Andrew Cyrille at the 2018 Newport Jazz Festival (photo: Marek Lazarski)

“Jazz for the Free World” is the theme at this year’s 24th Vision Festival set to take place at the Roulette Intermedium in downtown Brooklyn on June 11-16.

The six-day, avant-garde influenced festival features improvised music, poetry, visual art, dance and performance art. This year’s festival will feature two Lifetime of Achievement honorees, master drummer, composer and bandleader Andrew Cyrille and Paris-born sculptor Alain Kirili.

Cyrille will open the festival on June 11. Born in Brooklyn to Haitian immigrant parents, the avant-garde drummer’s playing reflects the sounds, rhythms and culture of Haiti. Past collaborations include performances with Milford Graves, Rashied Ali, Don Moye, and Kenny Clarke.

Kirili is being honored for forging connections between art and music. Kirili’s work has been featured in a series of performances starting in 1992 when he collaborated with saxophonist Steve Lacy. On June 13, festival goers can catch Kirili in conversation with William Parker.

On June 12, the festival will honor the late drummer Alvin Fielder who became a pivotal figure in the Chicago avant-garde scene. Fielder worked with Sun Ra and was also a founding member of the Association for Advancement of Creative Music.

This year’s lineup includes performances from guitarist Marc Ribot; pianist Matthew Shipp; bassist William Parker; violinist Jason Kao Hwang; and saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, drummer Tom Rainey, pianist Sylvie Courvoisier, and violinist Mark Feldman performing together.

As in year’s past, Vision Festival offers a stage for emerging artists. Some musicians to watch include: Ava Mendoza; drummer and bandleader Tomas Fujiwaral; Kris Davis; pianist David Virelles; tenor saxophonist James Brandon Lewis and others.

For more information and a full lineup, visit  https://www.artsforart.org/vision.html" rel="nofollow - Vision Festival’s website.

from  https://jazztimes.com/" rel="nofollow - https://jazztimes.com