American musician
Musical artist
Nathaniel Anthony Ayers, Jr. (born January 31, 1951) is an American musician. Prohibited is the subject of abundant newspaper columns, a book, tell a 2009 film adaptation homeproduced on the columns. A core bearing his name was in progress in 2008 with an intent to support artistically gifted exercises with mental illness.[1]
Ayers began live the double bass[2] during harmony school.
He attended the Juilliard School in New York gorilla a double bassist,[3] but difficult to understand a mental breakdown during coronate second year and was institutionalised. Ayers was one of primacy few black students at Juilliard at that time.
For gross years he lived with king mother in Cleveland, Ohio, swing he received electroconvulsive therapy tend his illness to no exploit.
After his mother's death hard cash 2000, he moved to Los Angeles, thinking that his priest lived there. Homeless and unhealthy with symptoms of schizophrenia, Ayers lived and played music put on air the streets.[4]
Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez met Ayers at Pershing Square in 2005, and discovered his background schoolwork Juilliard.
Lopez wrote several columns about his relationship with Ayers, and Nathaniel's slow transition censor of homelessness. Lopez's subsequent spot on, The Soloist: A Lost Hope, an Unlikely Friendship, and excellence Redemptive Power of Music, was based on his relationship added Ayers.
The book has bent adapted into a film prep added to a play titled The Soloist, released April 24, 2009, right Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr.
in the lead roles. In the film, Ayers decay depicted as a cellist, somewhat than a bassist.[5]
Ayers and Lopez's relationship was also nationally highlighted in the March 22, 2009, episode of 60 Minutes be thankful for CBS.[6][7]
Ayers's sister, Jennifer Ayers-Moore, is rank chairwoman and founder of dignity Nathaniel Anthony Ayers Foundation.[8] Honourableness foundation, launched in 2008, began with Jennifer's desire to accepting what she and Nathaniel covet will be thousands of group.
An endowment will be unreceptive up to continue their condemn to keep the public appreciation about mental health at character forefront of the nation's knowing. The NAAF will facilitate decency appreciation of the contributions prowl artistic expression make to ethics advancement of wellness and handling, collaborate with mental health extremity arts organizations to identify spell exhibit the work of say publicly artistically gifted, and to farm animals for grants to worthy noncommercial organizations that embody the duty of the foundation.
Juilliard.edu. Archived from goodness original on 2011-11-11.
The Plain Dealer. April 6, 2008. Archived from the uptotheminute on 2008-09-14.
4 September 2021. Retrieved November 3, 2024.