Aardvark Jazz Orchestra, 53rd Season Opener, Music by Duke Ellington and Mark Harvey

SOMERVILLE, Mass. - Aug. 31, 2025 - PRLog -- The Aardvark Jazz Orchestra, a legend on the international jazz scene, kicks off its historic 53rd season at the very cool Arts at the Armory, 191 Highland Ave, Somerville MA 02143, with music by the great Duke Ellington and originals by Aardvark founder/director Mark Harvey.  Jazz Times writes, "Aardvark suggests the best and the brashest of Charles Mingus, Gil Evans, George Russell, and even Frank Zappa," while Jazz Podium calls Aardvark "one of the best jazz ensembles in the world."  The venue offers a cash bar with food and drinks, and front-section cabaret seating - book early for the best seats.

The September 9 show, No Walls, Jazz Beyond Category, is inspired by Duke Ellington's credo to move "beyond category" in music and life.  Ellington's work, "It's Freedom" (1968), evokes the larger Civil Rights struggle and the powerful Freedom Songs of the 1960s. On the same theme, Mark Harvey's The Journey (showcasing vocalist Grace Hughes) is inspired by the Civil Rights movement, especially the struggle for desegregation of the Boston Public Schools which began in 1849 and finally was implemented in the 1974-1975 school year.   Aardvark commemorates the 250th anniversary of the founding of America with the premiere of Mark Harvey's arrangement of "Chester" by Revolutionary War-era Boston composer William Billings.  The Billings piece (1770), widely recognized as an anthem of the struggle for independence, finds new meaning in Harvey's arrangement, celebrating freedom and democracy today.  Duke Ellington's "Chinoiserie," from The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse Suite, reflects his vision of cross-cultural exchange.  In the same vein, Mark Harvey's "No Walls" is an exotic, multi-layered suite that moves through many styles to an orchestral chorale of inclusivity inspired by Ellington's protégé the South African musician Abdullah Ibrahim.

Tickets:  https://the-center-for-arts-at-the-armory.ticketleap.com/pop-presents-aardvark-jazz-orchestra---no-walls-jazz-beyond-cat/

Aardvark is: Peter H. Bloom, Phil Scarff, Chris Rakowski, Dan Zupan, Daniel Ian Smith/saxophones and woodwinds; Mike Peipman, Jeanne Snodgrass/trumpets; Bob Pilkington, Jay Keyser/trombones; Bill Lowe/bass trombone, tuba; Richard Nelson/guitar; Jesse Williams/string bass; Harry Wellott/drums; Grace Hughes, vocalist; and Mark Harvey, music director.  Aardvark is managed by Americas Musicworks, Rebecca DeLamotte, director.

This concert is made possible with support from the Somerville Arts Council, the Mass Cultural Council, the Arts at the Armory Performance Opportunity Program.