Tomeka Reid and Junius Paul

Saturday, September 23

TIME: 2:00-3:00pm

VENUE: hyde park union church. 5600 south woodlawn ave.

Tomeka Reid and Junius Paul

Cellist and composer Tomeka Reid has emerged as one of the most versatile, original, and curious musicians in Chicago’s bustling jazz and improvised music community over the last decade. Her distinctive melodic sensibility, always rooted in a strong sense of groove, has been featured in many distinguished ensembles over the years, including those led by legendary reedists Anthony Braxton and Roscoe Mitchell, as well as visionaries like flutist Nicole Mitchell, vocalist Dee Alexander, and drummer Mike Reed. Reid also co-leads the adventurous string trio Hear in Now, with violinist Mazz Swift and bassist Silvia Bolognesi, and in 2013 launched the first Chicago Jazz String Summit, a semi-annual three-day international festival of cutting-edge string players held in Chicago. She has released two albums as a bandleader, with the Tomeka Reid Quartet.

Reid grew up outside of Washington D.C., but her musical career began after she moved to Chicago in 2000. Her work with Nicole Mitchell and various Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians-related groups proved influential. By focusing on developing her craft in countless improvisational contexts, she has achieved a stunning musical fluency. Reid is an awardee of Foundation of the Arts (2019) and 3Arts (2016) grants, and received her doctorate in music from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in 2017. In the Fall of 2019, she received a teaching appointment at Mills College as the Darius Milhaud Chair in Composition.

Composer, bandleader, and internationally established acoustic and electric bassist Junius Paul has performed and/or recorded with the Art Ensemble Of Chicago, Famoudou Don Moye Sun Percussion Summit, numerous configurations of ensembles led by Roscoe Mitchell, the AACM’s Small Ensemble & Big Band, Kahil El’Zabar, Makaya McCraven, The Fred Anderson Trio, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Jeff Parker, Vincent Davis & Percussion Plus, Dee Alexander, The Curtis Fuller Quintet, Oliver Lake, Willie Pickens, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Marquis Hill, KRS-One, and Donald Byrd, among others. In 2013-14, he served as music department faculty for Trinity Christian College and in 2017, he was the honoree and featured artist for Jazz Weekend at his alma mater, St. Xavier University. His debut album, Ism, was released to critical acclaim in 2019.

The musicians:

Tomeka Reid - cello

Junius Paul - bass