1The Miles Davis Experience | Overture Center

An SVA Music Celebration Series Event

The Miles Davis Experience 1949-1959

A Collaboration with Blue Note Records

featuring The Ambrose Akinmusire Quintet

Ambrose Akinmusire trumpet Walter Smith III tenor sax Sam Harris piano Harish Raghavan bass Justin Brown drums

TUE, OCT 11, 2011 | Capitol Theater

This program is part of Overture’s Take 10 Series for students and educators. Funding for Take 10 is provided by Overture Center Foundation contributors. Learn how you can help make arts experiences real for hundreds of thousands of people in the greater Madison area at overturecenter.com/contribute.

This program is part of Overture’s Community Ticket Program. Funding for the Com-munity Ticket Program is provided by American Girl’s Fund for Children, a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National En-dowment for the Arts, and by Overture Center Foundation contributors. Learn how you can help make arts experiences real for hundreds of thousands of people in the greater Madison area at overturecenter.com/contribute.

SVA is a proud sponsor of the Overture Center’s Music Celebration Series, bringing an exceptional world-class music experience to more than 7,500 Madison area music enthusiasts.

608.831.8181 | www.sva.com

Measurable Results. I T ’ S W H AT S E T S U S A P A R T

overturecenter.com/contribute

Are you a silent film aficionado? Does the sound of the Capitol Theater’s Barton Organ signal the beginning of a fabulous evening of Duck Soup Cinema for you? Then join Overture’s Duck Soup Cinema Club, and help keep this community program healthy and affordable for all!

Learn about the benefits of membership and make your donation online at overturecenter.com/contribute. You’ll have even more fun with Duck Soup and can take pride knowing that your generosity is part of how it all happens.

DON’T STAY

SILENT ABOUT YOUR LOVE

OF SILENT FILMS!

3The Miles Davis Experience | Overture Center

MILES DAVIS

Miles Davis (May 26, 1926 – Sep 28, 1991), an American jazz composer, trumpeter and multi-instrumentalist, was one of the most influential, innovative and original musicians of the twentieth century. In terms of importance to the history of jazz, few knowledgeable critics would balk at describing him as an innovative genius with an unmistakable style and unmatched musical range. Stylistically, his vast catalogue encompasses bebop, cool jazz, modal jazz and jazz-rock fusion. He was a pivotal figure in the evolution of the latter three. His recordings, along with the live performances of his many seminal bands, were vital in jazz’s increased artistic acceptance. A popularizer as well as an innovator, Davis became

famous for both his languid, melodic style and his laconic and at times confrontational personality.

Miles Davis was encouraged to pursue his musical inclinations at an early age, and by the age of 10 he began working with Clark Terry. At the age of 18, Davis moved to New York City where he worked for various bands and enrolled in the Juilliard School, which was known as the Institute of Musical Art at that time. By 1949, his first recording was released, aptly entitled, Birth of the Cool. Within six years, he released Walkin’ and Bags Groove, which won him prestige in jazz circles of the day. With bebop and the rise in jazz improvisation, Miles Davis solidified his own style and gave rise to the West Coast jazz school.

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AMBROSE AKINMUSIRE, Trumpet The Los Angeles Times recently named Akinmusire one of their 2011 “Faces to Watch.” Born and raised in Oakland, California, the Berkeley High School Jazz Ensemble member caught the attention of saxophonist Steve Coleman who later hired him as a member of his Five Elements band. Coleman challenged Akinmusire on and off the stage. “Ambrose, what’s your concept?” Coleman asked him. “Concept? I’m 19, I don’t need a concept. It’ll just come one day,” shrugged Akinmusire, raising the saxophonist’s ire. “You’ve got to start thinking about it now,” Coleman chided. “Everything you don’t love, make sure that’s not in your playing.” Akinmusire took the advice to heart, and returned to his studies at the Manhattan School of Music determined to discover his own voice. “When I got back to school I wrote a list,” he explains. “It was very specific, it had things on it like ‘I don’t want to be confined by my instrument’ or ‘I

want to have a sound like a French Horn player.’ It had harmonic concepts on it. I posted it on my wall. It caused me a lot of trouble because if a teacher told me to do something and it didn’t really fit what was on that list I didn’t listen to them. It really made me learn who I was because I had to defend that every day.”

