Walter Kemp 3 teams with AKG for 2026 season of Art of Jazz Series
Kemp's curation affirms the present tense of jazz, while looking toward the form’s future, and offering a nod to its past.
Continuing a long history of forward-looking producers, the AKG Art Museum announced this week that renowned Buffalo-based jazz musician, composer and bandleader Walter Kemp 3 will be the curator of the 2026 Art of Jazz Series.
A musician with a deep feeling for multiple strains of jazz and improvisation-based music, Kemp is perfectly suited to curate a series that affirms the present tense of jazz, while looking toward the form’s future, and offering a nod to its past.
I caught up with Walter earlier this week to discuss the new partnership with the AKG Art Museum, his thoughts on the state of the art form, his respect for previous Art of Jazz curators, and his own musical plans for the coming months. (The full roster for the 2026 Art if Jazz Series, as well as ticketing information, follows.)
Brandon Woody’s UPENDO
February 1, 2026
Brandon Woody is a Baltimore-born, Bach-endorsed trumpeter, composer, and bandleader whose music flows from the rich lineage of Black music, including jazz, gospel, improvisation, and beyond, to explore themes of love, resilience, and community. Hailed by The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times as a rising force in contemporary jazz, Woody signed with the legendary Blue Note Records in November 2024, and released his debut album, For The Love Of It All, in May 2025. Featuring his longtime band Upendo—Troy Long (keys), Quincy Phillips (drums), and Michael Saunders (bass)—the album showcases Woody’s ability to craft music that is both deeply personal and universally resonant.
Rooted in Baltimore, Woody has built his career from his hometown, drawing on its vibrant creative culture and community spirit. His work has received praise across major publications, with DownBeat highlighting his “rich and expressive” tone and The Financial Times noting the album’s emotional range “from gentle lyricism to swaggering virtuosity.” The Washington Post described Woody’s music as “staggeringly self-assured” and “radiating warmth, purpose, and a sense of place,” reflecting both the clarity of his artistic vision and his deep connection to his community.
As a performer, Woody has played venues and festivals including ATL Jazz Fest, The Shed, the August Wilson Center, the University of Maryland, Michigan State University, the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Reginald F. Lewis Museum, Roots Picnic, and the Walters Art Museum, among others. He has collaborated with artists such as Terri Lyne Carrington, BADBADNOTGOOD, Danilo Pérez, Casey Benjamin, Marcus Gilmore, the Robert Glasper Black Radio Orchestra, Paul Russell, Derrick Hodge, Marc Cary, and Solange Knowles. Woody has also worked with international brands including Calvin Klein, Saucony, Reebok, Eames, Vogue Italia, Plain Jane, and Highsnobiety. His television appearances include Godfather of Harlem (MGM+), Lady in the Lake (Apple TV+), and The Bride (Warner Bros.).
Dedicated to bridging generations through music, Woody has led masterclasses and workshops at institutions across the country. Through both his performances and community work, he uses music as a tool for healing, connection, and joy.
Chien Chien Lu + Connected
March 22, 2026
“CONNECTED” was formed during the pandemic lockdown. Bassist Richie Goods and vibraphonist Chien Chien Lu had frequent conversations about the Black Lives Matter movement and unwarranted hate crimes against Asians. They decided to undertake a project that would unify people and evoke imagery of love and peace. Not only was the music they produced impressive, but their friendship also deepened as they explored the stereotypical divide that often exists between the African American and Asian communities.
Richie Goods and Chien Chien met in 2019 during a European tour. Shortly after, Richie produced Chien Chien’s debut album, The Path. As their collaboration continued to flourish, a new endeavor emerged: “Connected,” a project that embodied the profound musical connection between them. Chien Chien’s foundation in classical training provided a rich and textured canvas upon which their collaborative work thrived. Her intricate knowledge of classical nuances intertwined seamlessly with Richie Goods’ background rooted in the realms of R&B and funk, creating an enchanting juxtaposition of genres that breathed life into their compositions.
About Chien Chien Lu
Chien Chien Lu is a vibraphonist, contemporary percussionist, and composer whose Taiwanese upbringing, classical music education, and passion for grooves crystallize into a fresh and distinctive approach to contemporary jazz.
In her time as a classical percussionist, Lu has collaborated with composer Ching-Mei Lin and performed her marimba concerto for six-mallet marimba entitled Pulsing Wave, performed a solo percussion concert at Taipei Novel Hall, and in 2014, was named “Emerging Young Artist” for her work with her marimba duo at Taipei University of the Arts.
