Res. No. 634
Resolution calling upon the Council of the City of New York to recognize and commemorate April as Jazz Appreciation Month.
By Council Members Cumbo, Van Bramer, Cabrera, Eugene, Mendez, Rose, Cohen and Rodriguez
Whereas, Jazz, an original American art form, distinct from all other music for its improvisation, emerged from the work songs, spirituals and other music of enslaved Africans in what would become the United States, and is now played all over the world; and
Whereas, The power of jazz in American history, society, and culture is immeasurable and immutable, having shaped our country's national identity, brought people of different races and classes together, and fueled and documented the struggle for freedom and justice in the United States, in particular the civil rights movement; and
Whereas, In 1987 the United States Congress recognized jazz as "a rare and valuable national American treasure;" and
Whereas, As early as 1922, when Mamie Smith and her Jazz Hounds played at the Lafayette Theater in Harlem, New York City has been fertile soil for jazz, its players, and listeners, with venues like Small's Paradise, Blue Note, Birdland, Lenox Lounge, the Jazz Standard, Iridium, the Cotton Club, Tony's Club Grandean, Dizzy's Club Coca Cola, the Blue Coronet, Café Society, the Village Vanguard, the Alhambra Ballroom and more; and
Whereas, Jazz legends, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Betty Carter, James Hubert, and others have lived in New York City; and
Whereas, There are many institutions in New York City committed to the history and growth of jazz here, including the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium, the Center for Jazz Studies at Columbia University, and jazz programs at the New School, the Manhattan School of Music, New York University, City College of New York and others; and
Whereas, The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History, as well as the State of Florida, and the City of Philadelphia, recognize April as Jazz Appreciation Month; and
Whereas, The United States Conference of Mayors passed a resolution urging mayors to celebrate the month of April as Jazz Appreciation Month; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York recognizes April as Jazz Appreciation Month in the City of New York.
LS# 4409
Date: 03/12/15
Time: 3:35 PM
Initials: JKS