Kahil El'Zabar, Corey Wilkes, Ernest Kahbeer Dawkins

The Ethnic Heritage Ensemble will perform a homecoming concert at the Ascension Loft, 319 N. Albany, on Sunday, March 7th at 4:30 p.m. with a suggested Donation is $15.00. They are concluding a world tour that in the last month in a half that included a week in Paris, a week in Tel Aviv, a few nights in Toronto, Montreal, D.C., Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Ottawa, and Erie. The Ethnic Heritage Ensemble includes Kahil El ‘Zabar on percussion, Ernest Khabeer Dawkins on saxophone, and Corey Wilkes on trumpet.  Internationally renowned percussionist and composer Kahil El'Zabar is considered one of the most prolific jazz innovators of his generation.

“She is not simply interested in flaunting her technique; the art of improvisation nestles comfortably within her theme of movement, space, and "the place to be." –Jeff Winbush, All About Jazz 

Hiromi©Andrea Canter

One of the most daring and creative voices of her generation, or perhaps of any working generation in jazz today, Hiromi Uehara (known professional as just Hiromi) has been rewriting the canon of modern jazz piano since her first recording and accumulating a list of awards on both sides of the Pacific, from Record and Artist of the Year honors from Swing Magazine to similar accolades from the Boston Music Society and Guinness Jazz Festival. Her latest recordings, Beyond Standard with Sonicbloom, Duet with Chick Corea, and Jazz in the Garden with the Stanley Clarke Trio confirm her star trajectory. And finally, Hiromi has pared down her partners to just one—the piano, with the January release of her first solo recording, Place to Be. And the place to be in the coming week is Chicago at the Jazz Showcase (March 4-7) or Minneapolis at the Dakota (March 8-9). 

"...the school that jumps into the pure forcefulness of the bari's remarkable sound...This includes Schumacher, who mines the bari's low strength and exploits the blatant, raspy blaaat that puts an edge on each note..." - Neil Tesser, Critic's Choice - Chicago Reader

Dave Schumacher photo by Adam Wissing