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Music, Music Feature Aug 27, 2020
Video
Chicago’s September jazz festivals cope with COVID

The city is replacing its traditional huge outdoor affair with a slimmed-down online event, while the smaller, nimbler Hyde Park Jazz Festival plans to try pop-up in-person shows.
- By Bill Meyer
- Tags: Music Feature, Chicago Jazz Festival, Hyde Park Jazz Festival, Millennium Park at Home: Jazz Music, Jazz Postcards, pandemic, coronavirus, COVID-19, Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, DCASE, Jazz Showcase, Green Mill, Constellation, Elastic Arts, Experimental Sound Studio, Quarantine Concerts, Option Series, Catalytic Sound, Corbett vs. Dempsey, Adam Zanolini, Kate Dumbleton, Peter Margasak, Solo Impro Festival, Doek Festival, Cristina Marx, Millennium Park Summer Music Series, Jon Langford, Sam Trump, Zeshan B, Mucca Pazza, the Promontory, Dee Alexander, Khari B., Junius Paul Quartet, Souleyes—An Exercise in Reconstruction, Jazz Festival Citywide, Citywide Jazz, Midway Plaisance, University of Chicago, Logan Center for the Arts, Bobby Broom Trio, Tito Carrillo Quintet, Twin Talk, Nick Mazzarella Trio, Abigail Riccards, Von Freeman, Clifford Jordan, Fred Hersch Trio, Muhal Richard Abrams, Experimental Band, Myra Melford, Angel Bat Dawid, Corey Wilkes, Greg Ward, Tomeka Reid, Avreeayl Ra, Joshua Abrams, HPJF, Video

Music, The Secret History of Chicago Music Oct 22, 2019
Video
Remembering drummer, pharmacist, activist, and seeker Alvin Fielder

A charter member of the AACM and a longtime partner of saxophonist Kidd Jordan, he was an encyclopedia of jazz history with an eye on the future.
- By Steve Krakow
- Tags: The Secret History of Chicago Music, Alvin Fielder, jazz, drums, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, AACM, Roscoe Mitchel, Sound, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Mississippi, Meridian, New Orleans, Kidd Jordan, Max Roach, Ed Blackwell, Xavier University, exas Southern University, Houston, Herb Brockstein, George “Dude” Brown, Lowell Fulson, Amos Milburn, Pluma Davis Sextet, UIC, pharmacist, pharmacology, Sun Ra Arkestra, Muhal Richard Abrams, Fred Anderson, Lester Lashley, Joseph Jarman, Jack DeJohnette, John Stubblefield, Black Arts Music Society, Improvisational Arts, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Ahmed Abdullah, Charles Brackeen, Joel Futterman, Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong Jazz Camp, A Measure of Vision, Jackson, Video

Music, Music Feature Jan 31, 2019
Video
Angel Bat Dawid taps into the root of all black music

The cofounder of Chicago’s Participatory Music Coalition talks about the improvisation and inspiration that shaped her new album, The Oracle.
- By Leor Galil
- Tags: Music Feature, Angel Bat Dawid, Angel Elmore, The Oracle, International Anthem, jazz, improvised music, the Brothahood, Elastic Arts, Ben LaMar Gay, Jaimie Branch, Makaya McCraven, Damon Locks, Black Monument Ensemble, Participatory Music Coalition, Hyde Park Records, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, AACM, Muhal Richard Abrams, Roscoe Mitchell, David Boykin, Sonic Healing Ministries, Adam Zanolini, Viktor Le Givens, Hyde Park Records, Norman Long, Xris Espinoza, Julian Otis, Isaiah Collier, Asher Simiso Gamedze, What Shall I Tell My Children Who Are Black, We Are Starzz, Winter Jazzfest, Radcliffe W. Hunter House, Saint Thomas Episcopal Church, Bronzeville, Sapphire and Crystals, Reverend Shahar Weaver, B’Rael Ali Thunder, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Margaret Burroughs, Griffiths-Burroughs House, South Side Community Art Center, Langston Hughes, Gwendolyn Brooks, Zora Neale Hurston, DeLundon, impepho, gqom, Scottie McNiece, Video

Music, Music Feature Jan 10, 2019
Video
Extraordinary Popular Delusions play free jazz two centuries deep

