Quentin Coaxum - trumpet

Hunter Diamond - tenor saxophone

Dan Thatcher - bass

Lucas Gillan - drums

About the Band

 Commissioned by Experimental Sound Studio for the annual Sonic Pavilion program. 

Conceived and composed by Chicago saxophonists Hunter Diamond & Artie Black, this project will premier on the 24-channel speaker system in Millenium Park September 12-14, 2026.

The Wind Map was created by superimposing the Millenium Park 24-channel speaker map over a neighborhood map of Chicago and finding woodwind and brass players from each speaker/neighborhood intersection point. All artists recorded their part of the composition from home, which were then assembled and arranged by Diamond and Black.

Performances are free and open to the public.

More Information

 Commissioned by Experimental Sound Studio for the annual Sonic Pavilion program. 

Conceived and composed by Chicago saxophonists Hunter Diamond & Artie Black, this project will premier on the 24-channel speaker system in Millenium Park September 12-14, 2026.

The Wind Map was created by superimposing the Millenium Park 24-channel speaker map over a neighborhood map of Chicago and finding woodwind and brass players from each speaker/neighborhood intersection point. All artists recorded their part of the composition from home, which were then assembled and arranged by Diamond and Black.

Performances are free and open to the public.

More Information

 Commissioned by Experimental Sound Studio for the annual Sonic Pavilion program. 

Conceived and composed by Chicago saxophonists Hunter Diamond & Artie Black, this project will premier on the 24-channel speaker system in Millenium Park September 12-14, 2026.

The Wind Map was created by superimposing the Millenium Park 24-channel speaker map over a neighborhood map of Chicago and finding woodwind and brass players from each speaker/neighborhood intersection point. All artists recorded their part of the composition from home, which were then assembled and arranged by Diamond and Black.

Performances are free and open to the public.

More Information

Presented by Back to School Bazaar:

“Praiseworthy: An Intelligent and Prompt Negro - A Railroad Disaster Averted." A story from artist Samuel Lewis II about his great-great grandfather, Phil McBride.

Told using a crankie-style illustration scroll, with sound design and musical accompaniment by multi-instrumentalist Hunter Diamond, this piece has been performed in Chicago at the Smart Museum, for the Nasty Brutish and Short series, the 2024 National Puppet Slam in Atlanta, the 2026 Baltimore Crankie Festival, and the 2026 New Orleans Giant Puppet Festival.

Read about Sam Lewis and his creative work in the Chicago Reader.

Presented as part of The Mill:

“Praiseworthy: An Intelligent and Prompt Negro - A Railroad Disaster Averted." A story from artist Samuel Lewis II about his great-great grandfather, Phil McBride.

Told using a crankie-style illustration scroll, with sound design and musical accompaniment by multi-instrumentalist Hunter Diamond, this piece has been performed in Chicago at the Smart Museum, for the Nasty Brutish and Short series, the 2024 National Puppet Slam in Atlanta, the 2026 Baltimore Crankie Festival, and the 2026 New Orleans Giant Puppet Festival.

Read about Sam Lewis and his creative work in the Chicago Reader.

A free soul-jazz party featuring Mike Reed's Common Good Dance Band with openers Katie Ernst and DJ Joe Bryl.

Chicago has always been a jazz city — from Louis Armstrong to Green Mill to the Jazz Festival — and this summer, WBEZ is celebrating that legacy with a free outdoor concert at Navy Pier.

On August 14th, Mike Reed's Common Good Dance Band takes the Lake Stage for an evening of soul-jazz drawn from the global canon: Expect deep cuts by Sun Ra, Duke Ellington and South African legends Dudu Pukwana, Johnny Dyani and Mongezi Feza. It's a set that honors jazz's past while bringing it to life for a new audience.

Local musician Katie Ernst (Iron & Wine) opens with a solo performance, plus DJ Joe Bryl spins a special set.

A limited number of event posters designed by Chicago-based illustrator Ryan Duggan will be available at the event.

Arrive early — entry is first-come, first-served. RSVPs do not guarantee entry and are subject to capacity.

