The Institute congratulates vocalist, pianist, composer and actor Tyra “Tyralucia” Dennis on her recent selection as the newest morning host on KJAZZ 88.1, the premier jazz and blues radio station in Los Angeles and the #1 full-time jazz and blues station in the country.

While a student at George Washington Preparatory High School in Los Angeles, Dennis participated in the Institute’s Jazz in the Classroom and BeBop to Hip-Hop music education programs, where she studied with renowned artists including DJ Khalil, Dontae Winslow and Yo-Yo. While in BeBop to Hip-Hop, Dennis performed alongside Institute Chairman Herbie Hancock and other acclaimed jazz musicians as part of a BET television documentary on the program.

Drawing on the fundamentals she learned from Institute programs, Dennis brings a wealth of experience as a musician and performer to her work as a member of the on-air staff at KJAZZ. She has performed with Chaka Khan, Wayne Shorter, George Bohannon, Stevie Wonder, Ali Woodson of the Temptations, Jackson Browne, Ray Charles and Slash from Guns N’ Roses, to name a few. She appeared at the Playboy Jazz Festival and in the feature film Dreamgirls, starring Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson and Jamie Foxx.

Dennis can be heard on KJAZZ every Monday through Friday from 6-8 am Pacific, joining a lauded roster of hosts and presenters that includes Mitch Glickman, David Benoit, Gordon Goodwin, John Pizzarelli, and Steve Tyrell. Institute West Coast Director Daniel Seeff hosts the weekly KJAZZ program ExcursionsRadio, billed as the world’s only jazz and hip-hop radio show.

About KJAZZ

Widely regarded as Los Angeles’ top jazz and blues radio station, KJAZZ has been broadcasting jazz since 1981. Programmed and supported by the California State University, Long Beach Research Foundation in partnership with Global Jazz, Inc., the station is committed to the promotion and preservation of the rich cultural heritage of jazz and blues through engaging, inspiring and informative programming that satisfies the most dedicated music aficionados, while attracting newcomers of all ages.

About Jazz in the Classroom

The Institute’s worldwide, highly regarded Jazz in the Classroom programs help elementary, middle, high school and college students develop an understanding of and appreciation for jazz music. The initiative shares the positive aspects of jazz with young people who would not otherwise have opportunities to learn about this great national treasure. Through Jazz in the Classroom, the Institute has reached millions of students, teachers, and families, many of whom are experiencing jazz for the first time.

About BeBop to Hip-Hop

BeBop to Hip-Hop is one of the nation’s most innovative public school music education programs. Begun in 2004 in Los Angeles, it brings together jazz and hip-hop students under the direction of professional jazz musicians and hip-hop artists to create original work that incorporates elements of both genres. Aspiring young artists study the latest recording technologies and software, musical dynamics of both jazz and hip-hop, and the historical influence of jazz on hip-hop. They also learn how to produce a professional-level hip-hop track from the ground up – all while absorbing and building upon the rich traditions of Black American music. Jazz students learn to produce cutting-edge sounds, construct beats, and incorporate the hip-hop groove into jazz, while hip-hop students learn how to create and record in a live environment and gain technical skills in music. 

All-Star Global Concert will be hosted by Michael Douglas and feature dozens of world-renowned artists including Herbie Hancock, Marcus Miller, Andra Day, Dee Dee Bridgewater, John McLaughlin, Dianne Reeves and Joe Lovano

Concert followed by two-hour retrospective PBS Special airing nationwide at 9/8c

Toyota to serve as 2021 Lead Partner

Washington, D.C.–The 10^th Anniversary of International Jazz Day, the world’s largest annual celebration of jazz, will take place on April 30^th, with thousands of worldwide programs culminating in a spectacular All-Star Global Concert from New York, Los Angeles, UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, Cape Town, Moscow, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro and other cities around the globe. 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. Following this historic program, viewers across the United States can tune in to the International Jazz Day 10^th Anniversary Celebration on PBS for an unforgettable look back at the past decade of International Jazz Day celebrations, made possible by Toyota, the 2021 Lead Partner.

