Stanford honors Miles Davis' landmark 'Kind of Blue'

Kind of Blue

In 1959, Miles Davis created the definitive jazz album, Kind of Blue. It heralded the arrival of Davis' new stylistic approach, which came to be known as modal jazz. The album became the best-selling jazz recording of all time, and the musicians who participated are considered among the greatest jazz artists of the last century.

To commemorate the album's 50th anniversary, Stanford is sponsoring a series of events, beginning at 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 23, when a discussion and demonstration with jazz drummer Jimmy Cobb and Jim Nadel, Stanford Jazz Workshop's founder, artistic and executive director, will take place at the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA), 660 Lomita Drive.

Cobb is the only surviving member of the legendary ensemble that played with Davis on the 1959 sessions. The free event is presented by Stanford Jazz Workshop, Stanford Lively Arts and CCRMA.

Details, including directions, can be found at http://www.stanfordjazz.org/events/specialevents.html.

Lecture, screening, concert

A free lecture and film screening with Loren Schoenberg, director of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, is scheduled for 8 p.m. April 16 in the Wallenberg Learning Theater. It will be followed on April 18 by a concert, "50 Years of Kind of Blue: A Live Jazz Laboratory," at 8 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium.

Tickets for the concert are $34 for adults and $17 for Stanford students. Additional information about both performances can be found on the Lively Arts website at http://livelyarts.stanford.edu/event.php?code=JAZZ.