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Jazz Legend Monty Alexander Receives Honorary Doctorate

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ICYMI,  Jazz legend Monty Alexander has received an honorary Doctorate of Letters degree from the University of the West Indies Mona Campus,

The Jamaican-born, international jazz maestro, born Montgomery Bernard Alexander on D-Day in Kingston, Jamaica, was presented with the DLitt distinction on November 3rd, 2018 at the Kingston Jamaica, UWI Mona Campus by Chancellor Robert Bermudez at the 2018 graduation ceremonies.

Also honored with the Jamaican musician extraordinaire was actress, singer, model and producer, Grace Jones.

“I am so proud to have received another great honor from my beloved native Jamaica,” Alexander, who in 2000 received the Jamaican National Award of Commander of Distinction, (CD) commented. “It fills me with joy but I’m also very humbled.”

The Grammy award-nominated performer, who has five decades of performances and more than 70 CDs under his belt, began his musical career at age four by playing Christmas carols by ear. He is now most widely known as an upper echelon master of the swinging piano trio function as he has demonstrated with several top-shelf groups, including iconic units with bassist John Clayton and drummer Jeff Hamilton, and with the legendary bassist Ray Brown and guitarist Herb Ellis.

He also performs frequently with Harlem-Kingston Express, a double trio in which he coalesces his love for hard-swinging jazz with musical flavors that reflect his Jamaican heritage, shifting between an acoustic trio and master Jamaican practitioners of electric bass and drums. He debuted the project at Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2009 and documented it both on the Grammy-nominated 2011 CD, Harlem-Kingston Express: LIVE, and its 2014 Soultrain Award nominated follow-up, Harlem Kingston Express 2: The River Rolls On (Motéma).

For more on the Monty Alexander and his amazing brand of jazz, visit him on YouTube or at montyalexander.com. You can also like him on Facebook at facebook.com/officialmontyalexander or keep up to date on his performance on Twitter at @montyHKE.

Last modified: November 29, 2018