Ernest Dawkins' New Horizons Ensemble

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Bezanson Recital Hall   8:00 pm
$12 general, $7 students

Since its founding in 1979, Ernest Dawkins' New Horizons Ensemble has been both critically and popularly acclaimed, as both musicians and educators. Led by saxophonist Ernest Dawkins, the group includes many members of the third generation of the famous Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM): Maurice Brown (trumpet), Steve Berry (trombone), Darius Savage (bass) and Isaiah Spencer (drums). The Chicago Tribune called the bands' 1993 debut recording South Side Street Songs (Silkheart Records) "...a celebratory, life-affirming work, a profound addition to the avant-garde repertory..." A past president of the AACM and a teacher in Chicago public schools since 1989, Dawkins exemplifies Chicago's history in his immediate influences and in his continuing dedication to the continuity of the city's musical traditions.