Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/3059
June is Black Music Month. July is a time to celebrate America's independence. Take a little time to soak up some sun, lis- ten to some great music, eat some barbecue, spend time with the family and then check out one or more of the following. NEW MEXICO ART The New Mexico History Museum is now open in Santa Fe. The state-of-the-art facility is an immersive, interactive exhibition about New Mexico's colorful and com- plex history. The museum's multi-media environment explores the early history of indigenous people, 400 years of Spanish colonization, the Mexican Period, and travel and commerce on the Santa Fe Trail. The exhibition also details the flourishing of New Mexico's world-renowned arts communities and the coming of the Atomic Age. For information: www.nmhistory-museum.org. COSBY IS A PLAYBOY Bill Cosby will once again be the master of ceremonies for the Playboy Jazz Festival, which will take place June 13-14, at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. The 31st annual event includes a star-studded line-up of some of the music world's great- est artist, including: The Neville Brothers; Summer Storm, starring Norman Brown, Eric Darius and featuring Gail Johnson; Esperanza Spalding; the Pete Escovedo Orchestra, featuring Sheila E, Peter Michael and Juan Escovedo; Kenny G,; Patti Austin; King Sunny Ade and more. For information: www.playboyjazzfestival.com. BUY THE BOOK HUBERT HARRISON: THE VOICE OF HARLEM RADICALISM, 1883- 1918 (Columbia University Press) by Jeffrey B. Perry is currently in bookstores. Harrison, (1883-1927) was a skilled writer, orator, educator, critic, and political activist who combined class consciousness and anti- white-supremacist race consciousness into a coherent political radicalism. The St. Croix, Virgin Islands-born and Harlem-based Harrison profoundly influenced "New Negro" militants, including A. Philip Randolph and Marcus Garvey. E. Lynn Harris, who at one time sold computers, is now a 10-time New York Times bestselling author. His latest tome is BASKETBALL JONES. In the book, Harris explores the consequences of loving someone who is forced to conform to the rules society demands its public heroes follow. The book is filled with nonstop twists and turns. For information: www.bnre- view.com. MONTREAL JAZZ The 30th edition of the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal will take place June 30-July 12. Stevie Wonder will open the 30th edition of the jazz festival by performing a free concert. Wonder, Toots & The Maytals, John Pizzarelli, Ornette Coleman and Susie Arioli are the 2009 winners of the prestigious prizes awarded annually by the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal to artists who have made extraordinary contributions to the evolution of music. This year, they will receive, respectively, the Montreal Jazz Festival Spirit Award, Antonio Carlos Jobim Award, Ella Fitzgerald Award, Miles Davis Award and Oscar Peterson Award. Artists set to participate include: Dave Brubeck, Branford Marsalis, Al Jarreau, Randy Brecker, Joe Cocker, Kenny Garrett, King Sunny Ade, Kool & The Gang and more. The summer music celebration features 11 days of non-stop entertainment, from noon to midnight, right in the heart of downtown Montreal. B Y D A R L E N E C . D O N L O E – A R T S & E N T E R T A I N M E N T E D I T O R Black Meetings & Tourism June/July 2009: www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 14