"Jazz Plaza: HotHouse Meets Havana" Continues Through Jan. 24

Chicago IL

22 January, 2021

5:58 PM

Description

The award-winning Chicago-based nonprofit arts presenter HotHouse is providing the official international streaming platform for "Jazz Plaza: HotHouse Meets Havana" Jan. 21-24. Programming, recorded in advance, will be streamed on HotHouse's streaming platform. Each program will be preceded by a 30 minute dance party hosted by DJ Madrid. "Jazz Plaza: HotHouse Meets Havana" is co-produced by HotHouse director, producer, curator and founder Marguerite Horberg and Raul Cuza; and is sponsored in part by Cuban Instituto de la Musica and Ministereo de Cultura. Artists/hosts Jan 22-24 programs are as follows: FRIDAY, JAN. 22, 7 P.M. CST Richton Thomas (Host). Thomas is a fine artist, board member at HotHouse, host of a jazz radio program broadcasting out of the University of Chicago's WHPK 88.5 FM and seasonal emcee for the Museum of Contemporary Art's Jazz on the Terrace series. Michael Herrera. Saxophonist Herrera has worked extensively with jazz master Bobby Carcacess. He is also a favorite of Grammy Award-winners Joaquín Betancourt, Maraca and most notably Omara Portuondo. He has performed at the best venues in Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Russia, Holland, Spain and Canada. Ari Brown with Yosef Ben-Israel and Charles Heath. Brown has long been considered by critics as a master saxophonist, one of the elder practitioners of "the Chicago sound" and an artist deserving of much recognition. Ben-Israel is double bass player who has long been associated with the AACM and frequently performs in groups led by Ernest Dawkins and Brown. Heath is a versatile and renowned musician playing anything from Jazz and Blues to Gospel and Latin music. He is currently the drummer for jazz legend Ramsey Lewis. Coco Elysses with Alexis Lombre and Ivan Taylor. Elysses won an ALTA Award for Best Original Music in a Play and was a featured musician in the critically claimed FOX TV drama "Empire." Lombre is a young jazz pianist with a recently debuted album, "Southside Sounds," that soulfully reflects on her upbringing. SATURDAY, JAN. 23, 7 P.M. CST Mark Ruffin (Host). This Grammy-nominated broadcaster, producer and writer has won the regional Chicago/Midwest Emmy Awards twice, and been the Program Director/On-Air host for Sirius XM's Real Jazz channel since 2007. James Sanders and Leandro López Várady. Sanders leads the long-running Latin jazz groups Conjunto and Proyecto Libre. He is a bold presence in Chicago's creative music movement and has performed around the world staying true to his Caribbean roots. López Várady received a Gold Record Award for his participation in Mietek Szczeniak's "Nierówmi" album and is a pianist for the Orbert Davis' Chicago Jazz Philharmonic. Roberto Fonseca. This Grammy-nominated Cuban pianist, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer and bandleader has released nine solo albums, collaborated across genres and toured the world several times over. Ben La Mar Gay with Mike Reed and Mayda Del Valle. La Mar Gay is a Chicago South Side native and renowned collaborator; his true composing technique is giving life to an idea while exploring and expanding on the term "Americana." Reed leads and co-leads several working area bands and is founding director of the Pitchfork Music Festival, the current programming chair of the Chicago Jazz Festival. Poet and performer Del Valle won the 2001 National Poetry Slam title and has been featured in Latina Magazine, The New York Times and named by Smithsonian Magazine as one of America's Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences. Orlando "Maraca" Valle. Valle is today one of the most internationally recognized Cuban musicians. His albums have received numerous awards at at "Cubadisco" and other important record industry events. SUNDAY, JAN. 24, 7 P.M. CST Richard Steele (Host). Recently retired host and contributor to Chicago's NPR station WBEZ's talk shows and jazz programs, Steele is a past president of NATRA, the black radio announcer's guild. Ruy López-Nussa. Percussionist López-Nussa is a star of a weekly Culture Ministry concert to support social isolation in the fight against COVID-19. He has served as professor at Havana's Alejandro García Caturla and Amadeo Roldán Music Schools and performed at international jazz festivals. He is also author of "Ritmos de Cuba. Percusión y Batería" (Rhythms of Cuba. Percussion and Drums), that delves into the roots of Cuban culture. Tomeka Reid and Junius Paul. Cellist/composer Reid is a Foundation of the Arts and 3Arts Awardee. She was recently recognized as a "New Jazz Power Source" by the New York Times. Composer, bandleader and acoustic and electric bassist Paul's debut album, "Ism," (2019) garnered a 4-star rating from Downbeat Magazine. Edward Wilkerson with Jamie Kempkers and Jim Baker. As founder and director of the cutting-edge octet 8 Bold Souls, and the 25-member performance ensemble Shadow Vignettes, cellist/clarinetist/composer Wilkerson has toured festivals and concert halls throughout the world. Cellist Kempkers, was a member of the Holland, Mich. band Marzuki and is currently an ensemble member of Tatsu Aoki's MIYUMI Project. Baker is an eccentric and deep-thinking synth master who has jammed with some of the best in the world. Alejandro Falcón. Pianist/composer Falcón has shared the stage and collaborated with the great artists of Cuba and the world including Arturo O'Farrill, Brad Mehldau, Buena Vista Social Club and Omara Portuondo, Oscar de León and Randy Brecker. In 2008 he founded Alejandro Falcón and Cubadentro, a jazz group composed of piano, bass, drums and tumbadoras. There is no paywall, however viewers are encouraged to purchase a ticket (suggested price, $25) or make a donation. For more information visit hothouse.net.