Natixis Investment Managers (Natixis), presenting sponsor of the Newport Jazz Festival, announced recently that Matthew Pearl and Luca Simeone have been awarded the 2019 George Wein Jazz Ambassador Scholarship.
Natixis awards the scholarships annually, in coordination with the Newport Festivals Foundation, to young artists who have shown tremendous music ability, strong academic achievement, and a commitment to giving back to their communities.
Pearl, of Marlborough, Mass., and Simeone, of Kingston, R.I., were presented with the scholarships during the 65th Annual Newport Jazz Festival.
Natixis Investment Managers has been presenting sponsor of the Newport Jazz Festival since 2011 and has awarded $5,000 scholarships to twenty aspiring college-bound musicians over that period. The scholarships are named in celebration of George Wein, the founder of the Newport Jazz Festival and an ambassador for jazz music, who has spent his life working to bring people together through the power of jazz.
“We are proud to partner with the Newport Festivals Foundation to present the legendary Newport Jazz Festival,” said David Giunta, CEO of the US for Natixis Investment Managers in a prepared statement. “We also look forward to recognizing two students who use music to convey creativity, diversity, and innovation – tenets that Natixis encourages in our business and our people.”
Giunta presented the Natixis scholarships to Matthew Pearl and Luca Simeone on the Fort Stage on Saturday, Aug. 3, before the performance of Grammy- and Tony Award-winning jazz giant Dee Dee Bridgewater.
Matthew Pearl, a tenor saxophone player, is a graduate of Marlborough High School. He is a member of the Massachusetts Music Education Association All-State Jazz Band and loves to communicate with others through music. Pearl has an “astute ability for improvisation and jazz interpretation” and will continue studying jazz at the University of Hartford in the fall.
Trumpet player Luca Simeone performed at the festival with the Rhode Island Music Education Association Senior All-State Jazz Band on Sunday, Aug. 4 on the Harbor Stage. He is a graduate of South Kingstown High School (R.I.) and appreciates the inclusivity and authenticity of individual expression of jazz. Simeone will focus on music performance and music composition at the University of Rhode Island.
Natixis’ music initiatives are part of its Together for Better℠ philanthropic outreach program, which creates important and lasting change by combining its resources and passions with the power of change-making community partners. Child by child, family by family, community by community, they are changing the world. Together for Better.
