Chicago Jazz Philharmonic’s highly anticipated online learning program for anyone with a creative musical appetite is finally here! CJP University (CJPU) is a new program presented by Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, comprised of online video courses on unique topics in music. We invite you to learn music from anywhere you access the internet, on your time, from expert music educators.
Tribute to De’Kayla Dansberry becomes song and video
“While listening to Orbert Davis’ trumpet wail on his stirring rendition of Bill Wither’s ‘Ain’t No Sunshine,’ I was inspired to write my own words surrounding the original refrain. Three simple words — Ain’t No Sunshine — they spoke to me deeply about the murders of ‘our daughters’ in Chicago.
“I played the song again and again, letting it marinate over my soul while sitting at my computer keyboard. Words seemed to leap from the haunting melancholy rhythm of Orbert’s horn. What I wrote, I presented as a recent column, calling it ‘An Ode to De’Kayla.’” —John Fountain
IN Conversation: Ramsey Lewis and Orbert Davis with Welz Kauffman
Music legends Ramsey Lewis and Orbert Davis sat down with Ravinia Festival president and CEO Welz Kauffman to share their journeys in the world of jazz music and give their thoughts on the future of the genre.
Scenes From Life: Cuba!
Thirty-seven student musicians from Cuba’s national conservatory of the arts, the Universidad de las Artes (ISA), traveled to Chicago as guests of Chicago Jazz Philharmonic (CJP) for a week-long cultural exchange that culminated with a landmark performance with CJP at the Auditorium Theatre. This collaboration with ISA began with Orbert’s visit to Cuba as part of the Havana International Jazz Festival in December 2014. Orbert and members of CJP were rehearsing with the students at ISA during President Obama’s historic announcement of the normalization of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Cuba, thrusting Davis and company into the international spotlight on “60 Minutes.”
About Orbert
Emmy Award-winning trumpeter, composer, and educator, Orbert Davis is co-founder, conductor and Artistic Director of CHICAGO JAZZ PHILHARMONIC, a 55+ piece jazz-symphonic orchestra dedicated to multi-genre projects. Full bio »