Black Artists Group

Black Artists Group
Also known as BAG
Origin St. Louis, Missouri, United States
Genres Jazz
Years active 1968 (1968)–1972 (1972)
Past members

Julius Hemphill

The Black Artists Group (BAG) was a multidisciplinary arts collective that existed in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1968 to 1972. BAG is known for the convergence of free jazz and experimental theater.[1][2]


Members included saxophonists Julius Hemphill, Oliver Lake, J. D. Parran, Hamiet Bluiett, and Luther Thomas; trumpeters Baikida Carroll and Floyd LeFlore; trombonist Joseph Bowie; drummers Bensid Thigpen and Charles "Bobo" Shaw; bassist Bobby Reed, ArziniaRichardson; stage directors Malinke Robert Elliott, Vincent Terrell, and Muthal Naidoo; actors LeRoi S. Shelton; poets Ajule (Bruce) Rutlin and Shirley LeFlore; dancers Georgia Collins and Luisah Teish; and painters Emilio Cruz and Oliver L. Jackson. While Jackson was not officially a member, he was deeply involved with BAG and is usually listed as a member. In addition, Ronnie Burrage was considered one of the youngest members (11 and 12 years old) of BAG as he began to perform with various members in 1971 and '72.[3]

BAG received major grant funding from the Danforth Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation. In July 1969, the group paid $1 annual rent for a building at 2665 Washington Blvd.[1]

Many of the BAG members relocated to Paris and then New York in the 1970s.[1]

Legacy

BAG inspired other groups and artistic colletives to form around the United States including Chicago's Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM).[4]

Oliver Lake, Julius Hemphill and Hamiet Bluiett formed the World Saxophone Quartet and were notable in the "loft-jazz" scene of New York's underground in the 1980s.[1]


See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Otten, Liam (2 February 2006). "Rediscovering the Black Artists' Group". The Source. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
  2. ↑ Looker, Benjamin (29 November 2004). BAG: Point from which creation begins: the Black Artists' Group of St. Louis. Missouri: Missouri Historical Society Press. p. 344. ISBN 1-883982-51-0.
  3. ↑ "Black Artists' Group (BAG) 1968-1972". St. Louis Public Radio. 16 February 2006. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
  4. ↑ LOOKER, BENJAMIN (19 December 2004). "Poets Of Action: The Saint Louis Black Artists' Group, 1968-1972 (Part 1-4)". All About Jazz. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.