Makaya McCraven
SFJAZZ Resident Artistic Director Makaya McCraven returns to close out his residency with the final performance of his In These Times ensemble, featuring his core group plus strings. The self-described "beat scientist" has spent his career fusing live jazz improvisation with electronic manipulation and hip-hop influences, creating what he calls "organic beat music" — a gritty, seamless approach that marries acoustic instruments with sampling and looping.
McCraven leads his 11-piece ensemble through music from his recent Off the Record project, four interconnected EPs featuring performances with collaborators like Ben LaMar Gay, Marquis Hill, and Joel Ross. The lineup includes longtime bassist Junius Paul, whose hypnotic ostinatos provide the foundation for McCraven's rhythmic explorations, trumpeter Marquis Hill bringing his Miles-influenced sound, and cornetist Ben LaMar Gay. The ensemble is rounded out by modular synthesist Jeremiah Chiu and a full string section with Lia Kohl on cello, plus violinists Marta Sofia Honer, Macia Stewart, and Zara Zaharieva.
As recent European audiences have discovered, McCraven's performances create an almost danceable energy in concert halls. His drumming ranges from whispered subtleties on the ride cymbal to explosive fills across the kit, while the band builds hypnotic grooves that can stretch pieces well beyond their recorded versions. Hill's trumpet work, often processed through electronic effects, recalls different eras of Miles Davis while maintaining its own voice, and the string arrangements add orchestral depth to the electronic-infused compositions.
The son of free jazz drummer Stephen McCraven, Makaya has carved out his own path in contemporary jazz, earning critical acclaim since his 2015 International Anthem debut In the Moment. His performances are as much about the creative process as the music itself — each show is recorded live and later reworked in his studio, making every concert both a complete experience and raw material for future releases. This final residency performance promises to showcase why Pitchfork calls him "a drummer and composer who has spent his career thus far working by hand and by machine, fusing live-in-the-room jazz improvisation with the electronic manipulations of hip-hop."