Warming temperatures mean it’s time to get out there and strut. From book signings to variety shows, there’s something coming up for everyone’s walking speed. Sweet Void Cinema screeningssweetvoidcinema.com The Humboldt Park-based production company and microcinema Sweet Void Cinema (3036 W. Chicago, Suite 1W) collects shorts from local filmmakers and screens them monthly as a […]
Tag: Henry Threadgill
Chicago’s Black musical visionaries charted paths for their communities in the 1950s and ’60s
Since the 1950s, Chicago has hosted a succession of visionary Black musical groups and societies. They’re best known as purveyors of avant-garde jazz, but that characterization sells short Sun Ra and his Arkestra, the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), and Phil Cohran’s Artistic Heritage Ensemble. Each was—and in some cases still is—a […]
Ari Brown belongs in Chicago’s canon of great tenor saxophonists
Ari Brown hasn’t often sought the spotlight, but his blend of bebop rigor and avant-garde daring puts him on par with the likes of Fred Anderson and Von Freeman.
The ten best jazz records of 2016
This year’s best jazz records include a large-ensemble concept album about conspiracy theories, a tug-of-war between loops and live-band grooves, and an amazing hybrid of jazz and hip-hop.
A new seven-piece ensemble conducted by Henry Threadgill drops its debut
In his new Ensemble Double Up, reedist Henry Threadgill puts down his horns and conducts.
There’s an overload of must-see jazz concerts in Chicago this weekend
The Hyde Park Jazz Festival is at the center of a dizzying variety of live music this weekend.
Your comprehensive guide to the 37th annual Chicago Jazz Festival
Previews of every act in Millennium Park and beyond, including Fred Hersch in his overdue festival debut and AACM cofounder Muhal Richard Abrams leading a historic reunion of the Experimental Band
Why the AACM and AfriCOBRA still matter
MCA curator Naomi Beckwith discusses a new exhibit called “The Freedom Principle” that connects the legacy of the Black Arts Movement to current cultural and political battles.
Here’s the full lineup for the 2015 Chicago Jazz Festival
The 50th anniversary of Chicago’s AACM gets the spotlight
An interview with MacArthur ‘genius,’ jazz pianist, and composer Vijay Iyer
Vijay Iyer’s mutant style should make him one of the most interesting draws at this year’s Chicago Humanities Festival.
A weekend of jazz and international music in New York
Gorging at Winter Jazz Festival and Globalfest
Thursday and Friday: 2013 Chicago Jazz Festival according to Reader writers
Jack DeJohnette and Wadada Leo Smith are just two of the highlights of the first two days of the 2013 Chicago Jazz Festival.
The Reader’s guide to the 35th annual Chicago Jazz Festival
The Chicago Jazz Festival moves to Millennium Park with its best lineup in five years.
City announces 2013 lineups for Downtown Sound, Loops & Variations, and Made in Chicago
What’s scheduled for some of this summer’s best free concert series.
Counting Down My Favorite Music of 2010
My choices for best albums of 2010, numbers 11-40.