The Alvin Cobb Trio

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25.

TIME: 3:15 - 4:00 PM

VENUE: DUSABLE MUSEUM ROUNDHOUSE PLAZA. 740 E. 56TH PL.

Alvin Cobb, Jr.

“Here was a drummer who can make his instrument sing, the lyricism of his work sustaining listener interest…Cobb has emerged as a distinctly charismatic player.” - Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

A native of Atlanta, GA, Alvin Cobb, Jr., is a musician, producer, photographer, and educator currently based in Chicago, IL. In addition to Atlanta’s urban music scene, his earliest influences consisted of his father’s eclectic record collection, the rich tradition of southern drum corps and the marching bands of historically black colleges and universities (HBCU's), and the a cappella gospel singing he grew up hearing on Sunday mornings. Alvin formally studied jazz percussion under Leon Anderson, Jr., and Willie Jones III. He is a graduate of Florida State University (B.A. in Music Performance and Jazz Studies, 2013) and Northwestern University (M.M. in Jazz Studies, 2015).

Alvin’s first post-collegiate professional opportunity was with trumpeter and veteran Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra member Marcus Printup and his quartet. Since performing with Printup in late 2013, Alvin has continued to advance his resume. He has worked with countless artists, including Victor Goines, Sherman Irby, Patricia Barber, Sarah Marie Young, and Dee Alexander. He has dazzled audiences at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Chicago Jazz Festival, Hyde Park Jazz Festival, and the University of Chicago’s Logan Arts Jazz Series. In 2015, he had the opportunity to work on Nico Segal & The Social Experiment’s critically-acclaimed album, SURF, featuring Grammy-Award winning artist Chance the Rapper. Alvin has also collaborated as a performer and/or composer with numerous dance, theatre, and film organizations including Mandala Arts, American Rhythm Center, Pivot Arts, Black Harvest Film Festival, and ChloeIsaBow +Co (London, UK).

Katie Ernst

Katie Ernst has been described by the Chicago Tribune as "a versatile young bassist who plays in far-flung bands and sings with uncommon delicacy and authenticity." Her recent compositions are inspired by the poetry of American writer Dorothy Parker. Her complete Dorothy Parker project Little Words was released in 2015, and is currently available on BandCamp.

As both a bassist and vocalist, Katie has performed at the Chicago Jazz Festival, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Hyde Park Jazz Festival, and Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival, among others.  The Chicago Reader identified her as "one of the brightest lights on Chicago’s jazz scene, and she isn’t close to hitting her creative ceiling."

Katie was invited to represent the U.S. in the 2018 EuroRadio Jazz Orchestra, a commissioned big band hosted in Riga, Latvia. Katie was one of 24 young artist-composers selected for the 2013 and 2014 Betty Carter Jazz Ahead Program, an international jazz residency program at the Kennedy Center under the direction of pianist and MacArthur Fellow Jason Moran. She performed at the Chicago Symphony Center as part of Jason Moran’s Looks of a Lot premiere, which also featured Nasheet Waits, Tarus Mateen, Ken Vandermark, Theaster Gates, and Kenwood Academy Jazz Band. 

Katie is an active bandleader and side-woman in Chicago. She recently established a duo project with clarinetist James Falzone called 'Wayfaring.'  The duo was featured at the 2016 Hyde Park Jazz Festival, and their debut album I Move, You Move is available on the Allos Documents label. Katie composes and performs with the band TWIN TALK, alongside co-leaders Dustin Laurenzi (saxophone) and Andrew Green (drums). Twin Talk's self-titled sophomore album is out now on ears&eyes Records. Their third studio album Weaver has received much critical acclaim, and the group was featured at the 2014 Chicago Jazz Festival. 

Katie holds a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies & Contemporary Media and a Bachelor of Musical Arts from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY. She serves as the jazz ensemble director at Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL.

Julius Tucker

At the age of 7, Tucker began studying classical piano at the Moody School of Music in Chicago. He gravitated to jazz piano while in middle school at Whitney Young Magnet H.S., developing a love for its freedom of musical expression. He continued his studies concurrently at the Merit School of Music where he gained invaluable insight into developing his own voice and style on the piano. Tucker went on to study at Northwestern University and received degrees in both Jazz Piano and Civil Engineering. During his senior year, he was awarded a prestigious Luminarts Fellowship in jazz improvisation.

Tucker is very thankful for the mentors and peers who have helped to carve his musical voice over the past 20 years. He has been blessed to perform, collaborate, and record with many of them, honing his skills along the way. Steadily rising in the Chicagoland area, Tucker has had the opportunity to play at noted venues around town; including The Green Mill, Room 43, Andy’s Jazz Club, Winter’s Jazz Club, Constellation, the Jazz Showcase and The Promontory. He has also been featured at the Chicago and Hyde Park Jazz Fests, as well as many summer concerts throughout the city. Traveling abroad, he was fortunate to play at the JazzIt jazz festival in Italy where we played a multitude of shows alongside musicians from all across Italy. With a promising future ahead of him, Tucker is eager about continuing to share his musical talents with enthusiasts and newcomers alike.

The musicians:

Alvin Cobb, Jr. - Drums

Katie Ernst - Bass & Vocals

Julius Tucker - Piano