternately grew up in New Orleans, Lafayette and Western Louisiana. His godmother is the legendary soul diva Roberta Flack, and he is the grandson of R&B pianist James “Sugar Boy” Crawford. His primary influences were Patsy Cline and Sarah Vaughan, along with the great New Orleans pianists Jelly Roll Morton, Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, and James Booker. Crawford started playing piano at the age of 7, played the organ at St. Joseph Baptist Church, where he was the choir director at the age of 11, and toured Europe as a teenager. He attended the famed New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts (NOCCA), where the Marsalis brothers, Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison and Trombone Shorty also matriculated, and was mentored by vibes master, Lionel Hampton.
Crawford has worked with Nicholas Payton, Kermit Ruffins, Delfeayo Marsalis, Irma Thomas, Dr. John and many other musicians. Crawford’s albums as a leader include, Let Them Talk, The B-3 and Me, Love Like Yours and Mine, My Gift to You, Abide with Me: Hymns, Piano in the Vaults, Vol. 1, Spirituals and Solos and his 2024 releases, Alone Together: The Music of Roberta Flack for Solo Piano and Gentle Soul: The Music of Aretha Franklin for Solo Piano.
Hailed by Blues Access magazine as “…one of the most talented musicians alive,” Crawford is an all-encompassing artist, who understands that innovation comes from a deep knowledge of tradition. “I have a responsibility to preserve the music,” Crawford tells Steinway & Sons, “to carry it forth and to breathe new life into the music, when it’s appropriate to do that.”
ABOUT WBGO CHILDREN’S CONCERT SERIES/NEWARK PUBLIC RADIO
The WBGO Children’s Concert Series brings world-renowned jazz musicians to concert halls and venues throughout New York and New Jersey. These free concerts give young listeners the chance to discover the enjoyment of jazz, improvisation and musical collaboration. WBGO-FM/Newark Public Radio is a non-profit, publicly funded arts and cultural institution, dedicated to the curation, presentation, and preservation of music created out of the African American experience. The station is committed to providing its world-wide jazz community with independently produced music programming and journalism for the purpose of public enrichment, entertainment, and insight. https://www.wbgo.org
ABOUT THE LOUIS ARMSTRONG EDUCATION FOUNDATION (LAEF)
The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation (LAEF) was founded and funded by Louis and Lucille Armstrong in 1969 to give back to the world “some of the goodness he received.” The mission of the organization is to preserve and promote the cultural legacy of Louis Armstrong by fostering programs, lectures, and other educational events to assist those interested, gifted and talented in the field of music, primarily jazz. Today the Foundation is a major source of funding for programs to expose and educate adults and children in the history of American jazz and has provided solid financial support to institutions across the nation. In October 2021 in celebration of the 50th anniversary of LAEF, Verve Records, in conjunction with LAEF, released A Gift to Pops, a CD by The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong All-Stars with special guests Wynton Marsalis and Common. https://louisarmstrongfoundation.org
ABOUT THE TD JAMES MOODY FESTIVAL/NJPAC
Named for Newark’s great saxophonist/flutist James Moody, The TD James Moody Jazz Festival presents dozens of free and ticketed events, including Dorthaan’s Place, Jazz Vespers and the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. NJPAC is a nonprofit arts organization that is the cultural institution for the city of Newark that presents audiences with world-class performances, and nurtures students through a comprehensive arts education, and engages the community with free cultural events across the city. https://www.njpac.org/
https://www.njpac.org/series/james-moody-jazz-festival/
# # #
Media Contact: Carolyn McClair PR
(212) 721-3341 | https://carolynmcclairpr.com
Also known as the “Piano Prince of New Orleans,” Crawford was born in 1975 with The Big Easy in his blood. “I tell people that my mom had triplets,” Crawford told WBGO’s Sheila Anderson on the Salon Sessions podcast. “She had me, a little grand piano and a microphone.” He alternately grew up in New Orleans, Lafayette and Western Louisiana. His godmother is the legendary soul diva Roberta Flack, and he is the grandson of R&B pianist James “Sugar Boy” Crawford. His primary influences were Patsy Cline and Sarah Vaughan, along with the great New Orleans pianists Jelly Roll Morton, Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, and James Booker. Crawford started playing piano at the age of 7, played the organ at St. Joseph Baptist Church, where he was the choir director at the age of 11, and toured Europe as a teenager. He attended the famed New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts (NOCCA), where the Marsalis brothers, Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison and Trombone Shorty also matriculated, and was mentored by vibes master, Lionel Hampton.
Crawford has worked with Nicholas Payton, Kermit Ruffins, Delfeayo Marsalis, Irma Thomas, Dr. John and many other musicians. Crawford’s albums as a leader include, Let Them Talk, The B-3 and Me, Love Like Yours and Mine, My Gift to You, Abide with Me: Hymns, Piano in the Vaults, Vol. 1, Spirituals and Solos and his 2024 releases, Alone Together: The Music of Roberta Flack for Solo Piano and Gentle Soul: The Music of Aretha Franklin for Solo Piano.
Hailed by Blues Access magazine as “…one of the most talented musicians alive,” Crawford is an all-encompassing artist, who understands that innovation comes from a deep knowledge of tradition. “I have a responsibility to preserve the music,” Crawford tells Steinway & Sons, “to carry it forth and to breathe new life into the music, when it’s appropriate to do that.”
ABOUT WBGO CHILDREN’S CONCERT SERIES/NEWARK PUBLIC RADIO
The WBGO Children’s Concert Series brings world-renowned jazz musicians to concert halls and venues throughout New York and New Jersey. These free concerts give young listeners the chance to discover the enjoyment of jazz, improvisation and musical collaboration. WBGO-FM/Newark Public Radio is a non-profit, publicly funded arts and cultural institution, dedicated to the curation, presentation, and preservation of music created out of the African American experience. The station is committed to providing its world-wide jazz community with independently produced music programming and journalism for the purpose of public enrichment, entertainment, and insight. https://www.wbgo.org
ABOUT THE LOUIS ARMSTRONG EDUCATION FOUNDATION (LAEF)
The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation (LAEF) was founded and funded by Louis and Lucille Armstrong in 1969 to give back to the world “some of the goodness he received.” The mission of the organization is to preserve and promote the cultural legacy of Louis Armstrong by fostering programs, lectures, and other educational events to assist those interested, gifted and talented in the field of music, primarily jazz. Today the Foundation is a major source of funding for programs to expose and educate adults and children in the history of American jazz and has provided solid financial support to institutions across the nation. In October 2021 in celebration of the 50th anniversary of LAEF, Verve Records, in conjunction with LAEF, released A Gift to Pops, a CD by The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong All-Stars with special guests Wynton Marsalis and Common. https://louisarmstrongfoundation.org
ABOUT THE TD JAMES MOODY FESTIVAL/NJPAC
Named for Newark’s great saxophonist/flutist James Moody, The TD James Moody Jazz Festival presents dozens of free and ticketed events, including Dorthaan’s Place, Jazz Vespers and the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. NJPAC is a nonprofit arts organization that is the cultural institution for the city of Newark that presents audiences with world-class performances, and nurtures students through a comprehensive arts education, and engages the community with free cultural events across the city. https://www.njpac.org/
https://www.njpac.org/series/james-moody-jazz-festival/
# # #
Media Contact: Carolyn McClair PR
(212) 721-3341 | https://carolynmcclairpr.com
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