The Spirit of Jazz in NC: John Brown and Romare Bearden

Celebrate art and music with the Spirit of Jazz in NC, an event that includes a film screening, performance, conversation, and museum tour.

North Carolina has long been home to legends in both art and music. The Spirit of Jazz honors two of them—Romare Bearden of Charlotte, NC, whose work is featured in Close to Home, and a living legend of jazz, John Brown, the Vice Provost for the Arts at Duke University.

The afternoon begins with a screening of One Night in Kernersville, a short documentary by Rodrigo Dorfman following jazz bassist John Brown’s journey as he makes a big band recording in Kernersville, NC. A successful bassist, composer, educator, and actor, John has a long history of performance excellence. At the age of 13, he began performing with the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra. He was playing Principal Bass with that orchestra and performing with the Florence Symphony in South Carolina while still in high school.

After a Q&A session about the film with Adrienne Nirdé, the Director of the NC African American Heritage Commission, John takes to the stage with a trio of friends to weave the story of jazz across North Carolina’s music trails. Romare Bearden’s paintings and prints paint a backdrop to the performance. Bearden’s passion for jazz began at an early age, and he kept his art studio at the Apollo Theater building, where the hum of jazz could always be heard. 

Stay after the performance to see Bearden’s works in person on a tour of Close to Home on the exhibition’s final weekend.