Premiering nationally at 9/8c on Friday evening, April 30^th (check local PBS listings), the International Jazz Day 10^th Anniversary Celebration is a two-hour retrospective that highlights performances by an extraordinary array of music icons over the last 10 years. The special takes a poignant look back at unforgettable moments from Jazz Day concerts at the United Nations, Istanbul, Osaka, Paris, Washington, D.C., Havana, St. Petersburg, New Orleans, and Melbourne. Viewers will enjoy legendary artists such as Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Tony Bennett, Chaka Khan, Annie Lennox, Sting, Christian McBride, Wynton Marsalis, and Hugh Masekela, along with hosts Morgan Freeman, Will Smith and Helen Mirren, among many others, paying heartfelt tribute to the treasured values and unifying heritage of jazz.

Earlier in the day, at 5 pm EDT/2 pm PDT, the 2021 All-Star Global Concert will thrill audiences with an historic lineup of performances by some of the world’s greatest jazz masters. Herbie Hancock will serve as Artistic Director, and John Beasley will serve as Musical Director. 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), 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. The concert will be presented as a live webcast via YouTube, Facebook, jazzday.com, UN Web TV, UNESCO and U.S. State Department outlets.

“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 10^th Anniversary milestone with joy, courage and hope for the future of jazz.”

The All-Star Global Concert serves as the official culmination of International Jazz Day, capping a program of performances, educational workshops, community service projects, panel discussions, jam sessions, radio and television broadcasts, virtual gatherings and more – all following recommended public health guidelines – taking place in all 50 U.S. states and more than 190 countries on all seven continents. A complete listing of events planned for International Jazz Day 2021 can be found at jazzday.com/events. As part of the lead-up to the concert, the Institute and UNESCO will offer a series of free virtual educational programs, including master classes with renowned jazz musicians such as Antonio Sánchez, Linda Oh and Lionel Loueke; a children’s workshop with vocalist and Institute Trustee Dee Dee Bridgewater; and illuminating panel discussions featuring UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, Institute Chairman Herbie Hancock, drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, pianist and composer Kris Bowers, hip-hop producer DJ Khalil and others. The 2021 virtual education program will be streamed on jazzday.com.

“UNESCO created International Jazz Day to share the values of a deeply meaningful musical genre,” explained UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. “Today we need jazz more than ever. We need its values, based on human dignity and the fight against racism and all forms of oppression. It is so much more than music, jazz is the kind of bridge builder we need in the world today.”

Established by the General Conference of UNESCO in 2011 at the initiative of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock, and recognized by the United Nations General Assembly, International Jazz Day brings together countries and communities worldwide every April 30^th 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.

Air transportation and support for artists and educators is provided by United Airlines, the airline partner of International Jazz Day.

Download the full release

Download information about the PBS Special

Saxophonist and Institute teaching artist Lenard Simpson recently conducted a composition workshop for students in The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music Global Jazz Studies program. Simpson, a Class of 2020 graduate of the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz Performance at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, provided illuminating explanations of the importance of composition for working jazz musicians, as well as practical pointers for developing a unique compositional voice.

Watch a few brief snippets from the session below:

As part of the Institute’s ongoing virtual education program offerings, the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz Performance at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music is proud to connect UCLA students with some of the most innovative voices in jazz for an intimate workshop series during the 2020-21 academic year. Guest lecturers have included acclaimed saxophonist Walter Smith III, guitarist John Storie and Institute West Coast Director Daniel Seeff.

About the College Program

The Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz Performance is a tuition-free, two-year program that accepts one ensemble of musicians for each class. All of the students receive full scholarships, as well as stipends to cover their monthly living expenses. The students study both individually and as a small group, receiving personal mentoring, ensemble coaching, and lectures on the jazz tradition. They are encouraged to experiment in expanding jazz in new directions through their compositions and performances. The program is in residence at the prestigious UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.

Institute Chairman Herbie Hancock was featured on the February 21, 2021 edition of CBS Sunday Morning as part of a special segment on the renowned Fazioli piano brand. Watch the full segment below.

Event registration for the worldwide 10th Anniversary celebration of International Jazz Day opened on January 6, with organizers across the globe invited to add their programming to the official calendar.

