THE CENTER FOR “RACE,” CULTURE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE
THE 2024 FACULTY SUMMER RESEARCH GRANT RECIPIENT PUBLIC LECTURE Featuring Abimbola Cole Kai-Lewis, PhD Adjunct Assistant Professor of Music, Hofstra University
Playing Right:
Saxophonist Al Sears’ Years in the Duke Ellington Orchestra Using archival materials from Carnegie Hall’s Rose Archives, and accompanying library research, this lecture examines Al Sears’ time performing with the Duke Ellington Orchestra. He was a celebrated soloist during the group’s Carnegie Hall series between 1944 and 1948. Sears also returned for subsequent shows. The research, which is supported by a grant from Hofstra University’s Center for “Race,” Culture and Social Justice, seeks to expand explorations of Sears’ professional impact and his contributions to musical genres, including jazz. Dr. Abimbola Cole Kai-Lewis is an ethnomusicologist and teaches in the Department of Music at Hofstra University and the Department of Performing and Fine Arts at York College – City University of New York. She also teaches at Berklee College of Music and Temple University. Her research explores African diasporic genres, including dance dramas, hip-hop, and jazz, as well as K-12 arts-based education.
Monday, March 10, 2025
2:40-4:05 p.m. Leo A. Guthart Cultural Center Theater, Axinn Library, South Campus Free and open to the public. For more information, call 516-463-6585 or email raceculturesocialjustice@hofstra.edu.