CARNEGIE HALL PRESENTS
Bobby McFerrin
Chick Corea
Jack DeJohnette

Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage
Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008 at 8:00 PM

Bobby McFerrin, Vocalist
Chick Corea, Piano
Jack DeJohnette, Drums

With an elastic voice evoking an array of instruments, ten-time Grammy Award–winner McFerrin and two Miles Davis veterans—masterful keyboardist Corea and legendary drummer DeJohnette—join together for the first time in this novel take on the piano trio.

Perspectives: Bobby McFerrin

Sponsored by Morgan Stanley

The Bobby McFerrin Perspectives concerts are supported, in part, by The Rockefeller Foundation's New York City Cultural Innovation Fund.

Perspectives concerts are made possible, in part, by a generous grant from The Alice Tully Foundation.

Bobby McFerrin, Vocalist
Bobby McFerrin is one of the natural wonders of the music world. A ten-time Grammy Award winner, he is one of the world’s best-known vocal innovators and improvisers, a world-renowned classical conductor, the creator of “Don’t Worry Be Happy” (one of the most popular songs of the late 20th century), and a passionate spokesman for music education. His recordings have sold over 20 million copies, and his collaborations with Yo-Yo Ma, Chick Corea, the Vienna Philharmonic, and Herbie Hancock have established him as an ambassador of both the classical and jazz worlds.

With a four-octave range and a vast array of vocal techniques, McFerrin is music’s last true Renaissance man, a vocal explorer who has combined jazz, folk, and a multitude of world music influences—choral, a cappella, and classical music—with his own ingredients. As a conductor, Bobby is able to convey his innate musicality in an entirely different context. He has worked with such orchestras as the New York Philharmonic, The Cleveland Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Vienna Philharmonic.

Bobby McFerrin’s career can be well described as “unconventional.” Those familiar with McFerrin’s shows, whether as a conductor or a vocalist, know that each one is a unique event that resonates with the unexpected. He is that rare artist who has the ability to reach beyond musical genres and stereotypes for a sound that is entirely his own. As one of the foremost guardians of music’s rich heritage, McFerrin remains at the vanguard with his natural, beautiful, and timeless music that transcends all borders and embraces all cultures.

Visit bobbymcferrin.com for more information, interactive games, sheet music, and merchandise.

Chick Corea, Piano
From avant-garde to bebop, from children’s songs to straight ahead, from hard-hitting fusion to heady forays into classical, Chick Corea has touched an astonishing number of musical bases in his illustrious career while maintaining a standard of excellence that is simply uncanny.

Born in Chelsea, Massachusetts on June 12, 1941, Chick Corea began studying piano at age four. “I decided when I was a young man to make it my primary policy to always keep myself interested and challenged with music,” says the Grammy Award–winning pianist-composer-bandleader. “I've managed to avoid falling into the habit of doing the same thing over and over again, and it’s really proved to be a good thing for me. I don’t care about the other things; I care that I’m having a lot of fun and creating. So I feel honored or lucky to be able to continue to do that and be able to make a living doing it.”

Early on in his development, Horace Silver and Bud Powell were important piano influences for Corea, while access to the music of Beethoven and Mozart inspired his compositional instincts. Chick’s first major professional gig was with Cab Calloway, which came before early stints in Latin bands led by Mongo Santamaria and Willie Bobo. There followed important tenures with trumpeter Blue Mitchell, flutist Herbie Mann, and saxophonist Stan Getz, before Chick made his recording debut as a leader in 1966 with “Tones for Joan’s Bones” (which featured trumpeter Woody Shaw, tenor saxophonist and flutist Joe Farrell, bassist Steve Swallow, and drummer Joe Chambers). During these formative years, Chick also recorded sessions with Cal Tjader, Stan Getz, Donald Byrd, and Dizzy Gillespie.

A restlessly creative spirit, Corea continues to explore and generate new material for a number of different vehicles, including his dynamic Elektric Band and his flamenco- flavored Touchstone Band. Other recent projects include The Ultimate Adventure, the second in a series of evocative recordings based on the writings of his favorite author and longtime inspiration, L. Ron Hubbard. Corea also premiered a new piano concerto in Austria on July 1, 2006 (shortly after his 65th birthday), as part of the gala Mozart Year Vienna festivities being held in the birthplace of the immortal composer.

Jack DeJohnette, Drums
Born in Chicago in 1942, Jack DeJohnette is widely regarded as one of jazz music’s greatest drummers. He began his study of classical piano at age four; at age 14, he began to play drums with his high school concert band and to take private piano lessons at the Chicago Conservatory of Music. DeJohnette credits his uncle, Roy I. Wood Sr.—one of the most popular jazz DJ’s in the South Side of Chicago, and later vice president of the National Network of Black Broadcasters—as the person who initially inspired him to pursue music.

Jack DeJohnette has collaborated with most major figures in jazz history: John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, Sonny Rollins, Sun Ra, Jackie McLean, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, Stan Getz, Keith Jarrett, Chet Baker, George Benson, Stanley Turrentine, Ron Carter, Lee Morgan, Charles Lloyd, Herbie Hancock, Dave Holland, Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Abbey Lincoln, Betty Carter, and Eddie Harris.

It was in 1968 that DeJohnette joined Miles Davis’s group in time for the epochal upheaval marked by Bitches Brew, an album that changed the direction of jazz. In his autobiography, Miles Davis said, “Jack DeJohnette gave me a deep groove that I just loved to play over.” Working with Miles also brought about collaborations with John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, and Dave Holland.

While continuing to lead his own projects and bands, DeJohnette has also been a 25-year member of the immensely popular Keith Jarrett/Gary Peacock/Jack DeJohnette Trio. DeJohnette has appeared on more ECM albums than any other musician; his numerous recordings for the label display his subtle, powerful playing and the “melodic” approach to drums and cymbals that makes his touch instantly recognizable.

Jack has received many awards for his music, including at least 15 years of the Downbeat polls, the NY Jazz awards, and the Jazz Central on line awards along with many international awards. He is the winner of DownBeat’s 2006 Critics Poll; in both 2006 and 2007, he won both the Readers Poll for Drummer of the Year and JazzTimes’s Readers’ choice for Best Drums. DeJohnette’s latest release, Peace Time, is an hour-long continuous piece of music composed and performed by Jack.