Mondo Jazz

SONNY TRIONFA AL JJA JAZZ AWARDS

Sonny Rollins, saxophone colossus, was the big winner of the 2012 Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Awards, announced this afternoon at a gala party at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City.

The tenor saxophonist was named Musician of the Year, his album Road Shows, Vol. 2 chosen as Best Record of the Year and he was judged Best Tenor Saxophonist, too.

Horace Silver, who at age 84 is residing in an assisted care facility in upstate New York, was hailed for his Lifetime Achievement in Jazz.

Amiri Baraka, author of the books Blues People and Black Music as well as plays, poetry and social criticism, was the recipient of an Award for Lifetime Achievement in Jazz Journalism; author Albert Murray, age 94, was honored with a "Words and Music" Award, co-presented by the JJA and the Jazz Foundation of America. Robin Bell-Stevens, executive director of JazzMobile, and Adrian Ellis, recently resigned executive director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, were celebrated as New York City "Jazz Heroes."

AWARDS FOR MUSIC
Lifetime Achievement in Jazz: Horace Silver
Musician of the Year: Sonny Rollins      
Composer-Arranger of the Year: Maria Schneider
Up and Coming Artist of the Year: Ben Williams      
Record of the Year: Sonny Rollins, Road Shows, Vol. 2 (Doxy Records)
Best Historic Recording/Boxed Set: Miles Davis, Bootleg Sessions, Vol. 1, Quintet Live in Europe 1967 (Columbia Legacy) 
Record Label of the Year: ECM     
Large Ensemble of the Year: Mingus Big Band
Small Ensemble of the Year: Joe Lovano Us Five      
Best Male Vocalist: Kurt Elling     
Best Female Vocalist: Gretchen Parlato
Trumpeter of the Year: Ambrose Akinmusire   
Trombonist of the Year: Wycliffe Gordon 
Multi-reeds Player of the Year: Anat Cohen    
Alto Saxophonist of the Year: Rudresh Mahanthappa 
Tenor Saxophonist of the Year: Sonny Rollins 
Baritone Saxophonist of the Year: Gary Smulyan     
Soprano Saxophonist of the Year: Jane Ira Bloom    
Flutist of the Year: Nicole Mitchell 
Clarinetist of the Year: Anat Cohen
Guitarist of the Year: Bill Frisell    
Pianist of the Year: Vijay Iyer
Keyboard player of the Year: Gary Versace 
Bassist of the Year: Christian McBride 
Violinist of the Year: Regina Carter
Percussionist of the Year: Poncho Sanchez    
Mallets Instrumentalist of the Year: Gary Burton    
Drummer of the Year: Roy Haynes 
Player of Instruments Rare in Jazz of the Year: Toots Thielemans, harmonica

AWARDS FOR JAZZ JOURNALISM
Lifetime Achievement in Jazz Journalism: Amiri Baraka    
Helen Dance-Robert Palmer Award for Writing in the Year 2011:Larry Blumenfeld 
Willis Conover-Marian McPartland Award for Broadcasting: Josh Jackson     
Lona Foote-Bob Parent Award for Photography: Herb Snitzer      
Print Periodical of the Year: JazzTimes 
Website of the Year: AllAboutJazz.com 
Blog of the Year: Marc Myers' Jazz Wax 
Book of the Year: Norman Granz: The Man Who Used Jazz for Justice (University of California Press), by Tad Hershorn     
Liner notes of the Year: Francis Davis, Sonny Rollins' Road Show, Vol. 2 (Doxy Records) 
Photo of the Year: Chick Corea by Pavel Korbut
Short Form Jazz News Video of the Year: Victory! - The Making of J.D. Allen's Album by Mario Tahi Lathan

P.S. Ovviamente al Blue Note non ci sono andato, e l'invito che ho ricevuto era in realtà un invito esteso a tutti i bloggers partecipanti al Jazz Day, ne consegue che io ne ho ironicamente approfittato per farne un post ma Howard Mandel non ha la più pallida idea di chi io sia....