JUNE 3 – JUNE 6, 2010
Mingus Big Band
Saturday, May 23, 9:00 PM
Meydenbauer Center (Center Hall) [ Buy tickets ]
Mingus Big Band
High Resolution Photo (Photo Credit: Jimmy Katz)
Avant-Garde jazz ensemble, Mingus Big Band, celebrates the music of the composer and bassist, Charles Mingus. Under the artistic direction of Sue Mingus, this 14-piece band performed Thursday nights from 1991 to 2004 at the Fez under Time Cafe in New York City, occasionally alternating with the Charles Mingus Orchestra. From November 2004 to September 2008, the big band had a residency at Iridium Jazz Club and in October 2008 moved to Monday residency at Jazz Standard. The Mingus Big Band tours extensively in the United States and abroad, and has eight recordings to its credit, six of which have been nominated for GRAMMY®s.
Such musicians as Randy Brecker (trumpet), Ryan Kisor (trumpet), Lew Soloff (trumpet), Jack Walrath (trumpet), Philip Harper (trumpet), Art Baron (trombone), Frank Lacy (trombone), Ronnie Cuber (saxophone), Alex Foster (saxophone), Craig Handy (saxophone), Chris Potter (saxophone) , Steve Slagle (saxophone), John Stubblefield (saxophone), James Carter (saxophone), Kenny Drew, Jr. (piano), Michael Formanek (bass), and Marvin "Smitty" Smith (drums) are among the many involved in this worthy and exciting project.
"The Mingus Big Band is a wonder and an anomaly … the Mingus Band has taken a musical legacy and transformed it into a creative force that generates a contemporary originality and vitality all its own. They are an important part of the current jazz scene and a constant reminder that jazz – big band jazz, at that – is not merely entertainment but a powerful art form and means of expression." —All About Jazz
Mingus Big Band will perform Saturday night in the Center Hall at Meydenbauer Center.