H.E. Huda Alkhamis-Kanoo, Founder of ADMAF and Abu Dhabi Festival, Receives the Prestigious Ed Bradley Leadership Award in Jazz
Presented at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Duke at 125 Gala, the Founder of ADMAF and Abu Dhabi Festival becomes the Middle East’s first recipient of the prestigious award, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to jazz through education, philanthropy and advocacy.
The Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation (ADMAF) announced that H.E. Huda Alkhamis-Kanoo, Founder of ADMAF and the Abu Dhabi Festival, has received the prestigious Ed Bradley Award for Leadership in Jazz, becoming the first-ever recipient from the Middle East to be honoured with this recognition. The award was presented to Her Excellency during the Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Duke at 125 Fundraiser Gala in New York, in honour of her lifetime achievement and outstand contributions to the global jazz community, as well as her role in championing cultural exchange through the arts.
As a visionary philanthropist and patron of the arts, H.E. Huda Alkhamis-Kanoo has dedicated her life to bridging Arab and Western cultures through artistic expression and cultural dialogue. As the Founder of ADMAF and its flagship Abu Dhabi Festival, Her Excellency played a pioneering role in introducing jazz to the UAE and integrating it into the nation’s cultural landscape. Receiving the award during a gala honouring the legendary pianist, composer and 13-time Grammy Award-winner Duke Ellington, Her Excellency’s work echoes his legacy of using music as a powerful tool for dialogue, inclusion and empathy across generations.
Her Excellency Huda Al Khamis-Kanoo, Founder of the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation (ADMAF) and Founder of Abu Dhabi Festival, expressed her gratitude for receiving the Ed Bradley Leadership in Jazz Award from the prestigious Jazz at Lincoln Center.
Her Excellency said: “I am honoured to receive an award named after Ed Bradley, a man who loved jazz and pursued the truth, with the same passion and integrity.”
H.E. continued: “I extend my heartfelt thanks to Wynton Marsalis and Lincoln Center for this honour, which reflects his passion for music and his belief in its great power to unite us. To me, Jazz is a conversation in which every voice counts, in an inclusive, creative, and inspiring way. No one embodied this more than the great Duke Ellington, who we are celebrating today.”
“His music was all about elegance, excellence and – above all – togetherness – where everyone is invited to listen, to reflect and to dream. What connects us all is our dedication to uphold the values he stood for. I am privileged to build Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation (ADMAF) and the Abu Dhabi Festival with the values of dialogue, empathy, enlightenment, and cultural exchange. Jazz has been an extraordinary partner in this journey, and I wish to thank every jazz artist that has helped me travel this road,” H.E. concluded.
ADMAF’s longstanding collaboration with Jazz at Lincoln Center (JALC) has spanned over a decade, marked by cross-cultural concerts, educational initiatives and artist commissions. In 2023, the Abu Dhabi Festival partnered with JALC to present Middle East Meditations, a cross-cultural collaboration featuring Iraqi oud virtuoso Naseer Shamma and Wynton Marsalis’ Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, blending jazz rhythms with Arabic musical traditions. In 2020, the partnership supported a performance by Palestinian singer Omar Kamal at Jazz at Lincoln Center, while 2018 saw the international Peninsular tour by Tarek Yamani. In 2017, Marsalis was also honoured with the Abu Dhabi Festival Award. In 2011, ADMAF and JALC signed a cooperation agreement to promote jazz, arts education among youth and cultural exchange in the UAE. Additional highlights include the Arab world premiere of the Joey Alexander Trio, the Music in Hospitals programme and the 2010 Abu Dhabi Festival debut that first brought Marsalis and Shamma together onstage.
The Ed Bradley Award for Leadership in Jazz is an honour presented by Jazz at Lincoln Center to individuals who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and support for jazz. Established to commemorate Ed Bradley, the esteemed CBS News journalist and passionate jazz advocate, the award recognizes those who have significantly contributed to the promotion and advancement of jazz. The award has honoured distinguished arts patrons, philanthropists, educators and cultural leaders who have played a pivotal role in shaping the future of jazz. In 2024, it was awarded to Tim Jackson, who revitalised the Monterey Jazz Festival over three decades, and Randall Kline, who transformed SFJAZZ into a globally recognised institution.
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