The members of this underappreciated ensemble bring vast and varied experience to their regular weekly shows—which follow no rules but their own.
- By Howard Mandel
- Tags: Music Feature, Extraordinary Popular Delusions, Jim Baker, James Baker, Mars Williams, Brian Sandstrom, Steve Hunt, Ed Wilkerson Jr., Beat Kitchen, Hotti Biscotti, Ken Syska, Richard Syska, 8 Bold Souls, Shadow Vignettes, NRG Ensemble, Hal Russell, Vandermark 5, Ken Vandermark, AACM, Muhal Richard Abrams, Nicole Mitchell, Cinghiale, Shawn Colvin, Nicholas Tremulis, jazz, avant-garde, free jazz, free improvisation, Joe Adamik, Lewis Achenbach, Jazz Occurrence, Apocryphal Fire in the Warehouse, and Other Explanations, Fred Anderson, Velvet Lounge, Birdhouse, Deja Vu, Psychedelic Furs, Phenix Horns, Tortoise, Herbert Brün, Shulamit Ran, Club Lower Links, Lunar Cabaret, HotHouse, Caffeine, Kent Kessler, Nervous Center, Liquid Soul, Mike Harmon, Todd Carter, TV Pow, Brad Marcus, Dave Jemilo, Green Mill, ARP 2600, Green Mill All-Stars, Malachi Ritscher, Video

Blogs, Bleader Nov 1, 2017
Video
Influential pianist, composer, and AACM cofounder Muhal Richard Abrams dies at 87

Muhal Richard Abrams earned the love and respect of peers and listeners alike with his erudition, vision, and self-determined creative path.
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Music, Post No Bills, RIP, Muhal Richard Abrams, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), jazz, SoundDance, Rejoicing With the Light, The Heart is Love and I Am, Focus ThruTime...Time ->, Video

Music, The Secret History of Chicago Music Jul 18, 2017
Phil Cohran shaped the Black Arts Movement with his vision and discipline

Secret History pays tribute to its first subject, the late Phil Cohran, who cofounded the AACM, formed the Artistic Heritage Ensemble, and launched the Affro-Arts Theater.
- By Steve Krakow
- Tags: The Secret History of Chicago Music, Phil Cohran, Kelan Phil Cohran, Sun Ra, Artistic Heritage Ensemble, jazz, soul, funk, creative music, improvisation, Black Arts Movement, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Affro-Arts Theater, AACM, Association for the Advancement for Creative Musicians, Jay McShann, John Gilmore, On the Beach, Chuck Terry, Oxford, Mississippi, Saint Louis, obituary, Walter Perkins, Sun Ra Myth Science Arkestra, Fate in a Pleasant Mood, Angels and Demons at Play, Muhal Richard Abrams, Pete Cosey, Miles Davis, Louis Satterfield, Earth Wind & Fire, Maurice White, Frankiphone, ukelin, cornet, trumpet, harp, Malcolm X College, Ethiopian Diamond

Music, Music Feature Sep 2, 2015
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
- By Peter Margasak, John Corbett, and Bill Meyer
- Tags: Music Feature, Chicago Jazz Festival 2015, Jazz Fest, Jazz Fest 2015, Jazzfest, Jazzfest 2015, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, AACM, Jeff Parker Trio, Steve & Iqua Colson, Muhal Richard Abrams's Experimental Band, Muhal Richard Abrams, Henry Threadgill, Roscoe Mitchell, George Lewis, Wadada Leo Smith, Amina Claudine Myers, Fred Hersch, Henry Butler, Andrew Trim's Hanami Quartet, Ben Waltzer, Lucy Smith, James Davis's Beveled, Dee Alexander, Miguel de la Cerna, "What's This Thing Called Jazz?" From Mainstream to AACM and Beyond, Marquis Hill Blacktet, Henry Butler, Steven Bernstein, The Hot 9, Rajiv Halim Quintet, Jeremy Cunningham Quartet, Neusa Sauer, Craig Taborn Trio, Spin Quartet, Art Hoyle Sextet, Clark Terry Tribute, Bobby Lewis Sextet, Chico Freeman, The Chicago Project featuring George Freeman, Billie Holiday, Fred Hersch Trio, Billy Strayhorn, Chicago Jazz Orchestra, Edward Wilkerson, John Hollenbeck, Steven Bernstein, Gordon Goodwin, Jones College Prep Jazz Combo, Chi Arts Jazz Combo, Whitney Young Magnet High School Jazz Ensemble, Rich Central Jazz Ensemble, Columbia College Jazz Ensemble, Dave Douglas, Trio WAZ, Mike Schlick Trio, Brian Gephart Sextet, Ryan Cohan Quartet, Joe Locke, Makaya McCraven Quartet, Juan Pastor, Chinchano, Jason Roebke Octet, Douglas Ewart, The Claudia Quintet, Theo Bleckmann, Mark Turner Quartet, Taft Jazz Combo, Northside College Prep Jazz Combo, Pritzker High School Jazz Ensemble, Thornridge High School Jazz Ensemble, Northern Illinois University Jazz Ensemble, Kenwood Academy Jazz Ensemble, Tomeka Reid, Jordan Baskin Trio, Elaine Dame, Ryan Shultz Quartet, Robert Irving III Generations, Bob Dogan Quintet, Bill McFarland Chicago Horns, Steve Colson, Iqua Colson, 40 Years in the Movement, Jane Bunnett, Maqueque, Cyrille Aimee

