Chicago-based cellist, composer, and MacArthur “Genius” Tomeka Reid has emerged as one of today’s most original and versatile musicians in the international jazz and improvised music scene. The Walker presents Reid’s most ambitious project to date—her full Stringtet, a 16-member improvising chamber orchestra that features stellar jazz and classical players such as Mazz Swift, Jason Kao Hwang, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Sylvia Bolognesi, and Tomas Fujiwara, among others, conducted by Taylor Ho Bynum.
Presented in partnership with Liquid Music.
Tomeka Reid Stringtet
Saturday, March 2, 8 pm
Tickets start at $15. No additional fees.
McGuire Theater
ABOUT TOMEKA REID
Cellist and composer Tomeka Reid has emerged as one of the most original, versatile, and curious musicians in Chicago’s bustling jazz and improvised music community over the last decade. Her distinctive melodic sensibility, always rooted in a strong sense of groove, has been featured in many distinguished ensembles over the years.
Reid grew up outside of Washington DC, but her musical career began after moving to Chicago in 2000. Her work with Nicole Mitchell and various Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians-related groups proved influential. By focusing on developing her craft in countless improvisational contexts, Reid has achieved a stunning musical fluency. She is a Foundation of the Arts (2019) and 3Arts Awardee (2016), and received her doctorate in music from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in 2017.
Reid released her debut recording as a bandleader in 2015 with the Tomeka Reid Quartet, a vibrant showcase for the cellist’s improvisational acumen as well as her dynamic arrangements and compositional ability. The quartet’s second album, Old New, released in October 2019 on Cuneiform Records, has been described as “fresh and transformative—its songs striking out in bold, lyrical directions with plenty of Reid’s singularly elegant yet energetic and sharp-edged bow work.” Another reviewer noted that “while Reid’s compositional and technical gifts transcend jazz, they exemplify the tradition wondrously.”
Reid has been a key member of ensembles led by legendary reedists like Anthony Braxton (Zim Sextet) and Roscoe Mitchell (Roscoe Mitchell Quartet, Art Ensemble of Chicago), as well as a younger generation of visionaries including flutist Nicole Mitchell (Black Earth Ensemble, Artifacts), vocalist Dee Alexander (Evolution Ensemble), and drummer Mike Reed (Loose Assembly, Living by Lanterns, Artifacts). She co-leads the adventurous string trio Hear in Now, with violinist Mazz Swift and bassist Silvia Bolognesi, and in 2013 launched the first Chicago Jazz String Summit, a semi-annual three-day international festival of cutting-edge string players held in Chicago. In the fall of 2019, Tomeka Reid received a teaching appointment at Mills College as the Darius Milhaud chair in composition.
TICKETS
Ordering tickets is easy: visit walkerart.org/tickets or call 612.375.7600. Prices include all applicable fees. The box office is open Wednesday–Sunday and one hour before the performances.
MEMBERS SAVE 20%
Become a member and enjoy a 20% discount on performance tickets, unlimited free gallery admission, special events, and more. Join at walkerart.org/membership or call 612.375.7655.
STUDENTS COME EARLY
Arrive an hour before showtime for $10 in-person rush tickets. One ticket per person with valid student ID.
BUY MORE AND SAVE
Groups of 10 or more save 15% on tickets. Purchase group tickets online, over the phone, or in person. Discount automatically applied at checkout on orders of 10 or more tickets to the same performance.
ACCESSIBILITY
Assistive-listening devices are available at the box office. For more information about accessibility or to request additional accommodations for this performance, call 612.375.7564 or email access@walkerart.org.
For more information about accessibility at the Walker, visit our Access page.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Walker Art Center’s Performing Arts programs are made possible by generous support from the Doris Duke 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; Christina Evans and Weston Hoard; 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; Jon Oulman; Therese Sexe and David Hage; and Mike and Elizabeth Sweeney.
Media Partner:
ABOUT LIQUID MUSIC
Liquid Music is a leading producer of special projects in contemporary music, an internationally recognized laboratory for artists from across genre and disciplinary spectrums. This creative institution nurtures and realizes bold ideas from performers and composers, inspiring audiences to discover, learn, and be transformed.
Founded at the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra in 2012, Liquid Music became independent in 2020, owned and operated by artistic director Kate Nordstrum who has been widely praised for her programmatic vision, panoramic tastes, and “storied matchmaking” (Star Tribune). Through Liquid Music, Nordstrum has built a boundary-defying platform for collaboration and earned her reputation as “the most adventurous music curator in town” (MinnPost), “a presenter of rare initiative” (Star Tribune), and “Twin Cities’ curatorial powerhouse with international pull” (Minnesota Public Radio).
ABOUT THE WALKER ART CENTER
The Walker Art Center is a renowned multidisciplinary arts institution that presents, collects, and supports the creation of groundbreaking work across the visual and performing arts, moving image, and design. Guided by the belief that art has the power to bring joy and solace and the ability to unite people through dialogue and shared experiences, the Walker engages communities through a dynamic array of exhibitions, performances, events, and initiatives. Its multiacre campus includes 65,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space, the state-of-the-art McGuire Theater and Walker Cinema, and ample green space that connects with the adjoining Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. The Garden, a partnership with the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board, is one of the first urban sculpture parks of its kind in the United States and home to the beloved Twin Cities landmark Spoonbridge and Cherry by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen. Recognized for its ambitious program and growing collection of more than 15,500 works, the Walker embraces emerging art forms and amplifies the work of artists from the Twin Cities and from across the country and the globe. Its broad spectrum of offerings makes it a lively and welcoming hub for artistic expression, creative innovation, and community connection. Visit walkerart.org for more information about upcoming presentations, programs, and opportunities to experience the art of our time.