Esperanza Spalding Wins Smithsonian Magazine American Ingenuity Award
Photo by Carlos Pericas
The awards for Esperanza Spalding keep coming.
This time around, the bassist/vocalist/composer has won Smithsonian Magazine’s American Ingenuity Award in the category of performing arts. This is the first year of the awards, which honor “nine groundbreaking individuals in technology, performing and visual arts, natural and physical sciences, education, historical scholarship, social progress and youth achievement.”
The awards were presented in Washington, DC on November 28, 2012. Herbie Hancock presented Spalding her award, saying “She is magnificent and poetic.”
Smithsonian Magazine’s special December “augmented reality” issue was out on December 4th, with complete coverage of all the awards.
The Smithsonian Award wasn’t Spalding’s only achievement in November. Her latest album, Radio Music Society won a Soul Train Award in the category of Best Contemporary Jazz Artist/ Group.
