Corky Siegel says, "Chamber Blues is a juxtaposition of classical and blues flavors. A meeting of the two of the most important and diverse music forms. The juxtaposition is not just about the instrumentation of string quartet, east Indian tabla, and blues harmonica and piano (with a vocal thrown in now and again). It is a 'compositional' juxtaposition. I call this 'cross-under.' The written music is Chamber Blues. It can be played on 6 saxophones and it would still be Chamber Blues. It also is not exactly a 'blend.' I consider jazz to be a blend of classical and blues and I think George Gershwin certainly blended the forms in a beautiful way. With jazz for instance the blues seems to disappear into the classical and visa versa turning up a third form - called jazz. Chamber Blues is two forms working together. Blues and Classical. Each form's personality is maintained. You can hear them working together. That's Chamber Blues".

Corky Siegel has earned an international reputation as one of the world's great blues harmonica masters. He is a composer, blues pianist, singer / songwriter, and recent winner of the Lila Wallace/Reader's Digest/Meet the Composer's national award for chamber music composition and the Illinois Arts Council Fellowship Award for Music Composition. He was introduced to the blues through his very first steady engagement at Peppers the internationally renowned blues club where his job included performances with the blues masters themselves, such as Willie Dixon, Little Walter, Muddy Waters, and Howlin' Wolf.

Corky Siegel, photo by Howard A. Gitelson

Mr. Siegel's partnership in the renowned Siegel-Schwall Band, his performances as soloist with orchestras world-wide, and his collaborations with conductor Seiji Ozawa in bringing a ground-breaking blues-classical sound to national attention are all a reflection of Mr. Siegel's prodigious talent. Mr. Siegel continues to perform as guest soloist with symphony orchestras world-wide, which have included the New York Philharmonic, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Metropolitana De Lisboa in Portugal, and most recently the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, the NHK Symphony in Japan, and the Philadelphia Orchestra with Maestro Charles Dutoit. In addition to his performances with Maestro Dutoit, Corky has continued to perform numerous symphonic collaborations through the years with Doc Severinsen. Corky has also recorded on Sony International by touring globally from time to time through the invitation of Dr. Subramaniam, India's greatest Eastern classical violin virtuoso.

Corky Siegel's latest project, Chamber Blues, with the West End String Quartet, and Frank Donaldson on world percussion, blends classical and blues styles in a chamber music setting. This ground breaking innovative sound (now on Alligator Records and Gadfly Records) has earned tremendous acclaim throughout the country and continues to open new doors for classical and blues/jazz listeners alike. Chamber Blues won Billboard's Editor's and Writer's top 10 Picks of the Year (1998) and Stereophile Magazine raved in their December 1999 issue; "... fantastic ... I've never heard anyone play harp with this much body and harmonic delicacy ... I guarantee you've never heard anything quite like Complementary Colors. " and "A Resounding Triumph" - from the Chicago Tribune.

Catch Corky Siegel's Chamber Blues at the Jazz Showcase on Thursday, February 23rd at 8 PM & 10 PM; Friday and Saturday, February 24th and 25th at 9 PM & 11 PM; and on Sunday, February 26th 4PM, 8PM & 10 PM. The Jazz Showcase is in the heart of Chicago just north of Chicago's Loop, four blocks west of Michigan Avenue, five blocks north of the Chicago River, and within walking distance of most downtown hotels.