A Journey Through Folk Heritage and Improvised Soundscapes

Vocalist and storyteller Ana Everling crafts a sonic bridge between ancestral tradition and avant-garde expression, centering her work on the reclamation of a Romanian cultural heritage within the Republic of Moldova once targeted for systemic erasure. Her research restores the voices of composers censored for expressing their Romanian identity too overtly, weaving their lost works into original compositions that pulse with modern improvisation and live vocal looping.

She remains a fierce advocate for the Doina - a freeform, deeply soulful genre at risk of vanishing, treating it not as a museum piece, but as a living vessel for contemporary resilience. Through her work, she transforms the echoes of a suppressed past into an immersive experience that serves as both an act of historical justice for the Republic of Moldova and a bold leap into the future of global music.

Ana Everling - voice, compositions

Kenny Reichert - guitar

Ethan Philion - bass

Hunter Diamond - woodwinds, percussion

Presented as part of the Jazzin’ at the Shedd series:

Herbsaint plays traditional jazz from New Orleans and Chicago.

Hunter Diamond - clarinet, drums, voice

Cole DeGenova - keyboard

Matt Ulery - sousaphone

Tickets and information

Explore seasons, elements, colors, and constellations through storytelling, music, and dance in this interactive performance by Irene Hsiao in collaboration with dancers Amanda Maraist and Darling Shear, musicians Paige Brown and Hunter Diamond, tai chi master Peter Wong, visual artist Young Kim, and storyteller Penny Li.

Altogether, this multicultural cast is fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese, Spanish, French, English, Japanese, Korean, and Swahili – and the performance is created in collaboration with participants of all ages, who will be invited to speak, sing, dance, and create artwork with us.

Performances are free, and art supplies will be provided to create headpieces to wear in this all-ages event. Dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes for walking approximately one mile.

More information

“Praiseworthy: An Intelligent and Prompt Negro - A Railroad Disaster Averted." A story from artist Samuel Lewis II about his great-great grandfather, Phil McBride.

Told using a crankie-style illustration scroll, with sound design and musical accompaniment by multi-instrumentalist Hunter Diamond, this piece has been performed in Chicago at the Smart Museum, for the Nasty Brutish and Short series, the 2024 National Puppet Slam in Atlanta, the 2026 Baltimore Crankie Festival, and the 2026 New Orleans Giant Puppet Festival.

Read about Sam Lewis and his creative work in the Chicago Reader.

Tickets and Information

Presenting a solo set of woodwinds and electronics.

Tickets and Information

Presented by the Kilbourn Park Advisory Council:

Radio Outernational is a collaborative vehicle for new Chicago groove music. Founded by the Eternals rhythm section (Wayne Montana, Areif Sless-Kitain, and Aaron Shapiro), and rounded out by the flute/saxophone frontline of Hunter Diamond and Kenthaney Redmond.

Hear the single from our forthcoming album

Explore seasons, elements, colors, and constellations through storytelling, music, and dance in this interactive performance by Irene Hsiao in collaboration with dancers Amanda Maraist and Darling Shear, musicians Paige Brown and Hunter Diamond, tai chi master Peter Wong, visual artist Young Kim, and storyteller Penny Li.

Altogether, this multicultural cast is fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese, Spanish, French, English, Japanese, Korean, and Swahili – and the performance is created in collaboration with participants of all ages, who will be invited to speak, sing, dance, and create artwork with us.

Performances are free, and art supplies will be provided to create headpieces to wear in this all-ages event. Dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes for walking approximately one mile.

More information

Explore seasons, elements, colors, and constellations through storytelling, music, and dance in this interactive performance by Irene Hsiao in collaboration with dancers Amanda Maraist and Darling Shear, musicians Paige Brown and Hunter Diamond, tai chi master Peter Wong, visual artist Young Kim, and storyteller Penny Li.

Altogether, this multicultural cast is fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese, Spanish, French, English, Japanese, Korean, and Swahili – and the performance is created in collaboration with participants of all ages, who will be invited to speak, sing, dance, and create artwork with us.

