Along the snaky contours of Panama City’s Avenida Central, a thoroughfare and a way of life celebrated by Danilo Pérez on his 1998 Impulse album Central Avenue, Kuna Indian women with gold rings in their noses bargain with Chinese and Hindu shopkeepers as Panamanians of every imaginable hue hustle by. Called the “Crossroads of the World,” Panamá is the very definition of a multi-cultural Mecca -- a land where people from virtually every corner of the planet live and work side-by-side in a harmonious atmosphere that would be envied in most major cities of the world.
It’s not surprising that Pérez, Panama’s most noted musician of his generation, has for the past two decades been generously giving back to the land that nurtured his abundant talents. Today, the Danilo Pérez Foundation has become a leading force in this land of 3.2 million for cultural development and music education. Headed by his wife Patricia and assisted by his parents, the foundation has the stated goal of “offering opportunities for the cultural growth of Panamanian youth of limited resources that have a serious commitment to the study of music” with such specific objectives as discovering and nurturing Panamanian talent, providing the highest standards in music education, and making the country a center for cultural exchange.
The foundation’s flagship project is the annual Panama Jazz Festival, now in its sixth year. Pérez created the event to make possible for Panamanians to experience both the talent and the camaraderie of visiting, world class musicians. “One of the most incredible things that is happening is the involvement of people from throughout the country from all social backgrounds,” he comments. “You’ll see a poor kid from the countryside sitting next to a rich kid from the city at these concerts. That’s what we want.”
Each year, the festival is dedicated to a Panamanian musician that has contributed to the development of jazz music at home or abroad, and there are many notables. In recent years, such illustrious native born talent as drummer Billy Cobham, saxophonists Carlos Garnett and Jorge Silvestre, bassist Santi Debriano, and percussionist Renato Thoms are just some of the famed Panamanian jazz talent who have graced the festival’s stages in recent years. This coming year, the six day series of concerts and workshops, scheduled for January 12 - 17, 2009, will headline Cuban pianist Chucho Valdés and other international and regional artists.
The foundation, in partnership with Panamanian government agencies and other private foundations, also offers scholarships for promising young talent from Panamá and other lands. “The first year, there was no one from Panamá who passed the audition,” Pérez adds. “But this last year, there were over 20. It‘s been a long, hard road, but we are finally making progress. We can now offer half a million dollars in scholarships and are able to enter into relationships with the Berklee College of Music and the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico.” One tangible product of the foundation’s partnership with Berklee is the recent releasePanama Suite (Artist Share), a three movement work written by Pérez that features a big band of young Latin American musicians recorded at the Berklee studios. “The goal,” he continues, “is to make sure that the efforts, including educational programs, have continuity.”
Pérez, who served as the country’s cultural ambassador for two presidents, today is the goodwill ambassador for UNICEF. His hyperactive schedule also includes a fulltime teaching position at the New England Conservatory of Music, which he balances with part time duties at Berklee, recording projects, touring, and his ongoing projects in Panamá.
The foundation’s website is: www.fundaciondaniloperez.com |
