Description
Sun Ra – visionary, mystic, poet, angel, pianist and jazz arranger extraordinaire – might have departed this planet over 20 years ago, but his spirit and musical influence still reverberate today. The 25-piece Arkestra, with 90-year-old alto saxophonist Marshall Allen at the helm, continues to travel the spaceways playing all around the world and spreading Ra's myth far and wide. From barber shop harmonies and big band swing, to freeform electronics and New York noise, to Black Panthers, Walt Disney covers, space chants and the original unquantized snare: we're still just catching up with Sun Ra's vision. The Arkestra, featuring longtime members such as trumpeter Michael Ray, and Danny Ray Thompson on woodwinds, continues to honor Sun Ra's memory with their intergalactic theater, complete with resplendent gowns, Ancient Egyptian mythologies, and cosmic jazz equations.
