Antonio Adolfo & Hendrik Meurkens at The Kitano, NY...Great Combination

Antonio Adolfo & Hendrik Meurkens @ The Kitano Wednesday, June 18th Antonio Adolfo – Hendrik Meurkens Quartet Antonio Adolfo – piano Hendrik Meurkens – harmonica Itaiguara Brandao  - bass Adriano Santos - drums at The Kitano 66 Park Ave @East 38th St New York, NY www.kitano.com + Antonio Adolfo & Hendrik Meurkens win Brazilian International Press Award 2014 Photo by Fabiano Silva, Acontece Magazine

Pianist Antonio Adolfo and harmonica player Hendrik Meurkens received the Brazilian  International Press Award this past weekend in Fort Lauderdale (FL) for Best Show of 2013. Antonio  Adolfo also was presented the Lifetime Achievement for his outstanding contribution to Brazilian music.  Wednesday, June 18th The Kitano 66 Park Avenue, East 38th St, New York,  NY, ph. 212-885-7119 Antonio Adolfo – Hendrik Meurkens Quartet Antonio Adolfo – piano Hendrik Meurkens – harmonica Itaiguara Brandao - bass Adriano Santos – drums Antonio Adolfo grew up in a musical family in Rio de Janeiro (his mother was a violinist in the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra), and began his studies at the age of seven. At seventeen he was already a professional musician. His teachers include Eumir Deodato and the great Nadia Boulanger in Paris. During the 60's he led his own trio and toured with singers Elis Regina and Milton Nascimento. Adolfo wrote tunes that gained great success and have been recorded by such artists as Sérgio Mendes, Stevie Wonder, Herb Alpert, Earl Klugh, Dionne Warwick, and others. He won International Song Contests on two occasions besides several awards. As a musician and arranger AA has worked with some of the most representative Brazilian names, besides having released more than 25 albums under his name. His most recent studio recordings include Antonio Adolfo e Carol Saboya Ao Vivo/ Live (2007), Antonio Adolfo and Carol Saboya Lá e Cá/Here and There (2010), Chora Baião (2011), Finas Misturas (2013), Rio Choro Jazz (2014). Rio, Choro, Jazz…, the most recent album by Antonio Adolfo is a tribute to Brazilian legendary pianist and composer Ernesto Nazareth. Virtuoso instrumentalist and composer Hendrik Meurkens began his career in Germany playing vibes.  At 19, he heard Toots Thielemans play harmonica, which totally changed his musical life. His career has taken him from Brazil to Germany, then throughout the European continent where he became a pivotal force on the studio and jazz scene, performing, composing, recording, and touring extensively with his own ensembles as well as with visiting legends Harry Sweets Edison and Buddy Tate. In 1989, he returned to Brazil to record his first album as a leader, "Samba Importado". In 1992, a trip to California led to his signing with the Concord label, and the resulting six recordings established him as the first major new voice on the harmonica since Toots Thielemans. He moved to New York in 1992 where he has lived ever since.  His 24 CDs have received rave reviews and strong airplay, and established his immediately recognizable style of Brazilian Jazz. Critics and the jazz listening public alike have recognized Meurkens' incredible talent, listing him repeatedly in the Downbeat and Jazziz Polls. Meurkens has worked with Ray Brown, Paquito D'Rivera, Oscar Castro-Neves, Herb Ellis, Herbie Mann, James Moody,  Charlie Byrd, Jimmy Cobb, Ivan Lins, Monty Alexander, Manfredo Fest, Herb Ellis, Dori Caymmi, Toninho Horta, Harry 'Sweets' Edison, Buddy Tate, Joyce and Astrud Gilberto. NEW CD Antonio Adolfo "Rio, Choro, Jazz"  A Tribute To Legendary Brazilian Pianist & Composer Ernesto Nazareth (AAM 0706)

Media Contact: Jim Eigojim@jazzpromoservices.com www.jazzpromoservices.com