Music, Music Feature Jul 7, 2015
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.
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Music Feature, AACM, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, Museum of Contemporary Art, AfriCOBRA, Naomi Beckwith, "The Freedom Principle", Black Arts Movement, John Litweiler, Muhal Richard Abrams, Roscoe Mitchell, Henry Threadgill, Wadada Leo Smith, Amina Claudine Meyers, George Lewis, John Litweiler, Matana Roberts, OBAC, Organization of Black American Culture, Coalition of Black Revolutionary Artists, Glenn Ligon, Cauleen Smith, Anri Sala, Nick Cave visual artist, Renee Green, Dieter Roelstraete, The Freedom Principle: Experiments in Art and Music 1965 to Now, A Power Stronger Than Itself

Music, Music Feature Oct 21, 2014
Video
An interview with MacArthur 'genius,' jazz pianist, and composer Vijay Iyer

Iyer's mutant style—at the intersection of two rich but usually parallel traditions—should make him one of the most interesting draws at this year's Chicago Humanities Festival.
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Music Feature, Vijay Iyer, Chicago Humanities Festival, MacArthur genius grant, Jason Moran, Tyshawn Sorey, Nicole Mitchell, Stefan Crump, Marcus Gilmore, Logan Center, Monica Hairston O'Connell, Radhe Radhe, Silk Road Ensemble, Brooklyn Rider, Neil Dufallo, AACM, Roscoe Mitchell, Muhal Richard Abrams, George Lewis, Henry Threadgill, Wadada Leo Smith, Brentano String Quartet, Steve Coleman, Harvard University, Video

Music, Music Feature Aug 27, 2013
The Reader's guide to the 35th annual Chicago Jazz Festival

The fest moves to Millennium Park with its best lineup in five years—including Jack DeJohnette, Wadada Leo Smith, Atomic, Robert Glasper, Jimmy Heath, Satoko Fujii, and lots of Hamid Drake.
- By Peter Margasak, John Corbett, and Bill Meyer
- Tags: Music Feature, Chicago Jazz Festival 2013, 35th Annual Chicago Jazz Fest, Grant Park, Millennium Park, Chicago Cultural Center, Pritzker Pavilion, Made in Chicago: World Class Jazz, Hamid Drake, Roosevelt University, Jack DeJohnette, AACM, Muhal Richard Abrams, Roscoe Mitchell, Henry Threadgill, William Parker, Edward "Kidd" Jordan, Bindu, Charles Lloyd, Bill Frisell, Wadada Leo Smith, Ten Freedom Summers, Jason Moran, Fats Waller Dance Party, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Gamak, Gregory Porter, Donald Harrison, Ganz Hall, Von Freeman Pavilion, Young Jazz Lions Pavilion, Harris Theater

Music, Music Feature Aug 27, 2013
Thursday and Friday: 2013 Chicago Jazz Festival according to Reader writers

