Jazz Icon Henry Threadgill Wins Pulitizer Prize

  I  
Image

Henry Threadgill (Photo: Courtesy Pi Recordings)

(Photo: )

Composer and reedist Henry Threadgill has been awarded the Pulitzer Prize in music for his 2015 album In For A Penny, In For A Pound, which was recorded with his ensemble Zooid and released by the Pi Recordings label.

On the album, Threadgill (saxophones, flutes) is accompanied by Liberty Ellman (guitar), Jose Davila (trombone, tuba), Elliot Humberto Kavee (drums, percussion) and Christopher Hoffman (cello, violin).

Threadgill joins an elite group of jazz musicians who have received the honor, including trumpeter Wynton Marsalis (whose oratorio Blood On The Fields won a Pulitzer in 1997) and the late saxophonist Ornette Coleman (whose album Sound Grammar won in 2007).

Threadgill’s new album, Old Locks And Irregular Verbs (Pi), will be reviewed in the June issue of DownBeat, which arrives on newsstands on May 17.

To read more about In For A Penny, In For A Pound, visit the Pi Recordings website.

To see the complete list of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize honorees, click here.

—Bobby Reed



  • Gordon_Goodwin_2020.jpg

    Goodwin was one of the most acclaimed, successful and influential jazz musicians of his generation.

  • DB25_12_V4_%28dragged%29_copy.jpg
  • Flea_-_Photo_2_by_Clara_Balzary_copy.jpg

    Flea has returned to his first instrument — the trumpet — and assembled a dream band of jazz musicians to record a new album.

  • Grammy_Nominations_2026_copy.jpg

    To see the complete list of nominations for the 2026 Grammy Awards, go to grammy.com.

    The Grammy Nominations Are In

    The nominations for the 2026 Grammy Awards are in, with plenty to smile about for the worlds of jazz, blues and beyond.…

  • MAC1199_Oscar_Peterson_by_Al_Gilbert_CM_FRPS_300dpi_RGB_PR1_copy.jpeg

    “It’s a pleasure and an honor to interpret the music of Oscar Peterson in his native city,” said Jim Doxas in regard to celebrating the Canadian legend. “He traveled the world, but never forgot Montreal.”


On Sale Now
January 2026
Andrew Cyrille
Look Inside
Subscribe
Print | Digital | iPad