Text by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

I love Jazz as a music style and a way of life. In Japanese you would say Jazz no michi. Jazz is not just music but also a platform to listen and to speak to your own people. Jazz was created by discriminated people. It was born during their struggle for social justice. Jazz knows what it means to be poor, insecure, powerless and being beaten up.

So when many Jazz musicians vote for Obama they expect from him again that – as a Jazz lover – he will work for the poor and discriminated people in his country regardless their skin colour and religion. If he becomes president again, they expect that he will do and continue all unfinished work. He’s going to do all the things he promised in the past. Am I right?

I’m sure there are also many Jazz musicians who are discouraged by the failure of Mr. Obama’s work during his first four years as president. He caused so much disappointment in many of them resulting in seeing him as another Bush Jr.

Me as an Iranian Jazz lover, I’m very unhappy how Mr. Obama dealt with the Iranian government missing a couple of chances to communicate properly with the Iranian regime.

I hope that the immigration laws towards foreign musicians coming to the US for concert tours will lose up by his leadership and love to music and culture in general. All foreign musicians are griots coming to this country to tell their stories which we need to know in order to understand that the world is one big community.

Date: October 9, 2012
Time: 7:30pm (Doors open 6:45 pm)
Venue: Symphony Space (2537 Broadway at West 95th Street )
Tickets:  $100 and available now at www.jazzforobama.com. Student and senior tickets are available for $50. VIP tickets are $250 and include reserved seating and a post-concert reception.

All proceeds benefit the Obama For America Presidential Campaign.

Featuring:

RON CARTER   DEE DEE BRIDGEWATER   JIM HALL   ROY HAYNES   KENNY BARRON   JOE LOVANO   KENNY GARRETT CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE   JIMMY HEATH   JEFF “TAIN” WATTS   CLAUDIA  ACUÑA   RAVI COLTRANE   GRETCHEN PARLATO AND VERY SPECIAL GUESTS….

A roster of superlative American jazz artists will unite for one night only to present Jazz For Obama 2012, a concert event to benefit the reelection campaign of President Barack Obama. Featuring bassist Ron Carter, singer/actress Dee Dee Bridgewater, guitarist Jim Hall, saxophonist Joe Lovano, drummer Roy Haynes, pianist Kenny Barron, alto saxophonist Kenny Garrett, bassist Christian McBride, tenor saxophonist Jimmy Heath, drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts, saxophonist Ravi Coltrane and vocalists Claudia Acuña and Gretchen Parlato along with several very special guests.