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On October 19th, I was fortunate enough to be given access to make photographs of the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra and the Jon Jang Seven performing as part of the San Francisco Jazz Festival. The musicians played an inspired show to a sold out crowd at the historic Great American Music Hall, and I had a great time listening to the live music and sleuthing around making the images you see here. I’d also like to personally thank Marcus, Kate, and SFJazz for making these photographs possible.

Two of the Bay Area’s most accomplished composer-performers present new works inspired by powerful women. Bassist Shelby’s “epic oratorio” (SF Chronicle) “Harriet Tubman: Bound for the Promised Land” celebrates the great abolitionist, while pianist Jang’s “Unbound Chinatown: A Musical Tribute to Alice Fong Yu” honors Yu, a groundbreaking Chinese American teacher in San Francisco. — SFJazz

Marcus Shelby brings deep social and political awareness to his large-scale, indeed epic compositions. His latest, which he will perform with his 15-piece orchestra plus four singers Friday night, is based on the life of Harriet Tubman, which he discussed at length with the San Francisco’s Chronicle’s Jesse Hamlin in a recent story. — SF Chronicle

Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra
Faye Carol, Kenny Washington, Jeannine Anderson, Joseph Mace, Vocalists
Dave Scott, Mike Olmos, Darren Johnston, Joel Ryan, Trumpets
Danny Grewen, Marc Bolin, Scott Larson, Trombones
Marcus Stephens, Gabe Eaton, Alto Sax
Evan Francis, Tenor Sax and Flute
Rob Barics, Tenor Sax and Clarinet
Tom Griesser, Bari Sax
Adam Shulman, Piano
Jeff Marrs, Drums
Marcus Shelby, Bass and Conductor

Jon Jang Seven
Jon Jang, Piano
Min Xiao-Fen, Pipa, Vocals
Jim Norton, Soprano Saxophone
Francis Wong, Tenor Sax and Flute
John L. Worley Jr., Trumpet and Flugelhorn
Wayne Wallace, Trombone
David Belove, Electric Bass
Jason Lewis, Percussion

Here are a few photos from the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra’s official debut performance of Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman as the kick-off show for the annual Yerba Buena Gardens Festival. A sizeable crowd came to enjoy a beautiful sunny afternoon of original jazz compositions based on one of our more inspiring — and sometimes overlooked — American heroes. You can read more about MSJO’s project in some of our previous coverage.

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to photograph the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra performing live at Presentation Theater as part of the USF Black History Month series of events. The band played two sets comprising music from The Lights Suite, Port Chicago, and their current work-in-progress Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman — this was one of only a few opportunities for jazz fans to get a “preview listen” to this challenging new work.

Marcus has been commissioned by the Creative Work Fund and the Committee for Black Performing Arts at Stanford University to collaborate with the Yerba Buena Arts & Events and the Museum of the African Diaspora to develop Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman, an original oratorio for jazz orchestra. The work, which is based on a book of the same name by Kate Clifford Larson, tells the inspiring story of Harriet Tubman and features the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, members of the Glide Memorial Church choir, as well as many other well-known Bay Area vocalists.

The full, completed piece is set to premiere at the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival at 1pm on May 5, 2007. In the meantime, you might want to check Marcus’s schedule for more upcoming shows and educational events surrounding this new body of work.

You can click the thumbnails below to see larger versions of the pictures, or alternatively, click here to view a slideshow of the entire photo set.

We were lucky enough to attend the first public performance of a new exciting project being developed by the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra as part of the free outdoor Yerba Buena Gardens Festival. The piece is currently a work-in-progress, and this was a rare opportunity for jazz fans to get a “preview listen” to this challenging new work.

Marcus has been commissioned by the Creative Work Fund and the Committee for Black Performing Arts at Stanford University to collaborate with the Yerba Buena Arts & Events and the Museum of the African Diaspora to develop Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman, an original oratorio for jazz orchestra.

The work, which is based on a book of the same name by Kate Clifford Larson, will tell the inspiring story of Harriet Tubman and will feature the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, members of the Glide Memorial Church choir, as well as several other well-known Bay Area vocalists. The full, completed piece is set to premiere at the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival in Spring 2007.