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Lisa Henry Bowen -
Founder & Program Director
“The youth represent all of our
greatest possibilities. Through the performance of jazz music, character and
discipline are instilled, and can be transferred to all other areas of a young
person's life.” - Lisa Henry Bowen
Executive director and founder of
The Charlie Parker Institute of Jazz, Lisa Henry Bowen, is a veteran of melding
artistic expression with social cause.
A professional jazz vocalist for
over 17 years, she is dedicated her life to presentation and preservation of
America's original art form; jazz. An international performer, educator,
speaker and clinician, Lisa Henry Bowen brings a global perspective to Kansas
City's youth and the Institute itself.
For over twelve years Lisa built a
jazz career at night, while building a career as a social work case manager by
day. Much of her professional social work career involved working with at risk
youth battling drug and alcohol addiction. It was during this important time in
her life that Lisa witnessed firsthand, the power the performing arts in
transforming the lives of youth.
Through the establishment of the
Charlie Parker Institute of Jazz, Lisa Henry Bowen is answering a lifelong
calling: giving back to the Kansas City and world jazz community. By ensuring
that at risk youth have a place in which they can build their self-esteem through the performing arts,
the CPIOJ will help to ensure Jazz, as an art form, is
passed on to the next generation.
It is Lisa's vision to once again
see Kansas City placed prominently among other jazz cities in the nation that
consistently introduce superior jazz artists to the world. Lisa Henry Bowen aims
to make The Charlie Parker Institute of Jazz part of Kansas City's new history.
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