    Miles Okazaki is from Port Townsend, Washington, North of Seattle in the Pacific Northwest.    He is the son of a painter and photographer, and grew up with a strong interest in Visual Arts.    He was primarily a self-taught guitarist until he moved to New York City at the age of 22.   He graduated from Harvard University, Manhattan School of Music, and the Juilliard School, was 2nd place finalist in the 2005 Thelonious Monk Guitar Competition, and has received grants from Chamber Music America, the French-American Cultural Exchange, Jerome Foundation Jazz Gallery Residency Program, and the American Music Center.    His teacher on guitar is Rodney Jones.   He has toured and recorded with artists including Stanley Turrentine, Kenny Barron, and Steve Coleman and Five Elements.   He has written, produced, and illustrated two recordings of original material, and is preparing to release his third recording as a leader in the Spring of 2012 on Sunnyside Records.    Featured here are live tapes of Okazaki playing standards with various trios in New York City.   To find out about Okazaki as a composer, visit www.milesokazaki.com

New Album 'Environments' Out Now On ANTI- Records. https://rafiqbhatia.ffm.to/environments

Harlem Stage is a performing arts center that celebrates and perpetuates the unique and diverse artistic legacy of Harlem and the indelible impression it has made on American culture. We provide opportunity, commissioning and support for artists of color, make performances accessible to all audiences, and introduce children to the rich diversity, excitement and inspiration of the performing arts.

In our nearly thirty years, we’ve hosted legends: Harry Belafonte, Max Roach, Bill Cosby, Abbey Lincoln, Maya Angelou and Tito Puente, and showcased and nurtured new genius…

Highlights of the organization’s history include a 1990 Town Hall meeting with the newly released Nelson Mandela conducted by Ted Koppel and Nightline at the arts center; Danny Glover’s presentation of his celebrated Romeo and Juliet; and tributes to Frank Foster. The Hall inaugurated the Harlem Renaissance Award honoring Harry Belafonte that year, Nancy Wilson and Maya Angelou, which brought renowned artists including Bill Cosby, Tony Bennett, Abbey Lincoln, Quincy Jones, Max Roach, Eddie Palmieri, Cassandra Wilson, Bill T. Jones and many others to the hall.

On October 24, 2006, Harlem Stage opened our new space, The Gatehouse, an event that marked the beginning of a new era in the history of the institution. To celebrate this milestone, we adopted a new identity – Harlem Stage – and launched three new programs for The Gatehouse: WaterWorks, Harlem Stride and Harlem Stage Partners.

The artistic scope of renowned saxophonist, composer, painter, and poet Oliver Lake’s half-century-long career is unparalleled. An extensive resume of his collaborations includes work with the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Flux String Quartet, Bjork, Lou Reed, A Tribe Called Quest, Mos Def, Me’shell Ndegeocello, Anthony Braxton, James Blood Ulmer, William Parker, Vijay Iyer, Reggie Workman, Andrew Cyrille and a veritable who’s who of the jazz vanguard. Oliver’s efforts extend far beyond the music, with his creation of the non-profit Passin’ Thru organization, becoming a mainstay at Pittsburgh’s City of Asylum, publishing two books of poetry and frequently producing visual artwork for exhibitions across the country.

Lake’s breadth of disciplines can be traced back to his formative years with the Black Artists Group, the innovative St. Louis collective of musicians, poets, dancers and painters he helped architect over 35 years ago. As a co-founder of the internationally acclaimed World Saxophone Quartet (with fellow luminaries David Murray, Julius Hemphill and Hamiet Bluiett), Oliver firmly established himself in the “Loft” jazz scene of the 1970’s in New York City, and has since produced a body of work that is both expansive and versatile enough to avoid falling solely into the trappings of the “avant-garde” and “free” labels. The fact that his work can stand on compositional merit alone, all while he has etched a place for himself as one of the elite saxophone players and improvisers of recent times, is a testament to Oliver Lake’s stature as an artist.

Lake’s output as an exacting and unequivocally original composer has long been celebrated, highlighted by commissions awarded from the Library of Congress, the Rockefeller Foundation ASCAP, the International Association for Jazz Education, Composers Forum and the McKim Foundation. He has been the recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship and was also presented with the Mellon Jazz Living Legacy Award at the Kennedy Center in 2006.

In 2014, Oliver was honored with what is arguably the greatest recognition of his artistry and vision to date, becoming one of only nineteen grantees appointed for the prestigious Doris Duke Artist Award, a multi-year grant awarded to American artists in the fields of jazz, theater and dance. 

A trailblazer through and through, Oliver Lake continues to produce in the vociferous, uncompromising way he only knows how to, currently immersed in the work of such adventurous ensembles as the Oliver Lake Organ Quartet, Oliver Lake Big Band and Trio 3.

For more informations, visit oliverlake.net & facebook.com/oliverlakejazz


Fully Altered Media is dedicated to securing placements for creative musicians and arts organizations in print, online, syndicated radio, and television. We monitor the latest in new media with regard to music marketing, digital and traditional distribution, and grassroots efforts to engage fans. We also maintain strong relationships with management, booking, marketing and radio promotion professionals with an ear towards jazz and world music.

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