Raw Cut: 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival

Podcasts interviewed the acclaimed educators, composers, researchers, and musicians who attended the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival. Hear their unfiltered stories.

By Gregory Caesar, Jake Zucker, and William Kimani

September 28, 2023

A collage of Hyde Park Jazz Festival 2023 artists.

Adegoke and Iqua Colson

The Maroon’s Jake Zucker and Gregory Caesar interview pianist and saxophonist Adegoke Colson, who performed live at the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival. They are joined by his wife, composer and vocalist Iqua Colson, who is a Hyde Park native and alumna of Kenwood Academy.

About Ade:

“STEVE COLSON – aka ADEGOKE – pianist and composer, has performed internationally as a leader of jazz ensembles ranging from trios to orchestras. Born in Newark and raised in East Orange, NJ, he received his degree from Northwestern University School of Music and lived in Chicago for a decade before returning to reside on the East Coast.

“A critically acclaimed figure in modern jazz, Steve’s compositions are finding their way into the “jazz standard” repertoire and are being performed and recorded by some of today’s jazz greats as well as by his own group. He became a member of The Association for Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) in the early 70s, a musicians’ collective that has influenced music internationally in the 20th and 21st Century.”

About Iqua:

“IQUA COLSON has been praised internationally by the media and placed in the company of some of our finest known vocal innovators including Betty Carter, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan and Abbey Lincoln, Iqua’s work has been discussed in countless periodicals and books including a chapter in “Black Women & Music, More than the Blues” – which also features the great Leontyne Price. Her industry accolades include Vocal Talent Deserving Wider Recognition by Downbeat Magazine and Distinguished Achievement as a lyricist by Billboard.

“A native of Chicago, Iqua was accepted to Northwestern University School of Music as a pianist after three years of high school. She was voted into The Association for Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) in the early 70s, the influential musicians’ collective acknowledged worldwide as a primary influence in 20th and 21st Century music. She has recorded and performed in the U.S. and overseas collaborating with great artists, most frequently with her husband decorated pianist/composer Steve Colson.”

Read more about Ade and Iqua

This interview was recorded at the Study at University of Chicago on Friday, September 22, 2023.

Silvia Bolognesi Italian Trio with Nick Mazzarella

The Maroon’s Jake Zucker, William Kimani, and Gregory Caesar interview double bass player, composer, and arranger Silvia Bolognesi and members of the Silvia Bolognesi Italian Trio. The trio performed live at the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival with special guest Nick Mazzarella.

About Silvia:

“Silvia Bolognesi is a double bass player, composer, and arranger. She leads several bands: Open Combo, Almond Tree, Xilo Ensemble, Ju-Ju Sounds, Fonterossa Open Orchestra, Beast Friends, and Young Shouts. She is also part of the international string trio Hear in Now, with Tomeka Reid on cello and Mazz Swift on violin and vocals; the Art Ensemble of Chicago’s 50th Anniversary special project; and the Roscoe Mitchell Quintet.

“In 2010, Bolognesi founded her own label, Fonterossa Records. She is now also artistic director of the Fonterossa Day minifestival, hosted by Pisa Jazz, and the curator and conductor of the Fonterossa Open Orchestra, a creative orchestra based in Pisa since 2017.” (hydeparkjazzfestival.org)

This interview was recorded at the Study at University of Chicago on Saturday, September 23, 2023.

Bethany Pickens

The Maroon’s Jake Zucker, William Kimani, and Gregory Caesar interview pianist, composer, and Hyde Park native Bethany Pickens, who performed live at the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival with the Bethany Pickens Trio.

About Bethany:

“Bethany Pickens is an award-winning pianist, composer, and educator. Born in Chicago, she began her musical training under the watchful tutelage of her father, world-class jazz pianist Willie Pickens.

“As an educator, Pickens has worked with the Ravinia Jazz Scholars Program and the Jazz Institute of Chicago’s Jazz Links Program, and is in her 25th year working for the Chicago Public Schools, currently teaching piano at her alma mater, Kenwood Academy. She also sits on the Board of the Jazz institute of Chicago and the Hyde Park Neighborhood Club.” (hydeparkjazzfestival.org)

This interview was recorded at the Study at University of Chicago on Saturday, September 23, 2023.

