Rare it is that a musician draws critical praise so consistently to become a consensus generational talent. But after emerging as a pioneer on Chicago’s vigorous jazz scene, Makaya McCraven is being heralded far and wide as something of a genius.
The phenomenal and alluring drummer has leveraged his remarkable skill and limitless vision to shatter the very notion of a genre and instead has advanced an ever-morphing approach to recording and performing music. His way is rooted in his family’s expansive musical heritage and an upbringing that exposed him to a world of influences at an early age.
With his well-informed view that jazz is in fact born out of folk music, McCraven has rapidly grown a following in recent years and on his latest albums, some recorded live in crude fashion, he is joined by fellow stars or those on the rise.
McCraven brought a crew of his respected peers to North Bethesda this past weekend for what turned out to be an otherworldly and astonishing performance at the Music Center at Strathmore the night of Feb. 23.
Performing boundless compositions pulled mostly from his latest offering, In These Times, Makaya led an unforgettable set that provided an intoxicating dose of not only his own abilities, but those of the select players around him, all of whom appeared on the 2022 International Anthem release.
Listen to Makaya McCraven’s 2022 critically acclaimed album, In These Times, via Spotify:
McCraven was at his kit far stage left, one end of a half-circle arrangement of world-class, esteemed musicians. He was joined by harpist Brandee Younger, bassist Junius Paul, Marquis Hill on trumpet and flugelhorn, Greg Ward on alto saxophone, De’Sean Jones on flute and soprano sax, celloist Lia Kohl, violist Marta Sofia Honer, and Macie Stewart and Zara Zaharieva on violin.
Mirroring the potency and magnetism of the recorded version of these pieces, McCraven led the group through most of the 11 songs on the record. Regarded as a master of improvisation and a gifted composer, McCraven used time, space, and tempo change to let each of his colleagues shine across these tracks, and dazzle they did.
From the album’s title piece — featuring vintage social commentary in the form of audio excerpts from the Studs Terkel Radio Archive — to the travel-inspired “This Place That Place,” those on hand at the Strathmore heard ripe, one-off takes that have separated McCraven from the pack as a creator and performer.
Watch Makaya McCraven perform “This Place That Place” live on YouTube:
McCraven’s songs abandon traditional structure, and much like the work of his greatest influences, the layers he gathers evoke a spiritual, intellectual, and even a physical reaction in the listener.
The result of these thoughtful and highly skilled players and their appreciation for one another’s styles and tendencies, every song at the Strathmore became its own cinematic journey, with each player revealing their character through instrumental wizardry.
“Give it up for this wonderful band,” Makaya told the room, which is a bit larger than some of the other venues he’s visited on the current tour. “I’m so honored to share the stage with each and every one of these musicians.”
He and his team treated the audience to what he said was “something different,” encoring with his cover of “I’m New Here” from his 2020 Gil Scott-Heron tribute project, “We’re New Again – A Reimagining by Makaya McCraven.” To close out the performance, Paul used his miles-deep intonation in providing the only vocals of the night.
Upon bidding farewell and taking a bow with his friends, McCraven made his way to an upper level of the Music Center, where a long line of ticket holders had formed, and adoring fans were waiting anxiously for the rare chance to greet him and to have him autograph a fresh copy of In These Times.
Below are digital images of Makaya McCraven and his fellow musicians performing at the Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, Md., the evening of Feb. 23, 2024. All photos copyright and courtesy of Casey Ryan Vock.