Registration at jazzday.com/register is free and open to all who plan to celebrate International Jazz Day on April 30, 2021.

Due to the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, the Institute encourages organizers to follow all relevant public health directives when planning, promoting and executing their events, and to present virtual/socially-distanced programming where necessary.

Each year, a variety of International Jazz Day programming is curated on and around April 30 by a massive global network of organizers and partners in more than 190 countries. The event size and format is completely up to the organizer, with creativity encouraged. Previously registered events run the gamut from performance-based presentations to community service initiatives, and have included:

• Concerts
• Jam sessions
• Charity fundraisers
• Art and photo exhibitions
• Book and poetry readings
• Academic conferences
• Workshops and master classes
• Visits to hospitals, detention centers and elder care homes
• Radio and television broadcasts
• Social media tributes
• Album-release parties
• Public discussions and debates
• Special learning units for elementary, middle and high school students
• Assembly programs
• Jazz scavenger hunts
• Jazz-inspired painting and drawing classes
• Multi-day festivals

…and other events.

In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic precipitated the first-ever virtual celebration of International Jazz Day, with a spectacular Virtual Global Concert receiving over 10 million views. Organizers from every corner of the globe submitted hundreds of socially-distanced tributes in honor of Jazz Day’s positive message. To promote student inclusion, the Institute presented a series of virtual education programs on Facebook Live in all six UN languages.

The 2021 celebration will mark International Jazz Day’s 10th Anniversary. While formal plans to celebrate the milestone are still being developed, organizers are encouraged to utilize the official hashtag, #JazzDay10, when promoting their plans for April 30 on the web and social media. Further details, including information on the 2021 All-Star Global Concert, will be announced early in the new year.

International Jazz Day is the world’s largest celebration of jazz as a force for peace, intercultural dialogue and international cooperation. The Institute is the primary nonprofit partner charged with coordinating the global program on behalf of the United Nations and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

UPDATE: Thanks to a generous contribution from a member of the Institute’s Board of Trustees, the first $50,000 in gifts received for Giving Tuesday will be matched. Make your gift count double today!

As 2020 draws to a close, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution in honor of Giving Tuesday (December 1, 2020). Your gift will help the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz provide life-changing jazz education opportunities for students in need across the United States and around the world.

For more than three decades, the Institute has offered all of its public school-based educational and outreach initiatives entirely free of charge to students, teachers, schools, families and communities. The Institute makes a special effort to serve students from at-risk and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. 

“I saw my kids grow musically and emotionally through the Hancock Institute’s Jazz in the Classroom program. My son was able to take the skills he learned in your program and win scholarships and participate in the Southern California Schools Honor Band and in the Hancock Institute/Los Angeles Unified School District All-City Jazz Band. His strength in music flourished as did his confidence as a performer. I am seeing this in my daughter as well and am extremely proud!” 

Parent of current and former Jazz in the Classroom students

Institute students learn the discipline and focus they need to succeed in school and beyond, with 100% of participants in our Jazz in the Classroom and National Performing Arts High Schools initiatives graduating from high school and more than 90% going on to college. 

Learning and performing jazz does far more than increase students’ technical knowledge; it fosters self-confidence and emotional growth. This is true for students like one recent alumnus of the Herbie Hancock Institute/LAUSD Beyond the Bell All-City Jazz Band in Los Angeles. He notes, “There’s not a day that goes by where I am not using some of the many skills I’ve learned from you. I thank you for all the knowledge, opportunities, gigs, and patience in developing my gift.”

Institute programs also help support band teachers and music educators by providing acclaimed guest teaching artists and advanced teaching methodologies all year long, completely free of charge. This work prompted one jazz instructor to write, “No other organization provides us with the kind of support like the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz. The Institute has done more for our students than any other organization.”

In spite of the significant, ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Institute’s commitment to continuing­–and expanding upon–this tradition of service and excellence remains undiminished.

With your help, we will begin 2021 on strong footing. Please consider showing your support on Giving Tuesday, December 1 with a tax-deductible gift. Any amount helps.

