NEWS

‘Listen. Love. Take Note.’ 89.9 WDAV Classical Public Radio and FAIR PLAY Music Equity Initiative invite music fans to NoteWorthy, featuring jazz saxophonist and composer Harvey Cummings II, at 7:30 PM on Wednesday, October 27th. Cool sounds will abound as Cummings blends his jazz quintet with a string quartet to deliver a truly memorable mashup at the Blumenthal’s Stage Door Theatre. The performance can be viewed with Facebook Live at facebook.com/wdavclassical.

Cummings is a native of Charlotte, NC; his gift is music. He has a B.A. in Music and a B.M. in Jazz Studies. A phenomenal saxophonist, pianist, and keyboardist, he has played for numerous foundations and organizations, colleges and universities, private and social events, and special occasion celebrations. He’s played alongside Branford Marsalis, Jimmy Heath, Kevon Edmonds, Jimmy Cobb, Fred Wessley, 9th Wonder, and many others. Harvey is featured by 9th Wonder Productions on the piano in the hit cartoon show The Boondocks. Harvey is also a proud music teacher for Union County Public Schools.

NoteWorthy is a concert series that pairs gifted Black and brown artists from Charlotte’s music scene with classically trained musicians. It’s what happens when jazz, soul, Latin, rock, hip-hop, pop, and R&B meet classical. Through this project, WDAV and FAIR PLAY aim to break down cultural divisions among music lovers by centering the contributions of musicians of color. NoteWorthy was awarded a Cultural Vision Grant by the Arts and Science Council.

“Harvey Cummings is a singular talent,” said Will Keible, Director of Marketing at WDAV. “His ability to compose parts for a string quartet that so beautifully blend with the playing of his jazz quintet is nothing short of amazing. This is musical fusion at its finest and the fullest realization of what NoteWorthy is all about.”

Kari Giles, violinist for the Charlotte Symphony and participant in two NoteWorthy collaborations, had this to say about her NoteWorthy experience: “As I reflect on the first season of NoteWorthy, I am struck by the levels of trust that were given on all sides. I can’t imagine the trust it takes our featured artists to allow musicians they don’t even know into their own personal sound world in order to collaborate and create new ideas together. That is such a gift. Personally, I have learned to trust the process. Each process has been totally unique, but each has resulted in a new sense of freedom, expansive creativity, and strong personal connection. The musical results are electric.”

For further information, contact:

Will Keible
Director of Marketing and Corporate Support
WDAV Classical Public Radio
(704) 894-2983 or [email protected]

David “Dae-Lee” Arrington
Co-founder, FAIR PLAY Music Equity Initiative
[email protected]