Announcing the Left Field Series w/ “We Always Swing”® Jazz Series

We are extremely excited to announce “The Left Field Series” - a new programming adventure presented in partnership with the Jazz Series. Together Dismal Niche and the Jazz Series will present 4 concerts celebrating the avant-garde tradition of expression outside the confines of convention with some of the world’s most vital, forward thinking and expressive artists and musicians.

Schedule

JJJJJerome Ellis

Friday, September 6, 2024 @ Whitmore Recital Hall

In his own words JJJJJerome Ellis "is a disabled Grenadian-Jamaican-American animal, artist, and person who stutters." Ellis's work incorporates contemplative soundscapes using saxophone, piano, flute, dulcimer, electronics, and vocals combining spoken word with ambient and jazz textures. With a focus on improvisation and the interrelations between speech, silence, disability, and religion Ellis’ works are invitations to healing, transcendence, and deep listening. Ellis is a current writer in residence at the Lincoln Center in New York City and has seen his work presented by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Whitney, the Sundance Institute Theatre Lab, MASS MoCA, and more.

Hailu Mergia

Saturday, November 16, 2024 @ The Blue Note
Presented as part of the ‘Extended Play’ mini festival (more info coming soon!)

Ethiopian jazz-funk legend Hailu Mergia in his first ever Missouri performance! With a sound blending Ethiopian traditional melodies with American-inspired jazz and funk, Mergia and his band are one of the most beloved and successful acts in Ethiopian history. Since returning to the stage 10 years ago, Mergia and his band have performed all over the world including Montreal Jazz Festival, the Kennedy Center and Radio City Music Hall receiving stellar reviews for their ecstatic, sweat soaked, high energy performances.

Zoh Amba Sun Ensemble

Saturday, January 25, 2025 @ Cafe Berlin

Zoh Amba is a composer, saxophonist, and flutist from Tennessee. Her music is a scalding hot brew avant-garde, noise, and devotional hymns. Developing her sound in the forests outside her childhood home in Tennessee, Amba honed her craft at the San Francisco Conservatory Of Music, New England Conservatory and in New York City under the tutelage of the great fire breather David Murray. Today, her powerfully unique music is full of folk melodies, mesmerizing refrains, and repeated incantations.

SHABAKA

Thursday, February 27th @ The Blue Note
Presented in collaboration with The True/False Film Festival

Shabaka Hutchings and his music are ever-evolving. Well-established as a leader in the renaissance of British Jazz, the London-born multi-instrumentalist has performed classical concertos with major orchestras; fronted significant bands, including Sons of Kemet, The Comet Is Coming, and Shabaka and The Ancestors; and released critically acclaimed albums. Hear his latest reinvention as he channels his artistic vision through flutes from around the world, starting with the Japanese shakuhachi—a traditional wooden recorder that, he says, “slowly changed the scope of [his] inner musical landscape.”