The Making of the Song ‘Vladivostok’: A Conversation with John Winn

Please join the American Center in Moscow on Friday, November 1st, 2024 at 19:00 MSK for a conversation with singer/songwriter John Winn, who will discuss the history and meaning behind his song “Vladivostok.“ It was written as an homage and a gift to the people of that unique Russian city after he and his band Neighborliness traveled to perform there in 2004 as part of the Jazz Ambassadors program. The lyric depicts Vladivostok as an almost magical place, a world apart from John and the band’s day-to-day life in the U.S. About the speaker: John Winn is a musician/composer living in Richmond, Virginia. He has composed music for independent film, Shakespearean stage productions, jazz ensembles both large and small, rock bands and various chamber music configurations as well as pieces for solo piano and harp. He is really a songwriter at heart though, and is currently writing songs for a new stage musical titled Safety. John performs as a singer and saxophonist/clarinetist in various settings, ranging from jazz combos to rock bands, from symphony orchestras to musical theater pit orchestras. John was featured as a singer with his jazz quartet, Neighborliness, when they were selected to tour parts of Asia, Russia and Mexico under the auspices of the U.S. Department of State’s Jazz Ambassadors program in 2004. He has played more than 25 concerts at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, and has also appeared onstage with music luminaries such as Lou Rawls, Aretha Franklin, Tony Bennett, Bernadette Peters, Natalie Cole, Doc Severinsen, Idina Menzel, Johnny Mathis, Chita Rivera, Marie Osmond, Arturo Sandoval and many others. Moderated by musician Laura Ann Singh.