Live Jazz in New York

This coming May the 28th, LOOVE Annex is delighted to welcome THE HEMPHILL STRINGTET -- a collective string quartet devoted to performing the music of African American composer and saxophonist Julius Hemphill (1938-1995). The quartet aims to bring greater attention to Hemphill’s compositions and highlight his role as a major Black American composer of the late twentieth century. In his obituary, The New York Times called him “one of the most important musicians of his generation.” Additionally, the group aims to expand the role of improvisation, particularly from the African American tradition, in the string quartet instrumentation. The group is notably inspired by some of the polyphony and group improvisation practiced by the World Saxophone Quartet (of which Hemphill was a member).