Interested in making a Giving Tuesday contribution? Just click here to access our secure online donation form.

Institute Chairman and 14-time Grammy and Oscar-winning pianist, composer and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Intercultural Dialogue Herbie Hancock will take part in a virtual discussion to explore the question “What Is Hope?” on Monday, Nov. 2 as part of the 10 Questions interdisciplinary course and public event series conducted by the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture. 

Hancock, a professor at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, will be joined by award-winning author, screenwriter and producer Tananarive Due, who is also a lecturer in UCLA’s Department of African American Studies, as well as Ramesh Srinivasan, a professor in UCLA’s Department of Information Studies and director of the UC Digital Cultures Lab. The conversation will be led by Victoria Marks, associate dean of academic affairs of the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture and professor in the UCLA Department of World Arts and Cultures/Dance.

The election eve discussion, which is free to watch with registration, is the second event in the 2020 installment of 10 Questions, an annual series that invites the public to join UCLA students in the virtual classroom to engage in vibrant conversation alongside leading faculty and distinguished alumni from across the university. This year’s series, 10 Questions: Reckoning, addresses the most urgent set of questions yet – COVID-19, the climate crisis, social and political turmoil unlike anything we have seen in a generation–and, of course, a presidential election.

Register today to watch the discussion on Monday, Nov. 2, 2020 at 7 pm PST.

The Institute is continuing its virtual jazz education programming in the 2020-2021 school year to support public school students across America. As schools restart instruction amid the ongoing pandemic, core programs such as Jazz in the Classroom and the National Performing Arts High Schools initiative are being offered fully online to all participants. Institute teaching artists have begun regular daily and weekly after-school sessions with student musicians in Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Plano (Texas), San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. As always, the Institute offers all of its programming entirely free of charge to participating students, teachers, schools and communities.

As part of the Institute’s educational efforts in Los Angeles, 10 middle and high school band programs are participating in Jazz in the Classroom. Virtual sessions focus on music theory, ear training, tune learning and other vital skills, as well as serving as a fun, collaborative way for students to spend time with their peers. With the 2020-2021 school year program, the Institute is proud to mark more than 20 years of collaboration with the Los Angeles Unified School District and Beyond the Bell Branch Music and Entertainment Education.

The National Performing Arts High Schools program is giving students from public performing arts programs throughout the United States the opportunity to deepen their understanding of advanced jazz concepts, even while socially distancing. Led by Dr. JB Dyas, the Institute’s Vice President for Education and Curriculum Development, National Performing Arts High Schools provides weekly 1-2 hour virtual seminars on everything from chord voicings to transposition. Since many students in the program hope to go on to careers in the arts, the sessions are also geared toward allowing students to build relationships with other promising young musicians who are hundreds and sometimes thousands of miles away.

These and the Institute’s additional 2020-2021 school year programs build on the momentum from the summer months, when the Institute rapidly deployed distance learning initiatives to keep thousands of students engaged while self-isolating and socially distancing. These were an enormous success, with offerings like BeBop to Hip-Hop and Jazz in America reaching young learners across the United States and in over 40 countries worldwide. The culminating virtual showcase for BeBop to Hip-Hop, which was streamed live on Facebook and YouTube, featured original music videos by the program’s student creators and reached more than two million viewers globally.

As part of this summer’s free virtual BeBop to Hip-Hop program, offered in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, a hundred students from across the country and around the world collaborated virtually on original projects over the course of 10-weeks while taking part in regular online masterclasses. Watch the culminating presentation featuring debut performances, artist shoutouts, session highlights and much more on Saturday, September 19 beginning at 2 pm PT / 5 pm ET:

Aspiring producers, musicians and rappers created new music with guidance from renowned hip-hop artists and producers DJ Khalil, Hi-Tek, Imani of the Pharcyde, DJ Spark, Tariq Beats, Mike & Keys, Nikki Grier and Antman Wonder, along with world-class jazz musicians Terri Lyne Carrington and Gerald Clayton.

The Institute’s BeBop to Hip-Hop online summer program was offered at no cost to participants and made possible by support from AT&T.