Lauded jazz trumpeter, composer, and revered collaborator Ambrose Akinmusire will curate and host two distinct evenings of exclusive new music for the Walker in collaboration with nationally noted musicians.
Both not-to-be-missed evenings feature the acclaimed contemporary classical Mivos String Quartet; DC-based rapper/producer/singer Kokayi; underground Colombian/Canadian Latinx producer/DJ Chiquita Magic; longtime Akinmusire bandmates pianist Sam Harris and drummer Justin Brown; and jazz guitar phenom Mary Halvorson (Friday only).
Program A: Friday, May 19, 8 pm
An evening of improvisation features new and unusual configurations and experiments from all 10 musicians, under the direction of Akinmusire.
Program B: Saturday, May 20, 8 pm
See the world premiere of the evening-length composition by Akinmusire for the Honey from a winter’s stone ensemble.
AMBROSE AKINMUSIRE: HONEY FROM A WINTER’S STONE
May 19–20, 8 pm
$33.50 ($26.50 Walker members)
McGuire Theater
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Ambrose Akinmusire, “one of the most acclaimed jazz artists of his generation, a trumpeter of deep expressive resources and a composer of kaleidoscopic vision” (NPR Music), has made a home at the crossroads of different musical forms and languages, from post-bop and avant-garde jazz, to contemporary chamber music and hip-hop, to singer-songwriter aesthetics. The Oakland, California native and Blue Note recording artist has made consistently adventurous, enduring music with a committed band of dear friends: pianist Sam Harris, bassist Harish Raghavan, and drummer Justin Brown. Their unforgettable chemistry is captured on the 2017 double album A Rift in Decorum: Live at the Village Vanguard. In 2020, the quartet soared to new heights with their Grammy-nominated release on the tender spot of every calloused moment, featuring liner notes by the great Archie Shepp. On these and other releases, Akinmusire aspires to create richly textured emotional landscapes that tell the stories of the community, record the time, and change the standard. While committed to the lineage of black invention and innovation, he honors tradition without being stifled by it.
The Mivos Quartet, “one of America’s most daring and ferocious new-music ensembles” (the Chicago Reader), is devoted to performing works of contemporary composers and presenting diverse new music to international audiences. Since the quartet’s beginning in 2008, they have performed and closely collaborated with an ever-expanding group of international composers representing a wide aesthetic range of contemporary compositions. Highlights during the 2022/23 season will include performances at the Walker with Cécile McLorin Salvant and Ambrose Akinmusire; UPenn, ECLAT Festival (DE), Columbia University, Peak Performances with Mary Halvorson; and the announcement of a new album of Steve Reich string quartets. The members of Mivos are violinists Olivia De Prato and Maya Bennardo, violist Victor Lowrie Tafoya, and cellist Tyler J. Borden.
KOKAYI is an artist, producer, educator, and connector of dots. KOKAYI is known as a preeminent improvisational vocalist, artist, producer, Grammy-nominated musician, and multi-disciplinary fine artist and is a 2023 Guggenheim Fellow for Music Composition, Halcyon Arts Fellow, and Nicholson Arts Fellow. They can be heard on over 60 titles spanning jazz, hip-hop, rock, and R&B. In their own words, “my work is an amalgamation of life experiences as filtered through, DC, Go-go, and the cultural influences created and passed on throughout the African diaspora.”
Chiquita Magic is an underground Latinx artist and producer from Bogotá, Colombia, based in Toronto, Canada. Her music is described as futuristic pop with elements of funk, EDM, choral music, and jazz. She uses microtonal synths, her voice, and various drum machines to make her uniquely captivating sound. After studying jazz piano and voice at McGill University, she has produced and released five albums under the moniker Chiquita Magic and played with artists from the L.A jazz punk scene like KNOWER, Genevieve Artadi, and Louis Cole.
Sam Harris is a pianist from Dallas, Texas. He has toured and recorded extensively with artists like Ambrose Akinmusire, Melissa Aldana, Logan Richardson, Rudy Royston, and Ben Van Gelder. He is featured on Akinmusire’s Grammy-nominated album on the tender spot of every calloused moment, as well as Aldana’s Visions. For more than a decade, Sam has performed with his trio featuring bassist Martin Nevin and drummer Craig Weinrib. In 2018, they released HARMONY, a collection of ambient blues meditations. The album was included in the New York Times “Best Jazz of 2018” list. Sam released SOLO in 2021, a series of placid sonic environments for piano and synthesizers recorded at his home.
Justin Brown has a sound that is hard to pin down— “there’s nothing about the way he plays that boxes him into any particular era or camp” (Modern Drummer). Although truly versatile and virtuosic, mastery never overcomes his musicianship. Justin has the technical faculties to meet aggressive situations with full expression and creativity just as adeptly as with more sensitive or floaty material. Intricacy and musicality are accomplished alongside soulful accessibility. An alert and responsive drummer, he’s committed to delivering what the music requires and making it feel right. Born in Richmond, California, Brown is one of the most versatile and sought-after drummers of this generation. He’s spent years as an essential member of groups led by Ambrose Akinmusire, Thundercat, and Flying Lotus. In June of 2018, Justin released his first album as a leader, NYEUSI, on Biophilia Records.
Mary Halvorson, guitarist and composer, has been described as “a singular talent” (JazzTimes) and “one of today’s most formidable bandleaders” (Village Voice). Halvorson’s most recent releases, Amaryllis and Belladonna, showcase her string quartet writing deftly interpreted by the Mivos Quartet. The twin debuts for Nonesuch Records, released in May 2022, were called “new landmarks in Halvorson’s already inimitable discography” in a five-star review by the Guardian. One of New York City’s most in demand guitarists, Halvorson has worked with such diverse musicians as Tim Berne, Anthony Braxton, Taylor Ho Bynum, John Dieterich, Trevor Dunn, Bill Frisell, and John Zorn. She is also part of several collaborative projects.
TICKETS
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Arrive an hour before showtime for $10 in-person rush tickets. One ticket per person with a valid student ID.
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ACCESSIBILITY
Assistive-listening devices are available at the box office. Please contact us at least two weeks in advance for ASL interpretation, audio description, and CART captioning to allow time to schedule these services.
For more information about accessibility or to request additional accommodations, call 612.375.7564 or email access@walkerart.org.
For more information about accessibility at the Walker, visit our Access page.
WALKER PERFORMING ARTS
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The Walker Art Center’s Performing Arts programs are made possible by generous support from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation through the Doris Duke Performing Arts Fund, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
PRODUCERS’ COUNCIL
Performing Arts programs and commissions at the Walker are generously supported by members of the Producers’ Council: Nor Hall and Roger Hale; King’s Fountain/Barbara Watson Pillsbury; Sarah Lutman and Rob Rudolph; Emily Maltz; Leni and David Moore, Jr./The David and Leni Moore Family Foundation; Annie and Peter Remes; Therese Sexe and David Hage; and Mike and Elizabeth Sweeney.