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Noted jazz musician Rick
DellaRatta has performed benefit concerts for nonprofit
organizations all over the world. He'll be performing
Saturday in Las Cruces for the Piro-Manso-Tiwa Indian
Tribe. (Courtesy photo) |
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Rick DellaRatta is an American jazz master pianist and
vocalist who not only provides music for the masses, but plays
a big part in keeping alive the hopes and dreams of nonprofit
organizations around the world.
DellaRatta and his fund-raising organization, Jazz for
Peace, have performed benefit concerts for nonprofits in every
corner of Earth, from Santa Fe to South Africa.
"As a jazz artist — an improviser, a composer, a pianist —
I have certainly achieved my goals," DellaRatta said Tuesday.
"But to be able to go after my own philanthropic goals, that's
what's helping me become a better person."
DellaRatta, on his Jazz for Peace World Tour, will stop in
Las Cruces for a benefit concert for the Piro-Manso-Tiwa
Indian Tribe, Pueblo of San Juan de Guadalupe in southern New
Mexico.
"We are raising funds for tribal programs, land
acquisition, educational grants for tribal members, cultural
preservation projects, Indian language instruction, youth
programs and to help defray the costs of the federal
acknowledgement process," a Jazz for Peace news release
stated.
The Piro-Manso-Tiwa benefit concert will be held Saturday
at Lucky Star Studios. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at
the door. DellaRatta will perform with local musicians Anthony
Movsesian on bass and Louie Speakingeagle on percussion.
"This is a great opportunity to help someone out and it's
opportunity to listen to some great jazz in this city,"
Movsesian said.
DellaRatta has won numerous awards for his musicianship,
including the 2000 MAC (Manhattan Association of Cabarets and
Clubs) Award for Recording of the Year for his double album
live CD release titled "Live in Brazil & The Blue Note."
He's also toured with Herb Reed and The Platters, the Artie
Shaw Orchestra and jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie.
DellaRatta said he was 19 when Gillespie introduced him to
Latin jazz. DellaRatta said he was so moved by the rhythms
that he studied in Brazil and now sings many of his songs in
Portuguese.
Movsesian compares DellaRatta's compositions to a "bossa
nova with Latin and jazz
themes.
"He really makes it sound like you're in Brazil," Movsesian
said.
DellaRatta's authentic style isn't to be missed by jazz
aficionados. He's already performed once in Las Cruces, in
June of 2005 in another benefit for the Piro-Manso-Tiwa tribe.
However, that concert was poorly attended.
"Hopefully, we'll get some more people out here this time,"
DellaRatta said. "One of the main goals of Jazz for Peace is
to form a long-term relationship with the beneficiary. We have
the most impact when we do multiple events."
He said the Piro-Manso-Tiwa tribe was chosen as a
beneficiary by a Jazz for Peace volunteer, all of whom get to
select a nonprofit organization to help.
"We're trying to change the world through jazz and our
volunteers are the ones who choose who we're going to help,"
DellaRatta said.
Jazz for Peace has had an influence on many people
throughout the world. One Jazz for Peace benefit concert
sticks out in DellaRatta's mind.
"We performed at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem (N.Y.) and
raised $250,000 for a foster care agency there," he said. "I
think that one will have an impact for a number of years to
come."
Lucas Peerman can be reached at lpeerman@lcsun-news.com
If you go
What: Rick DellaRatta benefit concert for the
Piro-Manso-Tiwa Indian Tribe
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
Where: Lucky Star Studios, 108 Wyatt Drive
How much: $25 in advance, $30 at the door
Info and tickets: (505) 647-5372, (650) 274-1131, e-mail pmtjazz@yahoo.com or log
onto www.jazzforpeace.org | 
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