Oct 28, 2025 10:47 AM
In Memoriam: Jack DeJohnette, 1942–2025
Jack DeJohnette, a bold and resourceful drummer and NEA Jazz Master who forged a unique vocabulary on the kit over his…
Ron Carter will perform at the Jamaica Center on Oct. 2.
(Photo: Jamaica Center)
Artist Danny Simmons will serve an eight-month residency to celebrate the 50th anniversary of JCAL.
(Photo: Jamaica Center)Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning will commemorate its 50th anniversary season with a residency by acclaimed painter, author and poet Danny Simmons. Entitled “Homecoming” and presented in association with KMW Studio, Simmons’ residency will span eight months and include a jazz and spoken-word performance with bassist Ron Carter, a major retrospective of Simmons’ work, artist talks and more. In spring 2022, Simmons’ residency will culminate in a reunion performance of the original cast of HBO’s Def Poetry Jam and a 50th Anniversary Gala for JCAL with Simmons as the artist honoree.
“Homecoming” will officially kick off JCAL’s 50th anniversary year with a performance at 8 p.m. on Oct. 2 at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center (153-10 Jamaica Avenue) pairing Simmons with Carter, who has appeared on more than 2,000 recording sessions. Also joining Simmons and Carter will be host and guest performer Lezlie Harrison, Ron Carter’s Golden Striker Trio and spoken-word artists Ursula Rucker, Derick Cross and Bonafide Rojas. For tickets, contact the Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning. DB
Jack DeJohnette boasted a musical resume that was as long as it was fearsome.
Oct 28, 2025 10:47 AM
Jack DeJohnette, a bold and resourceful drummer and NEA Jazz Master who forged a unique vocabulary on the kit over his…
“Think of all the creative people I’m going to meet and a whole other way of thinking about music and a challenge of singing completely different material than I would have sung otherwise to my highest level in dedication to the moment,” Elling says about his Broadway run.
Sep 9, 2025 1:18 PM
Kurt Elling was back at home in Chicago, grabbing some family time in a late-June window between gigs. Sporting a smile…
Pat Metheny will perform with his Side-Eye III ensemble at Big Ears 2026 in Knoxville, Tennessee, next March.
Sep 9, 2025 12:19 PM
Big Ears has announced the lineup for its 2026 festival, which will take place March 26–29 and include 250…
“[That’s] the thing of the beboppers,” Bradford said. “These guys were important for not only playing that wonderful music, but they knew a sort of social stance, you see?”
Sep 9, 2025 1:07 PM
It was a calm, balmy, near-perfect evening in Westwood, California, not far from UCLA, in the expansive courtyard at…
Esperanza Spalding closed an audacious Chicago Jazz Festival set with “Endangered Species.”
Sep 9, 2025 11:50 AM
The 45th Chicago Jazz Festival kicked off its headline events with two erudite individuals, Esperanza Spalding and…
