Chicago Jazz Philharmonic continues its historic 20th season with a lively showing of “Havana Blue” at the Kehrein Center for the Arts. Orbert Davis will be accompanied alongside the full orchestra as he shares his Cuban experiences with a vibrant performance of original music, bringing the culture's rich history to life in a contemporary way.

First inspired by Davis' exploratory trip to Cuba in October 2012, “Havana Blue” is the beginning of the extraordinary journey that led to Chicago Jazz Philharmonic’s relationship with the Universidad de las Artes (ISA) – a residency that eventually coincided with the historic normalization of relations between the U.S. and Cuba in December 2014.

Premiering at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre in 2013, this production tells the multi-faceted story of Cuban culture and brings out the many flavors of passion, romance, angst, energy and uncertainty that are embedded in a tumultuous society. From a joyous celebration in the streets of Havana, to a dramatic, intense journey out of a devastated country, the piece infuses Cuban rhythm with pure emotion.“Havana Blue” explores the similarities between African Cuban rhythms and culture, and conveys the art and strength that gives Cuba its special place in the world. 

Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, under the direction of Emmy Award winning composer Orbert Davis, proudly announces the return of "Through Ella's Eyes," a vibrant tribute to the irreplaceable Ella Fitzgerald in celebration of her 107th birth anniversary. This one-night-only event marks the second performance of the production. The 45-piece orchestra will once again bring Ella's timeless music to life alongside vocalists Bobbi Wilsyn and Margaret Murphy-Webb at the Logan Center for the Arts.

Guest Artists

FAQ

Arranged and composed by Orbert Davis, 2023. World Premiere.

CJP will celebrate Black History Month with a world premiere in celebration of 3 groundbreaking women of jazz. Women Out Of Time explores the unassailable legacy of black female pianists Lillian Hardin Armstrong, May Lou Williams, and Nina Simone, and the impact they each had on jazz, America, and the world. To help continue this legacy, CJP will feature the incredible talents of guest artists such as Lara Driscoll, Danae Olano, and JoAnn Daugherty, alongside our Chicago Jazz Philharmonic Chamber Ensemble

Guest Artists

FAQ

Composed by Orbert Davis. Commissioned by the Chicago Jazz Festival marking the centennial of the Great Migration. World Premiere September 1, 2016 Pritzker Pavilion, Millennium Park, Chicago

Guest Artists

Guest performers join the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic to share their stories of immigration, their artistry, and what it means to be American. The series, originally premiering in 2017, has been hailed as “the convergence of musical cultures [which] stands to to yield an opus that sounds like nothing else we’ve heard'“ - Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune.

Guest Artists

Video

Through the voices of its leading citizens, scholars, artists, politicians, and business leaders, DuSable to Obama explore the history of Chicago’s black community from 1779 to the present day. Moments of triumph and challenge are told, as the unsung heroism of everyday people is celebrated.

Composed by Chicago Jazz Philharmonic Co-Founder and Artistic Director Orbert Davis, the film’s acclaimed score evokes particular periods in Chicago’s history: the ragtime rhythms of the early 20th century; the big-band swing of the 1930s and ‘40s; the modal jazz experiments of the civil rights era, and more.

If there is a central message to both the film and the score, it’s that the history of Chicago and of black Chicago are intertwined - one does not exist without the other.

Witness the history come to life this Black History Month.

Guest Artists

First inspired by Davis' exploratory trip to Cuba in October 2012, “Havana Blue” is the beginning of the extraordinary journey that led to Chicago Jazz Philharmonic’s relationship with the Universidad de las Artes (ISA) – a residency that eventually coincided with the historic normalization of relations between the U.S. and Cuba in December 2014.

Premiering at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre in 2013, this production tells the multi-faceted story of Cuban culture and brings out the many flavors of passion, romance, angst, energy and uncertainty that are embedded in a tumultuous society. From a joyous celebration in the streets of Havana, to a dramatic, intense journey out of a devastated country, the piece infuses Cuban rhythm with pure emotion.“Havana Blue” explores the similarities between African Cuban rhythms and culture, and conveys the art and strength that gives
Cuba its special place in the world. 

This is the second of a three-concert partnership with the Kehrein Center for the Arts in Chicago's Austin neighborhood. Opened in 2019, the partnership aims to help realize the Kehrein Center’s goal of becoming a cultural home on Chicago’s West Side.

Orbert Davis' arranged versions of the Miles Davis' classic recordings, Kind of Blue and Sketches of Spain lead to international acclaim back in 2011. Now over a decade later, Orbert Davis and Chicago Jazz Philharmonic return to this fan favorite production.

Sketches of Blue is a two part Orbert Davis tribute to Miles. Act I features the Orbert Davis Sextet presenting the compositions of Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue in its entirety. In Act II, the 19-piece Chicago Jazz Philharmonic Chamber Ensemble will feature Orbert Davis' special ‘revisited’ rendition of Sketches of Spain. Using Gil Evans’ original arrangement as the canvas, Orbert took many liberties, adapting the existing material and composed new movements inspired by his studying of Spanish music, culture and geography.