After returning to the West Coast to pursue a master’s degree at the University of Southern California, Akinmusire went on to attend the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz in Los Angeles. 2007 was a pivotal year for Akinmusire. He won the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition from a panel of judges that included Terrence Blanchard, Quincy Jones, Herb Alpert, Hugh Masekela, Clark Terry and Roy Hargrove. That year he also won the Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition and released his debut recording Prelude…To Cora.

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5The Miles Davis Experience | Overture Center

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He moved back to New York City and began performing with Vijay Iyer, Aaron Parks, Esperanza Spalding and Jason Moran. There he caught the attention of Blue Notes Records president Bruce Lundvall, who signed him to a contract. With his quintet, Akinimusire recorded When the Heart Emerges Glistening, which includes the opening track “Confessions to My Unborn Daughter.” The album was released earlier this year.

WALTER SMITH, Tenor Sax Walter Smith III began playing the saxophone at age 7 in his hometown of Houston, TX at Houston’s High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. In 1998, Smith received a Clifford Brown/Stan Getz Fellowship from IAJE and NFAA; the NFAA Young Talent Award; a full tuition scholarship to attend Berklee College of Music; and a United States Presidential Scholar in the Arts medal. Walter graduated from Berklee in 2003 with a degree in Music Education.

He has performed in venues all over the world including Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. Walter has appeared on over 75 recordings worldwide. His eponymously titled debut recording as a leader was released in 2006. His sophomore release Live in France, was released in 2009. His most recent album, III, was released 2010 and was the #3 best seller on itunes in the U.S. for its

first week. Over the past few years, besides leading a quintet, Walter has been a member of several groups including the Terence Blanchard group, Eric Harland’s quintet, Ambrose Akinmusire’s quintet, Christian Scott’s group, the Sean Jones sextet, Jason Moran’s Big Bandwagon and the Christian McBride Situation band.

SAM HARRIS, Piano Sam Harris’s life in music began at the age of  two, when, thanks to incredible foresight, his mother put him in early piano lessons.  Sam quickly excelled in his classical training, and by the age of ten was competing regularly on the local and statewide levels.  At Booker T. Washington Arts Magnet High School in Dallas, Texas, he discovered jazz and was soon consumed with the dual pursuit of classical and improvisatory music.  In 2004 he moved to New York to attend the Manhattan School of Music on scholarship, where he studied privately with teachers like Garry Dial, Jason Moran, and John Riley.  He has played in bands led by forward-thinking musicians such as Ambrose Akinmusire, Logan Richardson, and Linda Oh, and is quickly gaining recognition as an important new voice on the music scene.

HARISH RAGHAVAN, Bass At age 8 Harish began studying Western and Indian percussion and switched over to the double bass at age 17. Soon

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6 The Miles Davis Experience | Overture Center

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after, he studied with John Clayton at the University of Southern California. While in Los Angeles he also studied with Robert Hurst, among others, and recorded and played with many legendary West Coast musicians. In 2007 he made the move to New York where he has had the opportunity to record and play with some of the most forward thinking musicians of his generation: Ambrose Akinmusire, Eric Harland, Aaron Parks, Taylor Eigsti, Vijay Iyer, Kurt Elling, Walter Smith III, Logan Richardson, Dayna Stephens, Gerald Clayton along with many others. After only being in New York for just a few years, Harish has already begun to make a name for himself among the rising stars of his generation.

JUSTIN BROWN, Drums Born and raised in Oakland, California, Justin Brown started playing drums in church when he was just a meager 2

years old. At the age of 10, he went on to study at UC Berkeley’s Young Musicians Summer Program and continued his studies there for 7 more years. All the while, Brown continued to play in various groups and settings, including the prestigious Grammy High School All-Star Band. In 2002, Brown was one of only five applicants selected, amongst hundreds, to attend The Dave Brubeck Institute on a full scholarship. Brown graduated in 2004 and received a full scholarship to Juilliard. Since then this skilled young drummer has performed, toured and recorded with the likes of Kenny Garrett, Christian McBride, Gerald Clayton, Stefon Harris, Esperanza Spaulding, Terence Blanchard, Josh Roseman, Gretchen Parlato, Eldar, Yosvany Terry, Gonazalo Rubalcaba, Bilal, Ledisi, Ambrose Akinmusire and Vijay Iyer.

tickets: 608.258.4141overturecenter.com

Herbie HancockA Bell Laboratories Celebrity Series Event

THu, mar 15, 7:30 pmoverture Halltickets starting at $30.50

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Overture Center for the Arts would like to recognize our 2011/12 Community Partners and thank them for all they do to support Madison’s thriving arts community.

