The Hemphill Stringtet: Steppin': The Music of Julius Hemphill

Julius Hemphill (1938-1995) was an African American composer and saxophonist who not only wrote for his own small and large jazz ensembles, but also for such renowned classical music artists as Kronos Quartet and pianist Ursula Oppens, and for collaborations with renowned artists like Lester Bowie. He is best known as the principal composer for the pioneering World Saxophone Quartet, “the first supergroup to emerge from the loft jazz of the 1970s” (The Penguin Guide to Jazz). Mixing blues, R&B, and jazz vernaculars with structures and methods used in contemporary classical music, Hemphill’s compositions blurred the boundaries between genres and presented a panoramic view of American music. The first major retrospective of Hemphill’s music in the more than 30 years since his death, Steppin’: The Music of Julius Hemphill is a two-concert series celebrating a great American composer on the 250th anniversary of the nation.

The series’ second concert will feature The Hemphill Stringtet, a conventionally configured string quartet dedicated to the music of Julius Hemphill. Each member of the Stringtet has impressive individual credentials. In addition to being one of classical music’s brightest rising stars as a soloist and composer, Grammy-nominated violinist Curtis Stewart is Artistic Director of the American Composers Orchestra and a professor at the Julliard School of Music. Sam Bardfeld is a renowned jazz violinist who has worked with Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, and a host of other luminaries. Stephanie Griffin is the principal violist of the Princeton Symphony and the founder of the acclaimed Momenta Quartet. MacArthur “Genius” Tomeka Reid is a critics’ poll-winning jazz cellist and composer, and the Artistic Director of the annual Chicago Jazz String Summit.

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