Dammann / Baker / Davis Jazz Night

Friday, June 7th 8pm

$15 suggested donation

Masking required, RSVP required

Please join Dammann / Baker / Davis for a night of tunes and improvised music.

JIM BAKER

Jim Baker has been playing piano and synthesizer in and around Chicago and the world for a few decades, mostly in improvisational contexts. His work has been documented on more than eighty commercially released recordings, including recent and/or forthcoming work with Extraordinary Popular Delusions (usually comprised of some combination of Baker, Mars Williams, Edward Wilkerson Jr., Brian Sandstrom, and/or Steve Hunt); Rempis/Abrams/Ra+Baker; Urs Leimgruber and Jason Roebke; Charles Rumback; Brandon Lopez and Bill Harris; WiHuBa (with Edward Wilkerson Jr. and Steve Hunt); Mars Williams; Keefe Jackson/Baker/Julian Kirshner; Luke Stewart (with Wilkerson, Vandermark, and Ra); Bernard Santacruz and Samuel Silvant; Christoph Erb (with Frank Rosaly, Michael Zerang, or Steve Hunt); Junius Paul; Benjamin Vergara/Keefe Jackson/Phil Sudderberg; Dan Phillips; Forget to Find (with Jean-Luc Guionnet, Pierre-Antoine Badaroux, and Jason Roebke); and Madness of Crowds (with Brian Sandstrom, Matt Lux, Nate Lepine, and Joe Adamik).

For a number of years in the 90s, Baker was the house pianist for the weekly Sunday evening jam sessions at the Velvet Lounge. For most of the last fifteen years, he has been playing most Mondays at Beat Kitchen with free-improvisation group Extraordinary Popular Delusions.

JAMES DAVIS

James Davis, a Chicago trumpeter and music maker, is comfortable in and always enjoys exploring a wide array of musical environments. As a composer and improviser, Davis is involved in a diverse blend of musical communities in Chicago. His diverse background and ranging interests can be heard in his own Chamber-Jazz group Beveled, the improvising effects-laden LORIS, and various Jazz projects.

In addition to leading different formations of his own groups, Davis has also recently collaborated and/or recorded with Matt Ulery’s Pollinator, Chris Dammann’s Restroy, Lucas Gillan’s Many Blessings, The Heritage Jazz Orchestra, and The New Standard Jazz Orchestra. James has earned recognition as a finalist both in the 2004 International Trumpet Guild Jazz Improvisation Competition and the 2007 Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Competition and has completed degrees at the University of Texas at Arlington, and at the University of North Texas. At UNT, James had the opportunity to tour and record with the Grammy nominated One O’clock Lab Band and the UNT Wind Symphony.

James’ playing and compositions are featured on his newest album Disappearing Roads, his 2014 release Beveled, the James Davis Quintet album Angles of Refraction, the avant-rock/jazz/improv band Zing!’s, Magnetic Flux, and multiple albums with Albertan drummer Karl Schwonik. He is currently on faculty at Triton College, Wheaton College, and Harold Washington College.

Christopher Dammann

Christopher is a composer/bassist who lives in Chicago. He is lucky enough to have improvised with many of his favorite musicians, worked in a variety of bands, performed music for national television shows and ad campaigns. He writes music for games, television and film.
Recent work includes the score for Kera MacKenzie & Andrew Mausert-Mooney’s award winning non-fiction montage feature, Make A Distinction, the Restroy release, sketches, for ears&eyes records and IKZ (Toby Summerfield, Kevin Davis, and John Niekrasz) release I saw the Cryptic Problem of my Generation Destroyed on Chicago label, Amalgam music.
Chris is currently working on material for a newly formed sextet (Scott Clark, Jon Irabagon, Edward Wilkerson, Mabel Kwan, James Davis) with plans to record summer 2024.
Chris is also proud to be a teaching artist with the People’s Music School of Chicago, Chicago’s largest tuition free music school.