International Jazz Day 2021 announce all-star concert
On the 10th anniversary of International Jazz Day, an all-star livestreamed global concert has been announced
Last updated 28th Apr 2021
Celebrating the 10th anniversary of the event, International Jazz Day has announced an all-star global concert for this year's day, featuring a historic lineup of performances from some of the great names in jazz.
Herbie Hancock on Jazz FM
The legendary Herbie Hancock will join Jazz FM this Friday 30th April as part of his International Jazz Day celebrations.
The multi-award-winning pianist and educator is marking 10 years of the initiative which was set up with UNESCO to highlight jazz’s diplomatic role of uniting people in all corners of the globe.
Herbie Hancock will be joining us from 8am.
International Jazz Day - Global Concert
The Jazz FM-award winning Herbie Hancock will serve as Artistic Director and John Beasley will serve as Musical Director.
Hosted by multi-Academy Award winner Michael Douglas from United Nations Headquarters in New York, the Global Concert will feature performances from an array of jazz icons representing more than 20 countries and will be available to watch via our Facebook page.
In New York, artists including Melissa Aldana (Chile), Massimo Biolcati (Italy),A Bu (China), Cyrus Chestnut, Amina Figarova (Azerbaijan), Roberta Gambarini (Italy), Kenny Garrett, James Genus, Stefon Harris, Ingrid Jensen (Canada), Joe Lovano, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Antonio Sánchez (Mexico) and Veronica Swift will deliver a rousing series of performances.
In Los Angeles, Herbie Hancock will be joined by Alex Acuña (Peru), Justo Almario (Colombia), Dee Dee Bridgewater, Jonathan Butler (South Africa), Mahmoud Chouki (Morocco), Gerald Clayton, Andra Day, Romero Lubambo (Brazil), Marcus Miller, Dianne Reeves, Francisco Torres (Mexico), Justin Tyson and Ben Williams.
Leading performances from their home countries will be Igor Butman in Moscow (Russia), multi-Jazz FM Award-winner Jacob Collier in London (United Kingdom), Mandisi Dyantyis in Cape Town (South Africa), Ivan Lins in Rio De Janeiro (Brazil), John McLaughlin in Monaco, James Morrison in Mt. Gambier (Australia) and Junko Onishi in Tokyo (Japan), among others. Renowned Beninese vocalist Angélique Kidjo will contribute a special performance from UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.
“Our International Jazz Day community has displayed incredible resilience, creativity, ingenuity and compassion throughout the immense challenges of the past year,” said Herbie Hancock. “While the global pandemic continues to make life difficult for so many around the world, the example of organizers from Nepal to Mexico to Cameroon inspires us to greet this historic 10th Anniversary milestone with joy, courage and hope for the future of jazz.”
Last year's event saw the event transition to a virtual jazz concert.
When and where is the International Jazz Day 2021 global concert going to be?
The International Jazz Day 2021 global concert will take place on the 30th of April 2021 at 10pm BST/UTC and 5pm EDT.
Make sure to watch the event directly from our Facebook page.
About International Jazz Day
Established by the General Conference of UNESCO in 2011 at the initiative of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock, and recognised by the United Nations General Assembly, International Jazz Day brings together countries and communities worldwide every April 30th to celebrate jazz and highlight the music’s important role in encouraging dialogue, combating discrimination and promoting human dignity. International Jazz Day has become a global movement reaching more than two billion people annually on all seven continents, including Antarctica, through education and community outreach, performances, radio, television and streaming, along with electronic, print and social media. The Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz is UNESCO’s official partner in the organization and promotion of International Jazz Day.
Jazz FM Awards 2020 - Herbie Hancock awarded PPL Lifetime Achievement Award:
At the Jazz FM Awards 2020, we announced that legendary, 14-time Grammy-winning pianist Herbie Hancock was the recipient of 2020's PPL Lifetime Achievement Award.
Of winning the awards, Herbie said, "The UK has supported and kept jazz alive for so many years.