Eclipse Jazz: 40 Years On

Wed, 06/01/2016 - 1:41pm

When: April 18, 2016 at Downtown Library Multi-Purpose Room

In the fall of 1975, a dozen U-M undergrads came together to launch a student-run concert program, Eclipse Jazz, which became a local music phenomenon.

Beginning with a performance by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner (of the John Coltrane Quartet) at the Power Center, Eclipse Jazz presented over one hundred concerts by the world’s finest jazz musicians over the next 15 years.

This event featured memories by many of Eclipse Jazz founders and was moderated by WEMU’s Michael Jewett. Scheduled panelists included Lee Berry, Tom Bray, Michael Grofsorean, Mike Landry, Ann Rebentisch, Jimmy (Max) Robins, and Max Dehn. The discussion also focused on what happened to Eclipse Jazz and why.

The panel also discussed the legacy of Miles Davis, whose genre-bending music helped inspire and propel both the members and audience of Eclipse Jazz. A new biopic about Davis, Miles Ahead, starring and directed by Don Cheadle, opens at the Michigan Theater on Friday, April 22.

This event is cosponsored by AADL and the Michigan Theater. Information and tickets for the Michigan Theater film may be found on the Theater’s website at michtheater.org.