LegACy SPOnSOrS

PLAtinuM COMMunity PArtnerSAmerican girl’s Fund for Children

SiLver COMMunity PArtnerSAmerican Family insurance

Bell LaboratoriesFood Fight, inc.

ProvideoSvA

Supranet CommunicationstDS telecommunications

tOMCAt Products

BrOnze COMMunity PArtnerSState Bank of Cross Plains

COMMunity PArtnerSthe Bruce Company of Wisconsin

CunA Mutual groupgoodman’s Jewelers

Hovde PropertiesJ.H. Findorff & Son inc.

Mge FoundationMullins group

Murphy Desmond S.C.Pepsi Cola of Madison

Steve Brown ApartmentsWhyte Hirschboeck Dudek S.C.

*List current as of August 5, 2011

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8 The Miles Davis Experience | Overture Center

ORDERING & INFORMATIONOrder online! overturecenter.com Phone orders: Call 608.258.4141 Mail or fax: online order form at overture-center.com or in our magazine.Buy in person: Visit the ticket o� ce located on the main fl oor just o� the Rotunda Lobby. Ticket o� ce hours: Mon–Fri, 11 AM–5:30 PM; Sat, 11 AM–2 PM; open additional hours evenings and Sundays on days of ticketed performances.Group orders: Groups of 15 or more receive a discount on most performances. Call 608.258.4159 to make reservations.Visit overturecenter.com: For a calendar of events, links to artists’ websites, video, audio, directions, parking and much more.

PATRON SERVICES & POLICIESAccessibility: Request accommodations when ordering your tickets. Call 608.258.4144 for information, questions, or to request the following:■ wheelchair-accessible seating■ house wheelchair for transport■ sign language interpretation■ Braille playbill■ other accommodationsInformation is also available at overturecenter.com/tickets/accessibility Children and lap seating: Every person, regardless of age, must have a ticket to enter the theaters for performances. Children un-der the age of 6 are not permitted at certain performances. See our season brochure, visit our website or call the Help Line at 608.258.4143 for information.Contacting a patron during a performance: Call 608.258.4179 with the performance the patron is attending and his/her row and seat number.

Lost and Found: Visit the information desk in the Rotunda Lobby or call 608.258.4973.Rentals: For information on renting spaces in Overture Center for weddings, performances, meetings or other events, call 608.258.4163 or email events@overturecenter.com.

EtiquettePlease turn o� all paging devices, cell phones and watch alarms.Smoking is prohibited in Overture.The use of cameras or tape recorders in the theaters is prohibited without written permis-sion from Overture Center and the performing company’s management. Food, large bags and other large items are not permitted in the theaters. Bottled water and beverages in Overture Refi llable Souvenir Cups are allowed in the theaters at select shows.In consideration of audience members with scent sensitivities and allergies, please use perfumes, aftershaves and other fragrances in moderation.Event Sta� Stagehand services in Overture are provided by members of Local 251 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.Volunteer usher and other services for Overture are provided by Overture Friends. For information, visit overturecenter.com/contribute/volunteer or call 608.258.4177.

RESIDENT ORGANIZATIONSBach Dancing & Dynamite Societybachdancinganddynamite.org | 608.255.9866Children’s Theater of Madisonctmtheater.org | 608.255.2080Kanopy Dance Companykanopydance.org | 608.255.2211Li Chiao-Ping Dancelichiaopingdance.org | 608.835.6590Madison Balletmadisonballet.org | 608.278.7990Madison Operamadisonopera.org |608.238.8085Madison Symphony Orchestramadisonsymphony.org | 608.257.3734Wisconsin Academy’s James Watrous Gallerywisconsinacademy.org | 608.265.2500Wisconsin Chamber Orchestrawcoconcerts.org | 608.257.0638

PATRON SERVICES AND INFORMATION

Welcome to Overture Center for the Arts Your enjoyment is important to us. Please contact an usher or the ticket o� ce if you have any concerns about your experience here.