Grinds, grabs and gnarly jazz as Jason Moran rolls with the skaters
Washington DC's Kennedy Center played host to pianist Jason Moran's Finding a Line festival, where jazz and skateboard improvisation co-exist.
The Kennedy Center in Washington DC is famous for its opera, ballet and symphony. On Friday and Saturday officials opened a temporary skateboarding park for amateur and professional riders to do their thing to improvised live music led by the Centre’s Director Of Jazz, award winning pianist Jason Moran. Its famous Front Plaza hosted Moran’s own event called Finding a Line, a festival with bands playing live music as skaters rode the bowls in a specially designed area.
Jason, who was once an avid skateboarder himself, explained the thinking behind it and the relationship between the two cultures saying, "One of the major components I think that both jazz and skateboarding revolve around is the idea of improvisation, you know, how do you address a situation in the moment."
Jason Moran won the Jazz FM Award for Innovation in June 2015 and played at this year's Love Supreme Festival.
Festival preview: