For Immediate Release
Contact: Laura Leichum, Marketing Manager, at 847.491.5315 or
lleichum@northwestern.eduMEET THE AUTHOR—JAZZ SENSATION PAQUITO D’RIVERA will give a reading and performance at 7:00 PM at Barnes & Noble-Lincoln Center, 1972 Broadway, New York, NY 10023. Call 212.595.6859 for more information. The presentation will be made by celebrated author Donald L. Maggin,
Propelled by jazz-fueled high spirits, Paquito D’Rivera’s memoir My Sax Life (VIDAS/Latino Voices/Northwestern University Press, November 2005, hardcover, 376 pages, ISBN 0-8101-2218-9, $29.95) soars and spins from memory to memory. Beginning with the story of his father—a classical saxophone virtuoso and an educator—and his own fame as a child prodigy, D’Rivera riffs on everything from his childhood nightclub appearances, performing with clowns and exotic dancers, to his search for artistic freedom in Communist Cuba and his hungry explorations of world music after his defection to the United States in 1980.
A restless musical genius, D’Rivera has formed and performed with various musical ensembles including the Orquesta Cubana de Musica Moderna, the innovative musical group Irakere; and more recently The Jazz Chamber Trio, the Paquito D’Rivera Big Band, the PANAMERICANA ensemble and the Paquito D’Rivera Quintet; and in 2005 he also began touring with the guitar duo of Sergio and Odair Assad.
In this unique book, D’Rivera regales the reader with insightful and amusing tales about his unique experiences while traveling and playing music all over the world, often in the company of other famous musicians such as Dizzy Gillespie and Yo-Yo Ma. Opinionated, charming, lively, and humorous, like Paquito himself, My Sax Life is an intriguing self-portrait of a creative and talented artist.
Paquito D’Rivera was born in 1948 in Havana, Cuba. A best-selling artist with more than thirty solo albums to his credit, D’Rivera has performed at famous venues including Carnegie Hall and the Blue Note and with Symphony orchestras, jazz ensembles, and chamber groups around the world. His celebrated recordings include the Grammy-winning Historia del Soldado (2003), Brazilian Dreams (2003), Live at the Blue Note (2001), and Portraits of Cuba (1996). His most recent release is The Jazz Chamber Trio (2005). D’Rivera was named a 2005 NEA Jazz Master and recently received the National Medal of Arts, which was presented to him by President Bush in a ceremony that took place on November 10, 2005. He lives in New Jersey. For more information on Paquito D’Rivera and his upcoming appearances, visit www.paquitodrivera.com.
Praise for Paquito D’Rivera and My Sax Life:
“D'Rivera's writing—like his music—is infused with zest.” ––Publishers Weekly
“I already knew that Paquito could write!”––Guillermo Cabrera Infante
“A breathless, sometimes vulgar romp through [D’Rivera’s] life, both before and after his exile from Cuba.”
––Washington Post Book World
“Paquito is able to, with great simpatico, float the reader into imagery of the wonderful family of music.”
––Bill Cosby
“My Sax Life is a great read, a splendid tale which vividly displays the joyfulness, creativity, and wisdom of its author.”––Donald Maggin, author of Dizzy: The Life and Times of John Birks Gillespie and Stan Getz: A Life in Jazz
“The book [is] written in an improvisational jazzy style. . . . All the turns back and forward, the flashbacks, the anecdotes that suddenly interrupt a story that later on is returned to, have demonstrated to me that Paquito possesses a dominion of montage, almost cinematographically.” —Fernando Trueba, film director
“Mr. D’Rivera is a formidable musician.”—New York Times
“Paquito D’Rivera has a foot in the classical world and a foot in the jazz world—and each foot is atop its respective world.”—Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
“Paquito D’Rivera is one of the woodwind giants of our time.”—JazzTimes
My Sax Life is available at your local bookstores
or by calling 1.800.621.2736
or visiting www.nupress.northwestern.edu.