Ethnic Heritage Ensemble Fri Feb 25 at Thunderbird Cafe
Chicago’s legendary progressive jazz trio Ethnic Heritage Ensemble takes another go at Pittsburgh during
their biennial Black History Month tour, this time on Friday February 25 for a 7 pm (sharp) concert at the
Thunderbird Cafe, 4023 Butler St. in Lawrenceville. Tickets are $15 in advance, and $20 at the door and can be obtained at Paul’s CDs, Caliban Books, Dave’s Music Mine, The Exchange Squirrel Hill, The Exchange Downtown
or at the Thunderbird’s ticketing site at http://www.thunderbirdcafe.net. The show is over 21 and will be non-smoking.
For more than 35 years, the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble has carried on the African-American tradition of percussive jazz from a distinctly Midwest-Chicago perspective, growing organically out of the extremely
important Windy City-based AACM organization, which also spawned such artists as the Art Ensemble of
Chicago and Anthony Braxton. One of the longest continuously operating groups in jazz, the EHE currently includes founder/percussionist Kahil El’Zabar (also of Ritual Trio), saxophonist Ernest Dawkins (also of New Horizons and Chicago 12) and trumpeter Corey Wilkes, a rising young star who filled the deceased Lester Bowie’s position in the Art Ensemble of Chicago. The EHE has a storied history of acclaimed album releases, mostly on the established Delmark label. Their previous appearances in Pittsburgh have included stops at the Three Rivers Arts Festival, Carnegie Mellon University, and the Andy Warhol Museum. Check out Kahil El’Zabar’s website at http://www.kahilelzabar.net.