{"id":2796,"date":"2021-06-21T00:06:34","date_gmt":"2021-06-21T05:06:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=2796"},"modified":"2021-07-10T21:17:58","modified_gmt":"2021-07-11T02:17:58","slug":"newport-jazz-part-xiii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/newport-jazz-part-xiii\/","title":{"rendered":"A History of the Newport Jazz Festival – Chapter XIII: Echoes of the Past, 2004"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

An intense and unceasing downpour left a twenty-eight-year-old George Wein with the difficult question of whether to abruptly cancel his new jazz festival. In response, he adopted a \u201crain or shine\u201d policy which refused to stop the music. This mindset served the Newport Jazz Festival well over the years. The special 50th-anniversary edition was itself conducted under gray or precipitous skies for almost the entire weekend. Some things never change. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And yet, others do. For the first time in the half a century since its birth, the event would be without the physical presence of its almost octogenarian founder. Wein would miss the celebration, sans a Thursday night gala at the Breakers, to recover at his New York home from a recent intestinal surgery. But even in his absence, he remained intricately involved in the proceedings, not only planning in the preceding months but by telephone to his team behind the scenes each day of performances. His wife Joyce, who had played a central role in the Festival Productions Empire since the 1950s, also helped ensure things continued as planned. But Wein\u2019s disappearance was felt by many; several artists dedicated their sets to him. Perhaps fittingly given Wein\u2019s own instrument of choice, the piano also played a major role at that summer\u2019s festival. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Festivities started on the evening of Wednesday, August 11th, with a special performance at the local Rogers High School by Dave Brubeck. Since his first appearance at Newport in 1955 – before Time Out<\/em> (Columbia, 1959) made him a household name – Brubeck had appeared at the event 32 times, more than any other artist. He was also an advocate of integration and racial justice. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Brubeck refused to perform without bassist Eugene Wright despite pressure from various concert promoters to do so on account of the fact Wright was Black. Brubeck also addressed racial justice issues in some of his projects, most notably \u201cThe Gates of Justice\u201d (1969). The piece originated in 1968 when the Union of American Hebrew Congregations approached Brubeck seeking a musical work to help unite Jewish and Black communities. Being neither Black nor Jewish, the pianist was hesitant at first but accepted the commission. The result was an almost hour-long cantata based on Judaic texts, biblical verses, and excerpts from speeches by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In juxtaposing these sources, he hoped to expose parallels between the prophet Isaiah\u2019s and Dr. King\u2019s dreams of a better society. In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Brubeck re-recorded Gates<\/em> and presented its updated version at Newport.<\/p>\n\n\n

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