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Randy Weston, who died aged 92 on 1st September 2018, was an American jazz musician and bandleader celebrated as one of the most prominent ambassadors for traditional African music in the United States. Born in Brooklyn, New York he was inspired by the African heritage of his parents and learned to play the piano as a child. After military service, he managed his father's restaurant and began to play in local venues. Legendary jazz pianist Thelonious Monk became a friend and mentor and he began to perform around the country releasing his first album 'Randy Weston Plays Cole Porter in a Modern Mood' in 1954. Many albums followed as he developed and expanded his jazz blend of blues, African American spirituals, samba and bossa nova. His many albums include 'African Sunrise: Selections from 'The Spirits of Our Ancestors'' (1955), 'Uhuru Afrika' (1960), 'Music from the New African Nations' (1963), 'African Cookbook' (1972), 'Blues to Africa' (1974), 'African Rhythms' (2007) and 'The African Nubian Suite' (2016). His 1973 release 'Tanjah' was nominated for a Grammy Award as Best Jazz Performance By a Big Band and 'The Splendid Master Gnawa Musicians of Morocco featuring Randy Weston' was nominated as Best World Music Album in 1995. 'The Roots of the Blues' with saxophonist Billy Harper went to number 41 on Billboard's Jazz Albums Chart in 2013 and he received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and United States Artists and awards from the Moroccan government and the Institute of the Black World. His final release, the two-disc 'Sound' in 2018, featured a solo piano concert in Montreux, Switzerland from 2001. The Brooklyn College, Colby College and the New England Conservatory awarded him honorary doctorates and he acted as artist in residence at several New York colleges. He remained active with recordings and performances until his death.
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