The Playing For Change Foundation & International Jazz Day Announce Long-Term Partnership; Joint Venture Kicks Off On International Jazz Day, April 30

The Playing For Change Foundation is joining with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO's) International Jazz Day to announce a long-term partnership involving mutually beneficial programs and events. The partnership will debut as part of the seventh annual International Jazz Day on April 30, featuring legendary talent including Herbie Hancock, Dianne Reeves, Branford Marsalis, and more. The culminating International Jazz Day All-Star Global Concert will take place in St. Petersburg with synchronous events occurring around the world in more than 190 countries, including the United States, Japan, Greece and Colombia, to name a few.

UNESCO officially designated April 30 as International Jazz Day in November of 2011 in order to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role of uniting people in all corners of the globe. International Jazz Day is chaired and led by UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay and legendary jazz pianist/composer Herbie Hancock, who also serves as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Intercultural Dialogue and Chairman of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz. The Institute is the lead nonprofit organization charged with planning, promoting and producing the annual celebration that brings together communities, schools, artists, historians, academics, and jazz enthusiasts all over the world to celebrate and learn about jazz and its roots, future, and impact.

Says PFC co-founder Mark Johnson, "We value this global partnership and believe the shared mission of International Jazz Day and Playing For Change is based on our belief in the power of music to unite and transcend borders. There is so much we can accomplish together."

Both Playing For Change and the Playing For Change Foundation will be providing support for International Jazz Day in multiple ways via its social media networks, as well as through their schools with education, music creation, and a look at the rich and historical tradition of jazz. International Jazz Day will help promote playingforchange.com's rollout of its Listen To The Music 12-month video series as well as its 4/20 release of an associated Listen To The Music CD on the Motéma Music label.

"We are thrilled to work with the Playing For Change Foundation to spread the positive values of jazz music to people in communities around the world," notes International Jazz Day Co-Chair Herbie Hancock. "The Foundation's work, which provides free musical instruction to students in need, is closely aligned with the core values of International Jazz Day, and we look forward to advancing our partnership in the coming months."

ABOUT INTERNATIONAL JAZZ DAY

Established by UNESCO in coordination with the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, International Jazz Day is recognized on the official calendars of UNESCO and the United Nations. Each year on April 30th, International Jazz Day highlights the role of jazz in promoting freedom, creativity and intercultural dialogue, and uniting people from all corners of the globe. The annual Global Host celebration and All-Star Concert features some of the most influential and iconic artists in jazz and beyond, with past participants including Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Esperanza Spalding and many others. In 2017, the All-Star Concert was hosted by Will Smith, with extraordinary performances at the Gran Teatro de La Habana Alicia Alonso in Havana, Cuba. https://jazzday.com

ABOUT PLAYING FOR CHANGE FOUNDATION

The Playing For Change Foundation, established in 2007, provides music education in areas that are culturally rich yet economically challenged. Children in countries around the world (see below), from Africa to Latin America to Southeast Asia, attend free classes in music, dance and languages, taught by qualified local music teachers and led by regional administrators. Students learn about their own cultural traditions while employing technology to connect and share their experiences with others around the world. https://playingforchange.org

Imvula Music Program - Gugulethu, South Africa

Bizung Music and Dance School - Tamale, Ghana

Udayapur Nepal Music Program - Udayapur, Nepal
Ecole de Musique de Kirina - Kirina, Mali
Tine Village Mother's Society - Tintale, Nepal
Star School Music Program - Kigali, Rwanda
Mitrata Nepal Village Music Program - Kathmandu, Nepal
Musica Music Program - Kathmandu, Nepal
Khlong Toey Music Program - Bangkok, Thailand
Cajuru Music Program - Curitiba, Brazil
Mirpur Music Program - Dhaka, Bangladesh

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