Steeped in the jazz tradition, trumpeter and bandleader Muneer Nasser was exposed to great music under the influence of his father, jazz bassist Jamil Nasser. The Annapolis Jazz & Roots Opening Night concert pays homage to three legendary musicians born in 1926 whose artistry inspired and profoundly influenced Muneer Nasser's musical development. Moreover, their brave […]
White and Black Marylanders often worked shoulder-to-shoulder as indentured servants in the early 1600s—laboring for years until their terms expired and they were free to pursue their own wealth and status. As the century wore on, however, colonial lawmakers restricted Black life, establishing hereditary, race-based chattel slavery in the colony. Interracial relationships were restricted and […]
On Sunday afternoon, David & Ginger Hildebrand will deliver a fascinating program performing music written for and about Lafayette. Composed from the 1770s – 1820s, the tunes illustrate his enormous popularity in the New World. When Lafayette came from France to America during the Revolutionary war, his given title was Marquis. Once made a general […]
Drummer, composer and producer, "beat scientist" Makaya McCraven reshapes jazz by bringing improvisation together with hip-hop production and musical traditions from around the world. "Makaya McCraven is a prolific drummer, composer and producer. An artist who has been aptly called a “cultural synthesizer,” McCraven has a unique gift for collapsing space, destroying borders and blending […]
The U.S. Naval Academy Band's Superintendent's Combo presents a performance highlighting music from the iconic 1957 jazz album Birth of the Cool. The concert celebrates 2026 as the 250th year of the United States of America and the 100th anniversary of the birthday of one of the most important and influential American musicians in the […]
NY jazz vocalist and recording artist Vanessa Racci is coming to Annapolis to talk about Italian contributions to American jazz over the past 100 Years. She'll deliver one of the festival's popular library lectures on Saturday morning of Weekend Two. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Italian and Sicilians immigrated to New Orleans in […]
Jazz vocalist Akua Allrich is a musician of extraordinary talent and crowd-moving passion. The charismatic vocalist, composer, and teacher has etched out a place for her unique musical expression, electrifying audiences in and around the nation’s capital and far beyond, through live performances and four major recordings. Her 2010 independent release, A Peace of Mine, […]
Uhwachi-Reh is a Baltimore-based Native American dance and cultural arts troupe led by Louis Campbell. The troupe’s name, Uhwachi-Reh, is a Tuscarora word that means "Extended Family." The group connects to the history of Native Americans—mostly from North Carolina's Lumbee and Haliwa-Saponi tribes—who moved to Baltimore after the Great Depression to work in local factories. […]