Jack DeJohnette, Wadada Leo Smith, Hamid Drake, and others highlight the first two days of Jazz Fest.
- By Peter Margasak, John Corbett, and Bill Meyer
- Tags: Music Feature, 35th annual Chicago Jazz Fest, T.S. Galloway, Dudley Owens, Irvin Pierce, Rajiv Halim Orozco, Mwata Bowden, Corey Wilkes, Larry Bowen, Pharez Whitted, Audrey Morrison, Norman Palm, Willie Woods, Larry Gray, Robert Irving III, Geof Bradfield, 2013 Chicago Jazz Festival, Melba!, Ryan Cohan, Joel Adams, Mike Allemana, Clark Sommers, George Fludas, Wadada Leo Smith's Ten Freedom Summers, Golden Quartet, Pacifica Red Coral, Jesse Gilbert, Anthony Davis, John Lindberg, Pheeroan Aklaff, Randolph Cafe, Alison Bjorkedal, Charles Lloyd, Bill Frisell, Chicago Cultural Center, Corylus, Mankwe Ndosi, AACM, Edward Wilkerson Jr., Darius Savage, JoVia Armstrong, Fat Babies, Beau Sample, Alex Hall, Jake Sanders, Paul Asaro, Dave Bock, John Otto, Andy Schumm, Jon Doyle, Randy Weston, Claudia Cassidy Theater, Larry Gray Trio, John Moulder, Charles Heath, Harrison Bankhead Sextet, Preston Bradley Hall, Hinda Hoffman Trio, Ron Perrillo, Dennis Carroll, Garland Room, What Is This Thing Called "Jazz"?, Paul Wertico, The Rhythm Method, Roosevelt University, Hamid Drake's Chicago Trio, Ernest Dawkins, Jack DeJohnette, Muhal Richard Abrams, Larry Gray, Roscoe Mitchell, Henry Threadgill, Von Freeman Pavilion, George Freeman, Christopher McBride Quartet, Marquis Hill, Jeff Swanson, Michael Lough, Xavier Breaker, Ben Paterson Organ Quartet, Hammond B-3, George Fludas, Kyle Asche, Victor Garcia, Miguel de la Cerna Quartet, Hyde Park Jazz Society, Ari Brown, Avreaayl Ra, Mike Smith Quartet, Jordan Baskin, Jeff Hamann, Brian Ritter, Hamid Drake, Michael Zerang, Eigen Aoki, Tsukasa Taiko, Tatsu Aoki, Ken Chaney, Young-Holt Unlimited, Pritzker Pavilion, Chicago Cultural Center, Randolph Cafe, Claudia Cassidy Theater, Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall, Chicago Cultural Center, Garland Room, Chicago Cultural Center

Film, Movie Review Jul 10, 2013
Recommended Video
The lost Chicago of Medium Cool

Haskell Wexler had more on his mind than just the Democratic convention.
- By J.R. Jones
- Tags: Movie Review, Haskell Wexler, Medium Cool, Robert Forster, Studs Terkel, Division Street: America, Jack Couffer, The Concrete Wilderness, Criterion Collection, John Cassellis, Appalachia, Uptown, Peter Bonerz, Lynn Erlich, Mickey Pallas, Morris Bleckman, Lester Brownlee, Chicago Daily News, Kuumba Theatre, Val Grey Ward, Soul Train, Sid McCoy, Muhal Richard Abrams, John Shenoy Jackson, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, Jeff Donaldson, Barbara Jones-Hogu, AfriCOBRA, Verna Bloom, Harold Blankenship, Chicago Tribune, Bell & Howell, Teletype, Crane Packing, Clarus Backes, Amazing Grace, Look Out Haskell, It's Real!, Paul Cronin, Recommended, Video

Blogs, Bleader Jul 5, 2013
Audio
Delmark salvages a classic album from Roscoe Mitchell

Delmark Records' acquisition of the Sackville label begins to bear fruit with the reissue of a classic Roscoe Mitchell album.
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Jazz, Music, Post No Bills, Delmark Records, Sackville Records, Roscoe Mitchell, free jazz, Live at "A Space" 1975, Cards, Muhal Richard Abrams, Spencer Barefield, George Lewis, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Audio

Blogs, Bleader Apr 2, 2013
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.
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Music, Post No Bills, Downtown Sound, Loops & Variations, Made in Chicago: World Class Jazz, Jack McLarnan, Carlos Tortolero, Lee Ranaldo, Marc Ribot, Sharon Van Etten, Speck Mountain, Glen Hansard, Daniel Lanois, Brokeback, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Angela James, Lee Fields, Theo Huff, Dawes, Cairo Gang, Fatoumata Diawara, Alasdair Roberts, Handsome Family, Azita, Dessa, Psalm One, Falty DL, Bill Kouligas, Matmos, Fonema Consort, ICE, Nosaj Thing, Dan Deacon, Eighth Blackbird, Glenn Kotche, Lesley Flanigan, Olaf Arnalds, Sarah Neufeld, Jeff Parker, Dee Alexander, Nels Cline, Dana Hall, Pat Mallinger, Cameron Pfiffner, Jack DeJohnette, Victor Garcia, Henry Threadgill, Muhal Richard Abrams, Roscoe Mitchell

Music, The Secret History of Chicago Music Jul 24, 2012
The Secret History of Chicago Music: Malachi Favors

