Winard Harper is considered one of the most exciting and innovative drummers in jazz, leading a group that mixes bebop with African rhythms. Equally at home with sticks, brushes or mallets, Harper is both a gifted soloist and rock-solid sideman, and he has surrounded himself with some outstanding young musicians. Trumpeter Josh Evans already is generating considerable attention at a young age, receiving the Outstanding Soloist Award from DownBeat Magazine and most recently winning the Wynton Kelly Award. Others in the group include saxophonist Brian Horton, pianist TW Sample, bassist Ameen Saleem and African percussionist Alioune Faye from Senegal.

A student of classical piano from age 7, Green developed a taste for jazz through the influence of his tenor saxophonist father, and had the foresight—even as a child—to start borrowing and collecting records and imitating the bebop sounds of the ‘40s and ‘50s. He played in school bands, until his keen ear and obvious commitment brought him to the attention of singer Fay Carroll, with whom he got his first real taste of a working jazz band—learning valuable lessons about accompaniment and the blues, and gaining his first chance to play in a trio context as a way of opening the set. Still in his teens, he filled the piano chair in a quintet co-led by trumpeter and saxophonist Hadley Caliman, and a 12-piece outfit led by bassist Chuck Israels.

Brown developed a strong following over the years impacting millions of people worldwide. Amazingly, his works touched all generations. He has been prestigiously called, The High Priest of Hip, and was recently a regular favorite on Russell Simmons, Def Poetry Jam. Even though he did not get the full recognition he deserved from the recording industry while he was alive, his daughter says. His songs are so profound and timeless that now young rappers are approaching me about incorporating Oscar's material into what they are doing. Brown, playwright, poet and civil rights activist wrote more than one thousand songs, and more than a dozen musical plays. He is also noted for such classic compositions as, The Snake, Work Song, and Dat Dere. Yet, Brown was especially proud of how his productions Opportunity, Please Knock, and Great Nitty Gritty tapped into the talents of gang members and impoverished youth in Chicago and helped change their lives. According to his son Napoleon, Dad always said there was gold in the ghetto. Brown was originally hospitalized in mid-April, suffering from osteo-myelitis, a bone infection. Memorial services will be held Friday, June 24th at 12:00 Noon, at Christ Universal Temple, 11901 S. Ashland Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60643.

In lieu of flowers, donations are going to benefit Brownhouse Edutainment, NFP, 4915 S. Forestville, Avenue, Chicago, IL 60615. More information is also available on the website: www.oscarbrownjr.com

Chicago Jazz Ensemble Artistic Director, Jon Faddis has been selected by the City of Chicago to perform the National Anthem for "Family Sports Night" during the 73rd Annual Meeting of The United States Conference of Mayors. The annual conference is attended by more than 300 of the nation's Mayors and their families. Faddis will perform the Star Spangled Banner at U.S. Cellular Field during the White Sox/ Arizona Diamondbacks night game, Monday, June 13. The game begins at 7:05 p.m. and is open to the public.

Faddis, draws on over thirty years experience in performing with and conducting superb Jazz big bands such as Lionel Hampton's big band and the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra (now the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra). Faddis served as music director for Dizzy Gillespie's GrammyTM-award winning United Nation's Orchestra, for Dizzy Gillespie's 70th Birthday Big Band, and, after his mentor's passing, Faddis led the Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars Big Band. Renowned for his leadership of the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, Faddis conducted over 40 concerts in ten years at Carnegie Hall, featuring over 135 musicians and 70 guest artists.

The Chicago Jazz Ensemble was founded in 1965 by the late jazz composer William Russo as a professional jazz orchestra in residence at Columbia College Chicago. The 20-piece orchestra is comprised of Chicago's jazz elite and its repertoire is derived from the early works of Duke Ellington, Stan Kenton, King Oliver, and Jelly Roll Morton, as well as other jazz greats that forged the American jazz heritage.