“He broke a lot of the rules of harmony in creating his pieces. “Monk was such a competent player and composer so complex, yet so simple,” explains drummer extraordinaire Herlin Riley. Sung is a graduate of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance (at the New England Conservatory) and won the Kennedy Center’s Mary Lou Williams Jazz Piano Competition. It was selected as one of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 30th Anniversary Landmark Concerts because it combines three of JALC’s foundational elements: the city of New Orleans, the music of Thelonious Monk, and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra’s original drummer, New Orleans native Herlin Riley.Ĭoncurrently, on the Friday through to Sunday at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, pianist Helen Sung presented Thelonious Monk: Himself. Corea is an old friend of Jazz at Lincoln Center and has worked closely with Marsalis on many historic occasions.įriday and Saturday night in The Appel Room offered a spectacular show entitled Crescent City Monk with Herlin Riley & Friends.

On those nights he honored Monk-the high priest of modern music. Jazz legend Corea is a 22-time Grammy Award winner, DownBeat Hall of Famer, and NEA Jazz Master. The third annual Monk Festival took place on April 5 – 8 with luminaries including Chick Corea, Herlin Riley, and Helen Sung.Ĭhick Corea joined the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis for three nights of Corea Plays Monk in the Rose Theater. Earlier this month, the Jazz at Lincoln Center celebrated the genius of Thelonious Monk in all three of its venues.

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