Geof Bradfield, professor of jazz saxophone and jazz studies in the NIU School of Music will be featured as part of two upcoming major Chicago jazz events.
First off, on April 28, his Geof Bradfield Sextet will perform at Chicago’s Logan Center for the Arts (915 E. 60th Street) as part of the 15th Annual International Day of Jazz. The concert, at 7 p.m. is titled “Spirits of Our Ancestors – The Music of Randy Weston and Melba Liston.” The concert is free and open to the public.
“Saxophonist and composer Geof Bradfield blends modern jazz, African rhythms, and the roots music of his native South into a style that is “explicitly adventurous and forward-looking” (AllAboutJazz.com). Born in Houston and based in Chicago, Bradfield has performed throughout North America, Europe, Russia, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, sharing the stage and recording studio with artists such as Randy Weston, Dana Hall, Clark Sommers, Brian Blade, Ben Goldberg, Anna Webber, Orrin Evans, Jeff Parker, Matt Ulery, and Ryan Cohan. His work is featured on 50+ CDs including ten albums as a leader that have garnered critical accolades from the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and NPR. He has received grants and awards from Chamber Music America, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, DCASE, Illinois Arts Council, and the Mellon Foundation. The Downbeat Critics Poll has named him a Rising Star Tenor Saxophonist and Arranger multiple years.”
The performance will also feature a trio headed by Reggie Thomas, past director of the NIU Jazz Studies program, and NIU alumni Gabriel Wade and Kirby Fellis. Fellis is also a faculty member in the School of Music.
Fellow NIU Jazz Studies faculty member Bobby Broom will be performing in the International Day of Jazz Global Concert, April 30.
On May 1, Bradfield is directing “The City Was Yellow” at Chicago’s Symphony Center. Bradfield will be performing with seven talented high school students from the Jazz Institute of Chicago as they present arrangements of compositions by Chicago Jazz musicians form the 1980s to the early 2000s. The event is curated by Mike Reed, who will direct the second half of the night’s program, “The Magic Box: Music inspired by Chicago Bassist Fred Hopkins,” which will also feature NIU jazz alumni Greg Ward. Tickets are on sale now.