Performances are free, and art supplies will be provided to create headpieces to wear in this all-ages event. Dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes for walking approximately one mile.

More information

Presented as part of the Comfort Music interdisciplinary series, curated by Scott Rubin.

“Praiseworthy: An Intelligent and Prompt Negro - A Railroad Disaster Averted." A story from artist Samuel Lewis II about his great-great grandfather, Phil McBride.

Told using a crankie-style illustration scroll, with sound design and musical accompaniment by multi-instrumentalist Hunter Diamond, this piece has been performed in Chicago at the Smart Museum, for the Nasty Brutish and Short series, the 2024 National Puppet Slam in Atlanta, the 2026 Baltimore Crankie Festival, and the 2026 New Orleans Giant Puppet Festival.

Read about Sam Lewis and his creative work in the Chicago Reader.

Presented in support of Elastic’s annual fundraiser gala, alongside performances from the AACM Percussion Ensemble and Infrathin (Whitney Johnson & Lula Asplund).

The 2026 Elastic Achievement Award will be presented to the legendary Chicago artist Renee C. Baker who is a conceptualist and recontextualist working across sound art, visual art, film, and duration. 

Tickets and More Information

“Praiseworthy: An Intelligent and Prompt Negro - A Railroad Disaster Averted." A story from artist Samuel Lewis II about his great-great grandfather, Phil McBride.

Told using a crankie-style illustration scroll, with sound design and musical accompaniment by multi-instrumentalist Hunter Diamond, this piece has been performed in Chicago at the Smart Museum, for the Nasty Brutish and Short series, the 2024 National Puppet Slam in Atlanta, the 2026 Baltimore Crankie Festival, and the 2026 New Orleans Giant Puppet Festival.

Read about Sam Lewis and his creative work in the Chicago Reader.

Gather in community to celebrate spring with music, dance, and native prairie planting in this free, all-ages performance and stewardship event by Irene Hsiao and collaborators in partnership with Chinese American Museum of Chicago, Chinese Fine Arts Society, the Field Museum, and Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks.

Dress comfortably for the outdoors. Gloves, native prairie plants, and planting tools will be provided.

Shared Earth Flowing Water: Seed
May 16, 2026
2:00-2:45PM Performance
3:00-4:00PM Planting
Set in Stone Gathering Space in the Burnham Wildlife Corridor

Free, RSVP here

Dancers: Irene Hsiao, Antonius-Tín Bui, Amanda Maraist, Darling Squire

Musicians : Hunter Diamond, Kedrick Pullums Jr.

The quartet rides again

Artie Black - tenor, bass clarinet

Hunter Diamond - tenor, flute

Matt Ulery - bass

Neil Hemphill - drums

Fonema Consort commissions, performs, and records new and experimental music that explores the limits of the human voice in a radical chamber setting. Known for their "enthusiastic embrace of daring new music" (Chicago Reader), Fonema is driven by a fascination with pieces that foster rich interplay of voices and instruments characterized by a vibrant viscerality. The ensemble is highly committed to presenting works by Latin American composers to US audiences and encouraging musical and cultural exchange between these regions. Fonema Consort was founded in 2011 by singer Nina Dante and composers Pablo Santiago Chin and Edward Hamel.

This concert will feature works by Gabriel Bolanos Chamorro, Genie Alvarado, Alberto Carretero, Michele Abondano, Jianing Yang, and Rebecca Saunders.

“Praiseworthy: An Intelligent and Prompt Negro - A Railroad Disaster Averted." A story from artist Samuel Lewis II about his great-great grandfather, Phil McBride.

Told using a crankie-style illustration scroll, with sound design and musical accompaniment by multi-instrumentalist Hunter Diamond, this piece has been performed in Chicago at the Smart Museum, for the Nasty Brutish and Short series, the 2024 National Puppet Slam in Atlanta, the 2026 Baltimore Crankie Festival, and the 2026 New Orleans Giant Puppet Festival.

Read about Sam Lewis and his creative work in the Chicago Reader.

Presented as part of Constellation’s 2x4 series, curated by Julian Kirshner.

