Hot Club of Cowtown

Ann Arbor’s Community High Jazz is one of the best programs of its kind anywhere. The Ark is proud to host this year’s students on stage for two shows: one at 6:00 and another at 8:00.

Join Djangophonique and special TBA guests in celebration of Django Reinhardt’s legacy of music that is still alive and evolving 114 years after he was born. Lead by guitar player Andre Brown, Djangophonique’s core group includes Tyler Rindo on clarinet, Nick Martin on rhythm guitar, and Jorian Olk-Szost on upright bass. In 2023, Djangophonique began collaborating with vocalist Katie Smith, whose playful charm and soulful delivery channel the mystery and appeal of an unplaceable era of aching and entrancing nostalgia. With respect for the tradition and a fearless creativity that bends the conventions of the style, Djangophonique is keeping the Hot Club revival alive and well.

Ann Arbor’s vital Hot Club swing scene is matched by the one in Madison, where Wisconsin’s Midwest Gypsy Swing Fest is held twice a year. Now these Madison sounds are coming to Michigan! That festival was founded by Harmonious Wail, which takes audiences on a ride from Parisian cafes to the deepest blues of the Memphis Delta, to the heartfelt folk scenes across every-town-America. Harmonious Wail is joined by guitarist and singer Leila Duclos, direct from France! The daughter of famed French jazz guitarist Cyril Duclos, Leila comes to Michigan with a new album, “Fille de feu” (Daughter of Fire). There’s going to be plenty of hot stuff on this Django-style jazz bill.

John Raymond and S. Carey have been playing music together for close to twenty years since their time studying music at the University of –Eau Claire. While they both received training in jazz and classical music, their careers would soon head in very different directions. S. Carey would become the right-hand man to Justin Vernon (aka Bon Iver); collaborate as a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer with the likes of Sufjan Stevens, Low, and Bruce Hornsby among others; and release four albums of his own to critical acclaim from Pitchfork, NPR, and more. John Raymond, on the other hand, would become a Grammy-nominated trumpeter and composer “steering jazz in the right direction” (Downbeat); release eight albums garnering praise from the New York Times, Stereogum, and others; and teach on faculty at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, one of the most prestigious music conservatories in the world.
In 2019, the two reunited and began experimenting on what their artistic voices would sound like together. Raymond brought in a host of musical ideas, while Carey contributed lyrics and helped shape the ideas into songs. Producer Sun Chung (formerly with ECM Records) came on board shortly after, and together they enlisted a cast of A-list musicians to help flesh out the music including pianist Aaron Parks (Terri Lyne Carrington, Terence Blanchard), bassist Chris Morrissey (Norah Jones, Mark Guiliana), and guitarist Dave Devine (Brian Blade and the Fellowship Band).
The result is their new album, “Shadowlands” (out September 29), a stunning, genre-bending collection of songs that combines the warmth and beauty of Carey’s aesthetic with the improvisational, spontaneous nature of Raymond’s. The music ranges from intimate and meditative to soaring and anthemic, with electric moments of musical interplay throughout. It’s the kind of collaboration that feels as if it were years in the making.

A former child prodigy, Julian Lage is now, in his early 30s, a veteran. He’s collaborated with Gary Burton, Jim Hall, David Grisman, Béla Fleck, and Charles Lloyd, as well as releasing albums as a soloist and leader. He comes to Michigan with a new release, “Squint,” that takes his music to a new level. Recording now for Blue Note Records, the virtuoso guitarist reflected on the label’s storied history and the way his own music connected with it. The new album weds incisive, expressive songwriting with the profound interplay Julian has honed over the past few years with his deft trio featuring bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Dave King.