Kwami Coleman

Kwami Coleman is a Ph.D. student in musicology at Stanford, with a concentration in jazz history. He was formerly an artist's liaison with Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Articles By This Author

gojogo.jpg
Review

The Switch Is Set to Bravo

Kwami Coleman - April 6, 2011

The Brava Theater, nestled deep within the Mission District, hosted Sunday’s colorful Switchboard Music Festival, and based on the character of the theater alone it was the perfect venue.

One World: Five Jazz Highlights and Five World Music Treats

Kwami Coleman - September 7, 2010

Ever since Miles Davis embraced the idea of a fusion of jazz and other genres 40 years ago, the jazz arena has been a wide-open space for invention and reinvention. As musical boundaries continue to be made irrelevant, it seems absolutely right for Davis’ classic, transgressive album to be revisited amid the splendors it has wrought. Here are five jazz and five world music acts slated for fall performances hereabouts that even a fogey would have trouble resisting.

mcferrin.jpg
Review

Bobby McFerrin’s Spirited Call to Sing Out

Kwami Coleman - April 13, 2010

Bobby McFerrin is one of the few certified, international crowd-pleasers alive today. His effect on San Francisco on Saturday night was no exception; the audience at the Nob Hill Masonic Center had to be warned by McFerrin himself, after almost two uninterrupted hours of singing, that the stagehand union reps would come in and start arresting people if folks didn’t start to leave.

mauleon_rebeca.jpg
Review

Monumental Question, Partly Answered

Kwami Coleman - March 1, 2010
What does it mean to be an American? This question — provoked by the Oakland East Bay Symphony’s concert Friday — people have been asking in this country from jump, and we have in our collective memory a wide array of answers.
imaniwinds2_wide_0.jpg
Review

The Anatomy of Cultural Diversity, With Imani Winds and Stefon Harris

Kwami Coleman - October 6, 2009
Imani Winds, a wind quintet whose stylish grace and charm match the high quality of sound produced from their instruments, hold a substantial pedigree among fellow artists, audiences, and critics alike. 
deadsymphony_0.jpg
Review

Undead Symphony

Kwami Coleman - August 11, 2009
To be a Deadhead is to be a part of a unique, dedicated, and endlessly enthusiastic bunch.
haimovitz_matt_wide2.jpg
Review

All About Time

Kwami Coleman - February 3, 2009
Messiaen and remix don't seem like two words that should go together. Genre hang-ups aside, the phrase remixing Messiaen seems tantamount to rewriting Zola or, even more ghastly, reabstracting Mondrian. After all, remixing that which has already been expertly mixed does what, exactly, to the original product?
miamistringqtet_wide.jpg
Review

Making a Case For the Unusual

Kwami Coleman - November 25, 2008
Two groups with like-minded ideals visited Stanford University last week. Imani Winds and Miami String Quartet compelled their modest-sized audience in Dinkelspiel Auditorium to join them on a spirited and inspired, if unfamiliar, musical journey. From the first to the last sounding notes both ensembles played brilliantly, with vigor, dedication, and flair.

Swing Time

Kwami Coleman - October 7, 2008
Before an attentive and animated audience on Sunday afternoon, Artistic and Executive Director of Stanford Lively Arts Jenny Bilfield concluded her opening remarks on what we should expect from this, the presenter's 39th season opener, by restating part of its mission: “We bring artists that don’t fall neatly into artistic guidelines and categories.” Sunday's crowd understood that they were going

Dance to the Music

Kwami Coleman - September 30, 2008
The California Theater looked sparkling and effervescent both inside and out on the opening night of Symphony Silicon Valley's 2008-2009 season. The program, "Dances at an Opening," featured three multimovement dance-inspired and dance-related works by Alberto Ginastera, Duke Ellington, and Sergei Prokofiev.