Washington, Jan 20: The United States has kicked off its annual music diplomacy for 2024 from India with American jazz greats Herbie Hancock and Dianne Reeves giving performances in New Delhi and Mumbai, an official announcement said Friday.
The two American jazz greats are in India from January 14-24 as part of the Global Music Diplomacy Initiative, the State Department said Friday.
Additionally, in recognition of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the US Mission to India invited Herbie Hancock, Dianne Reeves, and the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz Performance at UCLA Ensemble to perform and participate in education programmes in New Delhi and Mumbai to promote peace and further foster the bonds between the peoples of the United States and India.
While in New Delhi, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti, a concert pianist, performed with the Ensemble.
In Mumbai, Hancock and Reeves will be joined by celebrated Indian artists Sitar Maestro Purbayan Chatterjee and Tabla player Swarupa Ananth-Sawkar, an alumni of the Department’s OneBeat program.
The Global Music Diplomacy Initiative, which was launched by Secretary of State Antony Blinken in September 2023, aims to promote peace and cross-cultural connections through music, and supports broader US foreign policy goals to expand access to education, economic opportunity and equity, and societal inclusion.
An integral part of the Initiative, the Arts Envoy programme sends American artists overseas to engage audiences. (PTI)
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