Great Black Music - Ancient To The Future at Hamilton Park & Cultural Center

The 26th Annual Englewood Jazz Festival, presented by Live the Spirit Residency, returns to Chicago’s historic Hamilton Park, expanding to five nights this year on September 16–20, 2025, marking a powerful milestone in American music: the 60th Anniversary of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM). All events are FREE. 

Ernest Dawkins presents the World Premiere of "Great Black Music - Ancient To The Future" a work composed by Dawkins dedicated to the founders of the AACM. Featuring Dee Alexander on vocals; Corey Wilkes on trumpet and electronics; Derrick Gardner on trumpet; Norman Palm on trombone; Kevin King on flute, clarinet, and oboe; Jacob Slocum on baritone saxophone, B clarinet, bass clarinet, and bassoon; Fred Jackson on flute, alto saxophone, and soprano saxophone; Caitlin Edwards and Edith Yokley on violins; Wilfred Farquharson on viola; Tahirah Whittington on cello; and Micah Collier on double bass; Kevin King on tenor saxophone, clarinet, flute and oboe; and Frank Morrison lll on drums.

Ernest Dawkins is a saxophonist and composer, whose life goal is for his music and compositions to reflect the evolving collective cultural memory of the African-American jazz aesthetic. His four decades of work as a professional artist, educator, and community-based organizer are widely recognized for shaping the contemporary cultural landscape of Chicago and beyond. He is the founder and executive director of Live the Spirit Residency and past Chairman of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM). Commissions by the Jazz Institute of Chicago (Tim Black Blacker Than Black) and South Arts (Refound Connections) were both premiered in 2022. Other commissions include the Old Town School of Folk Music, the Black Metropolis Research Consortium, Sant’Anna Arresi Jazz Festival, Sons d’Hiver Festival, Banliues Bleues Festival, Meet the Composers, and the King Arts Complex of Columbus Ohio. He is the leader and founder of several ensembles, most notably the New Horizons Ensemble, Aesop Quartet, Chicago Trio, Live the Spirit Big Band, and the Chicago 12. Dawkins has recorded numerous CDs and his publishing company, Dawk Music, has seventeen releases to date.

Dee Alexander is among the premier vocalists/songwriters and one of Chicago's most gifted and respected artists. Her performances span virtually every music genre related to the African diaspora: gospel, blues, neo-soul, R&B, and world music.  Her true heart belongs to jazz, the idiom that encompasses all her influences. She gravitated toward jazz at an early age naming several vocalists and musicians among her major influences. Her collaboration with Chicago saxophonist “Light” Henry Huff encouraged her to take risks and cross boundaries, setting her on the path to becoming an accomplished voice improviser. She produced a concert in tribute to Dinah Washington’s centennial at the 2024 Blues Festival at Chicago’s Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park. In 2018, The Art Institute of Chicago commissioned Ms. Alexander to create/perform a concert inspired by artist Charles White: A Retrospective exhibit.  The Dee Alexander Trio performed at Newport Jazz Festival in 2013 to rave reviews. Her 2007 "Sirens of Song" tribute to Nina and Dinah (commissioned by the Jazz Institute of Chicago and Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events), at Chicago's Pritzker Pavilion, introduced her to a larger audience resulting in frequent tours to Europe, Africa and Asia.  She has long and fruitful associations with Chicago's jazz elite and leads her own groups: Dee Alexander Quartet, Evolution Ensemble and co-leader of Alexander/McLean Project. Her accolades include 2020 Esteem Artist Award; "Chicagoan of the Year" (Chicago Tribune, 2008); "Jazz Entertainer of the Year" (Chicago Music Awards); her 2009 album Wild Is The Wind received five stars (highest honor) from Downbeat Magazine, which named it among the Top Ten recordings of the new millennium. She was the 2012 3Arts/Southwest Airlines Award recipient and is a member of the 3Arts Artist Council.  Currently, she is also a member of the AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians), Chicago's internationally known musicians' collective and has performed in other large-scale works on Chicago stages and television. Dee is a radio host of the syndicated WFMT Jazz Network which broadcasts in over 200 markets.