[Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra, Fate in a Pleasant Mood, Saturn SR9956-2-B, 33 1/3 rpm, 1965]
The Chicago Jazz Archive at the University of Chicago Library’s Special Collection Research Center invites all community members to explore the history of Chicago jazz online and in person this September:
1. View and hear our new Web exhibit, Sounds from Tomorrow’s World: Sun Ra and the Chicago Years, 1946-1961. While living in Chicago, Herman Poole “Sonny” Blount became Sun Ra—the leader of the Arkestra and a composer and arranger of some of the most avant-garde jazz of the time. He was also the architect of a philosophy that informed his music, his life, and the lives of those around him: a synthesis of Black Nationalism, Egyptology, futurism, occultism and Southern Baptist preaching. This Web exhibit explores Sun Ra’s Chicago years through images and sound recordings of his poetry and music, vinyl records and album artwork, promotional materials and early controversial broadsheets.
2. Visit the Special Collections Research Center to consult the original materials shown in the Sun Ra Web exhibit and thousands of other publications, photographs, articles, posters, programs, ticket stubs, and other ephemera of musicians, clubs, record companies, and jazz organizations found in the Chicago Jazz Archive.
3. Visit our updated Chicago Jazz Library Guide for information on researching the history of Chicago jazz at libraries across the city.
4. Stop by the Chicago Jazz Archive table at the Hyde Park Jazz Festival on September 25. The Special Collections Research Center is a member of the Hyde Park Alliance for Arts and Culture (HyPa), which co-produces the festival.
Please feel free to contact the Special Collections Research Center with any questions!
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