Sonic Medicine by Douglas R. Ewart

Douglas R. Ewart, Winds, Percussion, and Ewart Instruments
Davu Seru, Drums and Percussion
And Special Guests

The polymath Douglas R. Ewart has been honored for his work as a composer, improvising multi-instrumentalist, conceptual artist, philosopher, writer, sculptor, mask and instrument designer, visual artist, tailor, cultural community builder and more. As an educator, Ewart bridges his kaleidoscopic activities with a vision that opposes today’s
divided world by culture-fusing works that aim to restore the wholeness of communities and their members and to emphasize the reality of the world’s interdependence.

From Kingston, Jamaica, Ewart immigrated to Chicago in 1963. There he studied with the master musicians of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians—an organization at which he later served as chairman at different intervals from1979-1987 and into the millennium. He also studied music at Harold Washington College, VanderCook College of Music, and electronic music at Governors State University.

Ewart is the founder of Arawak Records, is the leader of ensembles such as the Nyahbingi Drum Choir, Quasar, the Clarinet Choir, and Douglas R. Ewart & Inventions. He is a designer and creator of instruments and kinetic sonic sculptures that have been exhibited in venues such as Houston’s Contemporary Arts Museum and the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago. “Crepuscule,” his vast conceptual work is collectively actualized by scores of musicians, dancers, visual artists, poets, capoeirista, puppeteers, martial artists, activists and the honoring of elders and more.

Ewart’s honors include the 2019 Jamaica Musgrave Silver Medal presented by the Institute of Jamaica (IOJ) for outstanding contribution to art and education, 2022 McKnight Distinguished Award as a Multi-Dimensional Artist, 2022 McKnight Fellowships for Community-Engaged Artist, 2022 South Korean Gugak International Workshop Fellow, U.S. Japan Creative Arts Fellowship, a Bush Artists Fellowship, and an Outstanding Artist Award granted by a former Chicago Mayor, Harold Washington. Ewart is a Professor Emeritus at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago IL.
https://douglasewart.com/home

Davu Seru is an improvising musician, composer and scholar known primarily for his work on drums. For the past 20+ years he has worked with musicians such as Milo Fine, George Cartwright, Nirmala Rajasekar, Douglas R. Ewart, Michelle Kinney, Dean Magraw, Paul Metzger, Evan Parker, Didier Petit, Babatunde Lea, Nathan Hanson, Mankwe Ndosi, Rafael Toral, David Boykin, Donald Washington, Guillame Seguron, Tony Hymas, David Boykin, Chris Bates, Catherine Delaunay, and Nicole Mitchell Gantt. Davu is a member of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) and is Curator of the Givens Collection of African American Literature at University of Minnesota.

About/Contact

Ticket: $25 (one show) or $60 for all shows tonight (will get a wristband)!