Todd Marcus Jazz Orchestra at Chris' Jazz Cafe

2014 Baker Artist Award winner Todd Marcus and his jazz orchestra will kick-off a five day CD release tour in Philadelphia at Chris' Jazz Café on May 14.

The show marks the release of the band's new album Blues for Tahrir. The recording chronicles Egypt’s Arab Spring movement in a fusion of jazz and classical Middle Eastern influenced music. The album has already garnered early attention including an invitation for the band to tour in Egypt at the Cairo Jazz Festival in October 2015.

Marcus, the son of an Egyptian immigrant father, explains “It began as just one piece of music when the Arab Spring movement started in Tahrir Square in Cairo in 2011. But as the demonstrations continued, I kept composing more movements until I had a full suite of music. It became a way for me to musically capture events in Egypt while connecting with Middle Eastern music as part of my heritage.” ...

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2014 Baker Artist Award winner Todd Marcus and his jazz orchestra will kick-off a five day CD release tour in Philadelphia at Chris' Jazz Café on May 14.

The show marks the release of the band's new album Blues for Tahrir. The recording chronicles Egypt’s Arab Spring movement in a fusion of jazz and classical Middle Eastern influenced music. The album has already garnered early attention including an invitation for the band to tour in Egypt at the Cairo Jazz Festival in October 2015.

Marcus, the son of an Egyptian immigrant father, explains “It began as just one piece of music when the Arab Spring movement started in Tahrir Square in Cairo in 2011. But as the demonstrations continued, I kept composing more movements until I had a full suite of music. It became a way for me to musically capture events in Egypt while connecting with Middle Eastern music as part of my heritage.”

The sections of the suite bear out these diverse moods with titles including Protest, Reflections, Tears on the Square, and Adhan, the Arabic word for the call to prayer that sounds five times a day across loudspeakers at mosques in Islamic countries.

The tour continues after Chris' in DC, Baltimore, NJ, and New York. For details visit toddmarcusjazz.com

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