This avant-garde jazz bassist anchored the legendary Art Ensemble of Chicago for nearly 40 years.
- Tags: The Secret History of Chicago Music, Malachi Flavors, avant-garde jazz, jazz bass, Junior Raglin, Oscar Pettyford, Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard, Andrew Hill, King Fleming, Roscoe Mitchell, AACM, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, Sun Ra, Muhal Richard Abrams, The Secret History of Chicago Music

Music, Music Feature Sep 3, 2009
Audio
The Reader's Guide to the 31st Annual Chicago Jazz Festival

The Jazz Institute of Chicago has assembled an impressive slate of talent that broadens the traditional aesthetic scope of the festival.
- By Peter Margasak, John Corbett, and Bill Meyer
- Tags: Music Feature, Petrillo Music Shell, Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, Chicago Jazz Magazine, Grant Park, Velvet Lounge, Heaven Gallery, Katerina's, Hungry Brain, House of Trend, Jazz Showcase, AACM, Muhal Richard Abrams, Madeleine Peyroux, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chicago Afro-Latin Jazz Ensemble, Esperanza Spalding, Pritzker Pavilion, tribute to Benny Goodman, Chicago Jazz Ensemble, Buddy DeFranco, Grant Park, William Parker, Roscoe Mitchell, Renee Baker, Chicago Creative Music Workshop, Young Jazz Lions Stage, Roscoe Mitchell, Harrison Bankhead, Ari Brown, George Lewis, Barack Obama, Art Hoyle, Audio

Blogs, Bleader Sep 1, 2009
Chicago Jazz Festival Preview Podcast

Plus: you can now subscribe to Peter Margasak's podcast via iTunes.
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Music, Post No Bills, Post No Bills, podcast, Chicago Jazz Festival, Von Freeman, Dee Alexander, Jason Adasiewicz's Rolldown, Muhal Richard Abrams, George Lewis, Roscoe Mitchell, Dan Cray, Klang, James Falzone, William Parker, Nicole Mitchell, Post No Bills podcast

Music, Critic's Choice Aug 9, 2007
MUHAL RICHARD ABRAMS
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Critic's Choice, Muhal Richard Abrams

Music, Post No Bills Apr 8, 1999
Orchestrating Change

Muhal Richard Abrams: A Man of Influence
- By Peter Margasak
- Tags: Post No Bills, Muhal Richard Abrams, AACM, Walter Perkins, MJT+3, Aaron Cohen, DuSable High School, jazz, King Fleming, postbop, The Experimental Band, music, George Lewis, Gene Santoro, Lois Weisberg

Music, Critic's Choice Aug 31, 1995
Muhal Richard Abrams Experimental Band
- By Neil Tesser
- Tags: Critic's Choice, Muhal Richard Abrams

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The city is replacing its traditional huge outdoor affair with a slimmed-down online event, while the smaller, nimbler Hyde Park Jazz Festival plans to try pop-up in-person shows.

A charter member of the AACM and a longtime partner of saxophonist Kidd Jordan, he was an encyclopedia of jazz history with an eye on the future.

The cofounder of Chicago’s Participatory Music Coalition talks about the improvisation and inspiration that shaped her new album, The Oracle.

The members of this underappreciated ensemble bring vast and varied experience to their regular weekly shows—which follow no rules but their own.

Muhal Richard Abrams earned the love and respect of peers and listeners alike with his erudition, vision, and self-determined creative path.

Secret History pays tribute to its first subject, the late Phil Cohran, who cofounded the AACM, formed the Artistic Heritage Ensemble, and launched the Affro-Arts Theater.

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

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.

Iyer's mutant style—at the intersection of two rich but usually parallel traditions—should make him one of the most interesting draws at this year's Chicago Humanities Festival.

The fest moves to Millennium Park with its best lineup in five years—including Jack DeJohnette, Wadada Leo Smith, Atomic, Robert Glasper, Jimmy Heath, Satoko Fujii, and lots of Hamid Drake.

Jack DeJohnette, Wadada Leo Smith, Hamid Drake, and others highlight the first two days of Jazz Fest.

Haskell Wexler had more on his mind than just the Democratic convention.

Delmark Records' acquisition of the Sackville label begins to bear fruit with the reissue of a classic Roscoe Mitchell album.

What's scheduled for some of this summer's best free concert series.

This avant-garde jazz bassist anchored the legendary Art Ensemble of Chicago for nearly 40 years.

The Jazz Institute of Chicago has assembled an impressive slate of talent that broadens the traditional aesthetic scope of the festival.

Plus: you can now subscribe to Peter Margasak's podcast via iTunes.

Muhal Richard Abrams: A Man of Influence

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