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Chaka
Khan to Headline Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival – Sat, June 25
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Joey Alexander’s
13th Birthday – Sat, June 25
Walk of Fame
Star Dedication for Chick Corea – Sun, June 26
Rising-Star
of Soul Jarrod Lawson makes Festival Debut – Sun, June 26
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Saratoga
Springs, NY – March 2016 / Newsmaker Alert / International music
icon Chaka Khan will headline the Freihofer’s
Saratoga Jazz Festival, on Saturday, June 25 at the Saratoga
Performing Arts Center. A ten-time GRAMMY® Award winner, best known
for timeless hits “I’m Every Woman” and “Ain’t Nobody,” Khan returns to
SPAC for the first time in 20 years.
For over four decades, Khan
has inspired multiple generations of artists and audiences alike with a
voice that enables her to sing in numerous music genres, including R&B,
jazz, pop, rock, gospel, country, classical and dance music. She has released
22 albums and racked up ten #1 Billboard magazine charted songs,
eight RIAA certified gold singles and eleven RIAA certified gold and platinum
albums. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including a BET Honors
award, induction into the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame and the Hollywood
Bowl Hall of Fame, and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. A
true renaissance woman, Khan is a singer, songwriter, visual artist, author,
actor, philanthropist, activist, and mother.
“We are delighted to welcome
superstar Chaka Khan to headline the 2016 Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival,”
said Marcia J. White, SPAC’s President and Executive Director. “With her
legendary voice and incredible charisma, Chaka Khan will sing beloved hits
and new favorites in a simply unforgettable performance.”
“Our unofficial motto for
the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival is ‘give the people what they want,’
and I am thrilled we are bringing Chaka Khan back to SPAC,” said Danny
Melnick, the festival’s producer. “She is gonna’ rock the house.”
Other Festival highlights
include:
Joey Alexander 13th Birthday:
On the day of his Freihofer’s
Saratoga Jazz Festival debut, Indonesian jazz piano prodigy Joey Alexander
will experience another major milestone – he will become a teenager!
On June 25, Alexander’s 13th birthday, the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival
will lead thousands of festival attendees in a birthday celebration Alexander
will not soon forget! The now 12-year-old pianist will perform selections
from his double GRAMMY® nominated debut album, My Favorite Things,
and his forthcoming album, both recorded for the Harlem-based label Motema
Music. Alexander has recently performed at venerated jazz venues including
the Newport Jazz Festival, Jazz at Lincoln Center, a TED conference, on
the 58th Annual GRAMMY® Awards telecast, and was recently profiled
on 60 Minutes.
Walk of Fame Star Dedication
to Chick Corea:
On Sunday, June 26, SPAC
will present keyboard virtuoso Chick Corea with a Walk of Fame Star
in honor of his contributions to jazz music and to SPAC throughout his
career. Corea performed at the inaugural 1978 Saratoga Jazz Festival, founded
by jazz impresario George Wein. Currently celebrating his 75th birthday
year (June 12), Corea returns to SPAC for his 9th jazz festival appearance,
in a trio format featuring Christian McBride on bass and Brian Blade on
drums. Corea has received 22 GRAMMY® Awards, including a 2015 Award
for Trilogy, and 63 GRAMMY® Award nominations—making him the
4th most nominated artist in GRAMMY® history. A DownBeat Hall
of Famer and NEA Jazz Master, Chick Corea has attained living legend status
after five decades of unparalleled creativity and staggering artistic output.
Jarrod Lawson, Rising-Star
of Soul:
Rising-star of soul Jarrod
Lawson will make his Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival debut on Sunday,
June 26 at the Gazebo Stage. The Portland, Oregon singer will perform
original songs from his 2014 album, Jarrod Lawson, which catapulted
him into the national spotlight last year. Lawson’s mastery of the jazz
keyboard, sweet falsetto vocals, and popular appeal has rendered him Jazz
FM’s 2015 Soul Artist of the Year. Whether he sings and plays funk, folk,
R&B, rock or jazz—everything Lawson touches turns to soul.
About Saratoga Performing
Arts Center
The Saratoga Performing
Arts Center (SPAC), located in the historic resort town of Saratoga Springs
in upstate New York, celebrates its 50th Anniversary Season in 2016. SPAC
has established a reputation as one of America’s most prestigious summer
festivals. Its tranquil setting in a 2,400-acre park preserve surrounded
by hiking trails, geysers, and natural mineral springs draws vacation crowds
and arts connoisseurs each year to SPACs summer programming, which includes
summer residencies by New York City Ballet, The Philadelphia Orchestra
and The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. The 2016 summer season
will also include engagements by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Twyla
Tharp, Doug Varone and Dancers, concerts by Live Nation and productions
by Opera Saratoga. The final curtain of the SPAC season comes down in early
September with the annual Saratoga Wine and Food Festival, one of the fastest-growing
wine and food events in the nation. Information and tickets are available
at www.spac.org.
Media Contact:
Carolyn
Krupski
518-584-9330 x 218
Saratoga Performing Arts
Center |