Kasey Knudsen Music

Marcus Shelby and his 15–piece orchestra are honored to return back to the Presidio Theater to present his original suite “Black Ball: The Negro Leagues and the Blues,” Now that baseball is back again, “Black Ball” will get you excited for another season. The performance is part instrumental, part theatrical, and part musical and celebrates the history and legacy of Black baseball through songs, video, and clown theater. “Black Ball” honors baseball legends such as Satchel Paige, Josh Gipson, Jackie Robinson, Toni Stone, team owner Effa Manly, Orlando Cepeda, Willie Mays, and more. The music captures the sound of the game using blues, ballads, and swing to bring to life strike outs, arguments with umps, and home runs.

The Electric Squeezebox Orchestra is the Bay Area’s own 17-piece big band, led by trumpeter Erik Jekabson, playing music composed and arranged by its members. The composers and arrangers, some of the very best in the Bay, draw from a wide variety of influences but always come up with powerful music with groove, beauty and subtlety. The band, which started a steady Sunday residency at the Jazzschool, has collaborated with a number of special guest artists, including John Santos, Kenny Washington, Alan Ferber, Dayna Stephens, Mads Tolling, Sandy Cressman, Kellye Gray, Avotcja, Spok and Ben Goldberg.

Oakland musicians Nathan Clevenger (keyboards/percussion), Jordan Glenn (drums/percusssion), and Cory Wright (clarinets/tenor sax) share a long and entwined history of collaboration across various projects, including Wiener Kids, the Nathan Clevenger Group, and Fellow Hominids. Formed in 2021, the trio has released 3 albums and initiated a series of collaborations with guest artists, including Kasey Knudsen, Crystal Pascucci, Phillip Greenlief, Danishta Rivero, and Marié Abe. Working from (and against) Clevenger’s enigmatic compositions and utilizing the multi-instrumental flexibility of each player, the trio (and guests) perform long-form pieces filled with modular elements, extreme dynamic contrast, and textural detail. For tonight’s performance, the trio is joined by longtime collaborators Danishta Rivero (voice/electronics) and Kasey Knudsen (alto sax).

The Scott Amendola, Kasey Knudsen, Mat Muntz Trio brings three adventurous musicians together for music that grooves, stretches, and stays deeply connected.