PUBLIC SENTIMENT is the the duo of Sarah Clausen and Hunter Diamond. Both are well-established artists creating and collaborating across the many branches of the Chicago creative music community. Their language encompasses woodwinds, percussion, field recordings, and sample-laden electro-acoustic improvisations.

This duo will release it’s debut recording on Monastral records this fall.

Other duos appearing this night:

Robbie Lynn Hunsinger / Tatsu Aoki

Mabel Kwan / Ayako Kato

Jason Stein / Julian Kirshner

Jay Taylor leads a sound bath meditation experience accompanied by drone-based live sound.

Tickets and Information

Presented by the Johnstone Fund for New Music.

“Unsettling” is a new work for saxophone, clarinet, violin, cello, and electronics, that offers sound and comment on Israel from the perspective of an American Jew. Taking inspiration from contemporary Israeli writers who seek to hold Israel to account for its immense transgressions without devaluing its enormous accomplishments, this piece publicizes my current relationship to the state of Israel, to the American Jews and non-Jews of my community, and to the Jewish members of my family. My primary approach, which has continuously proved most helpful in maintaining a sustainable position, is holding contradiction. 

Hunter Diamond - saxophone, clarinet, sampler

Dan Galat - violin

Kelly Quesada - cello

Commissioned by Chicago chamber string duo The Missing Piece.

Commissioned by Chicago chamber string duo The Missing Piece.

“Unsettling” is a new work for saxophone, clarinet, violin, cello, and electronics, that offers sound and comment on Israel from the perspective of an American Jew. Taking inspiration from contemporary Israeli writers who seek to hold Israel to account for its immense transgressions without devaluing its enormous accomplishments, this piece publicizes my current relationship to the state of Israel, to the American Jews and non-Jews of my community, and to the Jewish members of my family. My primary approach, which has continuously proved most helpful in maintaining a sustainable position, is holding contradiction. 

Hunter Diamond - saxophone, clarinet, sampler

Dan Galat - violin

Kelly Quesada - cello

Commissioned by Chicago chamber string duo The Missing Piece.

“Unsettling” is a new work for saxophone, clarinet, violin, cello, and electronics, that offers sound and comment on Israel from the perspective of an American Jew. Taking inspiration from contemporary Israeli writers who seek to hold Israel to account for its immense transgressions without devaluing its enormous accomplishments, this piece publicizes my current relationship to the state of Israel, to the American Jews and non-Jews of my community, and to the Jewish members of my family. My primary approach, which has continuously proved most helpful in maintaining a sustainable position, is holding contradiction. 

Hunter Diamond - saxophone, clarinet, sampler

Dan Galat - violin

Kelly Quesada - cello

The latest from the compositional world of Matt Ulery

Hunter Diamond - flute, saxophone

Artie Black - clarinet, saxophone, bass clarinet

Dustin Laurenzi - saxophone

James Davis - trumpet

Russ Johnson - trumpet

Steve Duncan - trombone

Julius Tucker - piano

Matt Ulery - bass

Jon Deitemeyer - drums

Hunter Diamond - reeds

Mike Reed - drums

Hear our 2021 album Nilia

Tickets and information

Presented by the Green Mill’s Chicago Jazz Composers series:

Freedom and order. Lyricism and abstraction. Sensitivity and raucousness. Lucas Gillan’s Many Blessings, a Chicago-based jazz quartet, finds comfort in the space between these opposites. Gillan, the drummer and bandleader, composes music that hooks listeners with insistent grooves and memorable melodies even while subverting expectations with outré harmonies and freewheeling improvisations.

Quentin Coaxum - trumpet

Hunter Diamond - saxophone

Dan Thatcher - bass

Lucas Gillan - drums

Radio Outernational is a collaborative vehicle for new Chicago groove music. Founded by the Eternals rhythm section (Wayne Montana, Areif Sless-Kitain, and Aaron Shapiro), and rounded out by the flute/saxophone frontline of Hunter Diamond and Kenthaney Redmond.

Opening set from KVL

Hear the single from our forthcoming album