Increased to nine members for this tour, the team is preparing an out of the ordinary show in which they present their compositions inspired by the challenges of today, including the pandemic and the wide gaps between how people view the world.
Founded in 2004, the SFJAZZ Collective has set out from the beginning to operate as a democratic community of leading jazz musicians. Primarily arranging the works of major figures from the worlds of jazz and pop music for themselves to play, the ensemble thus both pays homage to their work while producing the sound of the latest trends in jazz from their instruments. This is how they show that jazz is an eternal, living genre. Over the years, they have paid tribute to the creative worldsof John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, Wayne Shorter, Stevie Wonder, Chick Corea, Michael Jackson, Miles Davis and António Carlos Jobim, among others; more than a hundred arrangements and original compositions have come out of their workshop.
Rehearsals of the material compiled for this tour began in San Francisco in the fall of 2021 under the musical direction of Chris Potter, and the première took place at the SFJAZZ Center. Each band member came up with a brand-new original composition expressing what it means for them to face the challenges of the 2020s: the problems of the pandemic, racial prejudice and political extremism. Joining the ensemble for this project are the renowned New York singer Gretchen Parlato and one of the most sought-after drummers, Kendrick Scott, who has also had a prominent career as a bandleader.
