10/19/11

Phil Woods Receives Living Legacy Award

Saxophonist honored at D.C.’s Kennedy Center

By Jeff Tamarkin

Saxophonist Phil Woods was honored with the BNY Mellon Jazz 2011 Living Legacy Award in a ceremony at Washington, D.C.’s John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on October 14. The award honors living jazz masters from the mid-Atlantic region who have achieved distinction in jazz performance and education.

The event began with a concert by the 2010 Legacy Awardee, Roy Haynes, in the Terrace Theater. Following the concert, the award ceremony and a gala reception took place in the Kennedy Center Jazz Club.

Previous Living Legacy Award winners (from 2010-1994) include Roy Haynes, Dr. Frank Foster, Kenny Barron, Benny Golson, Oliver Lake, Rufus Reid, Randy Weston, Keter Betts, Jimmy Heath, Joe Kennedy, Jr., Shirley Scott, Reggie Workman, Dr. Donald Byrd, Larry Ridley, Barry Harris, Robert “Boysie” Lowery and Clark Terry. A Millennium Award was conferred on Dr. Billy Taylor in 2000.

Also announced were the inaugural grantees for the new French-American Jazz Exchange, a partnership between Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation and FACE (French-American Cultural Exchange). Françios Delattre, Ambassador of France, joined in the announcement at the start of the evening. First-round grantees include Nasheet Waits with Marc Ducret; John Hébert with Benoit Delbecq; Keith Witty with Christophe Panzani; and Somi with Ibrahim Maalouf.