Chico Freeman

The Maroon’s Jake Zucker and William Kimani interview saxophonist and Chicago native Chico Freeman, who performed live at the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival as part of the Chico Freeman Quintet. They are joined by Michael Allemana (Ph.D. ’20), a researcher of ethnomusicology and Director of the University’s Jazz Ensemble.

About Chico:

“Heralded as one of the most important saxophonists of our time, composer and producer Chico Freeman has perfected an immediately recognizable approach to music and composition, blending what he has experienced from his past and providing fluidity into a future of infinite musical possibilities.

“As part of the Freeman family legacy of Chicago (legendary NEA Jazz Master saxophonist Von Freeman is his father and guitarist George Freeman and drummer Bruz Freeman are his uncles), Chico amassed a diverse performance résumé including R&B, blues, hard bop, and avant-garde. His collegiate studies in Advanced Composition and Theory at Northwestern University propelled him to a position teaching composition at the AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians) Music School, as well as a Master’s degree in Composition and Theory at Governor State University, where he studied composition with NEA Jazz Master Muhal Richard Abrams.” (hydeparkjazzfestival.org)

This interview was recorded at the Study at University of Chicago on Saturday, September 23, 2023.

Tito Carrillo

The Maroon’s Jake Zucker and William Kimani interview trumpeter, composer, and UIUC professor Tito Carrillo, who performed live at the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival with the Tito Carrillo Urbanessence Band.

About Tito:

“Tito Carrillo is a trumpeter, composer, and educator whose music blurs the lines between Afro-Caribbean music traditions and modern jazz. Born and raised in Austin, TX, by a Puerto Rican father and Mexican-American mother, Carrillo came to prominence in the mid-nineties of Chicago’s rich jazz and Latin music scenes, becoming a top call soloist, sideman, and bandleader.

“He has taught at secondary and collegiate music programs across the U.S. and Latin America. His long list of former students includes many who have established careers as both performers and educators and have won international jazz competitions at the highest level.” (titocarrillo.com)

This interview was recorded at the Study at University of Chicago on Saturday, September 23, 2023.

Tim Fitzgerald

The Maroon’s Gregory Caesar interviews Chicago-based educator, jazz guitarist, and bandleader Tim Fitzgerald, who performed live at the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival with the Tim Fitzgerald Trio.

About Tim:

“Tim Fitzgerald is a Chicago based jazz guitarist, bandleader, educator and author. Named “Wes Montgomery scholar and visionary” by DownBeat Magazine, he is also the recipient of Chicago’s 2021 Individual Artist Program Grant, a grant provided by the Illinois Arts Council Agency and the National Endowment for the Arts.” (hydeparkjazzfestival.org)

This interview was recorded in the lobby of the Study at University of Chicago on Sunday, September 24, 2023.

Arman Sangalang

The Maroon’s William Kimani and Gregory Caesar interview saxophonist, composer, and educator Arman Sangalang, who performed live at the 2023 Hyde Park Jazz Festival with the Arman Sangalang Trio.

About Arman:

“Saxophonist and composer Arman Sangalang is an up-and-coming jazz musician on the Chicago scene, as well as an in-demand sideman who collaborates frequently with Jameson Scriver’s Reckoner, Miro Sobrer’s Two of Swords, Morgan Turner Quartet, and Kabir Dalawari Quartet. He has studied with distinguished jazz artists such as Geof Bradfield, Walter Smith III, Greg Ward, Jon Irabagon, and Matt Ulery, and had the honor of sharing the stage with notable jazz artists such as Bobby Broom, Clark Sommers, Ted Sirota, Lenard Simpson, and Camila Mennitte.

“Sangalang’s debut album Quartet, featuring original compositions, is set to release in the Fall of 2023.” (hydeparkjazzfestival.org)

This interview was recorded in the lobby of the Study at University of Chicago on Sunday, September 24, 2023.