The 2020 edition of the NEA Jazz Masters tribute concert will be broadcast online on Aug. 20, celebrating the four musicians who are receiving one of the highest honours in jazz.
This year’s honourees are vocalist Bobby McFerrin, saxophonist and composer Roscoe Mitchell, bassist Reggie Workman and broadcaster and advocate Dorthaan Kirk.
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is co-presenting the concert with SFJAZZ, which was originally scheduled to host it in April before the COVID-19 pandemic forced its cancellation.
The lineup of performers includes Terri Lyne Carrington, Ambrose Akinmusire, Dee Dee Bridgewater, James Carter, Gerald Clayton, Vincent Davis, Morgan Guerin, Oliver Lake, Kanoa Mendenhall, Junius Paul, Steve Turre, and Jevon, Madison, and Taylor McFerrin.
“The 2020 NEA Jazz Masters have made an incredible impact on jazz, whether it’s through their artistic work to expand the musical boundaries of the genre, their educational contributions, or their efforts to reach new audiences for jazz,” said Mary Anne Carter, the NEA’s acting chair.
The 2020 NEA Jazz Masters tribute concert will be broadcast Aug. 20 at 8 p.m. EDT at the NEA website. An archived version of the concert will be available after the event.