Chicago avant-garde jazz is fused with taiko drumming from a variety of cultures in an energetic performance by Tatsu Aoki and his band, The Miyumi Project, celebrating a long history of collaboration between African-American and Asian-American jazz artists. Aoki’s ensemble is a multi-generational group comprised of Chicago’s leading musicians, including Mwata Bowden (baritone sax/clarinet), Jeff Chan (tenor sax), Jonathan Chen (violin), Amy Homma (drums and shamisen), Chinatsu Nakano (alto sax and bamboo flute), Yoko Noge (vocals), Melody Takata (drums), Joel Wanek (bass), Francis Wong (soprano sax) and Hide Yoshihashi (drums). The performance will also feature members of the Japanese American Service Committee’s Tsukasa Taiko Youth Program.
Founder and artistic director of the Chicago Asian-American Jazz Festival and an artist-in-residence at the Japanese American Service Committee, Tatsu Aoki’s work has been recorded for more than 100 albums.
Watch a video of Tatsu Aoki on CLTV talking about the Mayumi Project.
The Talbott Hotel is the Official Hotel of the Steppenwolf Traffic Series.
Running Time:
1 hour 20 minutes with 1 intermission