Concert

Jimmy Heath is one of the great talents of jazz: a world-class saxophonist, composer, and arranger. In August, the Off Minor Jazz series offers an evening of Master Heath’s music, drawing on all parts of his long career. 
This concert features a quintet with a trumpet and alto saxophone frontline playing arrangements by Lynn Speakman. Discussions related to Jimmy Heath’s autobiography, I Walked with Giants, sprinkle in throughout the set.

This event is sold out but you can still tune in for the livestream.  

Kente All-Stars II rounds out Kente’s Summer Madness Series and its spotlight on renowned jazz musicians from the region. This all-star formation includes three of Pittsburgh’s most recognized and favored artists: Dwayne Dolphin, bass; Tom Wendt, drums; and Alton Merrill, piano. Joining them as their special guest is alto saxophonist Antonio Hart.

Errata is a contemporary jazz trio that moves between highly formalized composition and intuitive improvisation. Formed in 2017 in Chicago by guitarist, cellist, and composer Ishmael Ali and rounded out by close friends Eli Namay and Bill Harris, the trio combines elements of jazz, 20th-century classical music, and improvised music with rhythmic language influenced by Steve Lehman and Henry Threadgill. Their music exists between discernibility and noise, regularity and irregularity. A listening experience for all styles of jazz fans. 

The American Sufi Music Project is an exploration and celebration of the connection between original Sufi compositions and improvised Jazz. Featuring readings of Rumi poetry and traditional Sufi dancers (twirlers). This will be an evening of genres mixing, improvisation, and rhythmic music.

The dynamic and twice Grammy nominated Imani Winds have led a revolution and evolution of the wind quintet through their dynamic playing, dedication to new works from composers of color, imaginative collaborations, and programming concerts that speak to contemporary social justice issues.
Imani Winds joins us to close LitFest 2022 by performing an all new lineup of works inspired by and interweaving dynamic pieces of poetry.

The Monktet celebrates Thelonious!
Thelonious Sphere Monk is one of America’s most iconic and original artists. To celebrate his birthday (October 10th), Pittsburgh musicians Thomas Wendt and David Throckmorton have assembled a new quintet—the Monktet—to perform some Monk. With varying instrumentation between tunes, the group shares their unique take on Monk’s extensive catalog, playing with well-known classics as well as showcasing obscure gems.

To celebrate National Hafez Day (October 12th in Iran), Taak Ensemble pays homage to this legendary 14th-century poet, weaving his poetry into their performance of classical and folk Persian music. 
Rooted in Persian music, history, and poetry, Taak Ensemble creates their own unique sound using vocals, tombak (Perisan goblet drum), santur (Persian dulcimer), and tar (Persian lute). Having performed at numerous music festivals, universities, and cultural institutions around the country, this concert marks Taak’s debut at City of Asylum.

Over the past few months, Yoko Suzuki has curated concerts showcasing the music of female jazz composers—Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane among them. Yoko closes out her series with a concert featuring the music of pianist and composer Geri Allen.

In-person tickets for this program are SOLD OUT. You can still join us online.
With multiple European tours already under their belt, QWANQWA, an Ethiopian experimenta/traditional ensemble, embarks on their  debut US tour. The tour visits 23 states with performances including the Hyde Park Jazz Festival, Boston Global Music Festival, and the  North Carolina Folk Festival. Plus the City of Asylum stage. 
Founded in 2012, QWANQWA is a supergroup of musicians from the baddest ensembles of Addis Ababa, brought together by a shared passion for the power of Ethiopian music. Named for the Amharic word for “language,” QWANQWA, is a project creating dialogues between cultures, promoting the idea of music as universal language.

This concert features some of Cory’s original music as well as music by one of his biggest inspirations, saxophonist Hank Mobley. Local musicians Alton Merrell, Paul Thompson, and Thomas Wendt round out the group in what promises to be a lively, fun, and cool evening of music.

Ciao! Local group Alla Boara celebrates the release of their debut album, Le Tre Sorelle, with an intimate concert for the City of Asylum community.
Alla Boara seeks to bring recognition and new life to Italy’s diverse history of regional folk music. Their modern arrangements of near-extinct folk songs are surprising, playful, mournful, tender, and bewitching. Alla Boara’s dynamic work aims to inspire audiences of all ethnic heritages to treasure their musical roots and consider the contemporary cultural relevance of historical songs. Check out their spin on the Italian folk song “Fimmene, Fimmene” here.

City of Asylum artist-in-residence Mai Khôi presents a concert of brand-new music composed in collaboration with Pittsburgh-based pianist Mark Micchelli. 
Khôi founded Mai Khôi and the Dissidents in Vietnam in 2017 as a vehicle to perform her genre-busting songs protesting government censorship and police violence. The band performed secretly at underground shows in Hanoi until threats from the Vietnamese government forced the band to change their name, then ultimately dissolve. Following Khôi's exile to the United States, she reformed the band with local Pittsburgh musicians while continuing the group's radical mission.