In 2015, Lu came to the United States to study jazz vibraphone with Philadelphia’s Tony Miceli, and graduated with a Masters of Music in Jazz Studies from University of the Arts in Philadelphia shortly thereafter. In 2017, she attended the prestigious Banff Jazz Residency under the direction of jazz pianist Vijay Iyer, where she first met jazz trumpeter Jeremy Pelt. From there, Lu began to perform regularly in the U.S. and was invited to join the esteemed Jeremey Pelt Quintet.
She recently released her sophomore solo project Built in System, and it has been selected by The Times of London as one of the best jazz and world albums of 2023.
About Richie Goods
Music is the fulfillment of Richie’s destiny— it’s in his DNA. The youngest person ever inducted into the Pittsburgh Jazz Hall of Fame, bassist Richie Goods got an early start playing in church and clubs while still attending Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts High School. After graduating from the prestigious jazz program at Berklee College of Music, Richie moved to New York, where he studied under jazz legends Ron Carter and Ray Brown.
Richie credits jazz luminary Mulgrew Miller for helping him hone his jazz skills early in his career. Richie toured and recorded with Mulgrew for nine years. That opportunity brought Richie to the attention of many in the jazz community and afforded him the opportunity to record and tour with a variety of jazz and popular artists ranging from the Headhunters, Lenny White, Louis Hayes and the Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band, Milt Jackson, Russell Malone, Vincent Herring, the Manhattan Transfer and Walter Beasley to Brian McKnight, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, Whitney Houston, and Christina Aguilera.
Richie’s lengthy discography also includes Grammy Award–winning and platinum albums of Alicia Keys and Common. Richie most recently toured with Grammy Award–winning trumpeter Chris Botti and Sting. When not on tour, he can be found in his Westchester, NY, studio, producing records for his company, RichMan Music, Inc. His first three solo projects with his fusion/funk band, Richie Goods and Nuclear Fusion, Live at the Zinc Bar, Three Rivers, and My Left Hand Man all received critical acclaim.
Cécile McLorin Salvant & Sullivan Fortner
April 19, 2026
Cécile McLorin Salvant is a Grammy Award–winning composer, singer, and visual artist. The late Jessye Norman described Salvant as “a unique voice supported by an intelligence and full-fledged musicality, which light up every note she sings.” Salvant has developed a passion for storytelling and finding the connections between vaudeville, blues, folk traditions from around the world, theater, jazz, and baroque music.
Salvant is an eclectic curator, unearthing rarely recorded, forgotten songs with strong narratives, interesting power dynamics, unexpected twists, and humor. Salvant won the Thelonius Monk competition in 2010. She has received Grammy Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album for three consecutive albums, The Window, Dreams and Daggers, and For One To Love, and was nominated for the award in 2014 for her album WomanChild. In 2020, Salvant received the MacArthur Fellowship and the Doris Duke Artist Award. Ghost Song, Salvant’s debut for Nonesuch Records, was released in March 2022 to critical acclaim, and has gone on to receive two Grammy nominations.
Salvant’s latest work, Ogresse, is a musical fable in the form of a cantata that blends genres (folk, baroque, jazz, country). Salvant wrote the story, lyrics, and music. It is arranged by Darcy James Argue for a thirteen-piece orchestra of multi-instrumentalists. Ogresse, both a biomythography and an homage to the Erzulie (as painted by Gerard Fortune) and Sara Baartman, explores fetishism, hunger, diaspora, cycles of appropriation, lies, othering, and ecology. It is in development to become an animated feature-length film, which Salvant will direct.
About Sullivan Fortner
Grammy Award–winning pianist Sullivan Fortner issued Aria (2015), Moments Preserved (2018) and Solo Game (2024) to critical acclaim, the lattermost receiving 4-star reviews in DownBeat and Telerama Magazine. His 2025 release Southern Nights features Peter Washington and Marcus Gilmore. Winner of the 2024 DownBeat Critics Poll for Rising Star Jazz Group: Sullivan Fortner Trio, the New Orleans native has worked with Wynton Marsalis, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Paul Simon, Diane Reeves, Etienne Charles and John Scofield, Ambrose Akinmusire, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Stefon Harris, Kassa Overall, Tivon Pennicott, Peter Bernstein, Nicholas Payton, Billy Hart, Gary Bartz, Chief Adjuah, and Roy Hargrove.
His works and insights have been featured in culture drivers from The New York Times to The Root. Further accolades include the American Pianists Association’s Cole Porter Fellowship, Leonore Annenberg Arts Fellowship, the Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists, the Shifting Foundation Grant, and the Western Jazz Presenters Grant.
Dave King Trio
May 17, 2026
Dave King is one of the most celebrated drummers in modern jazz. His contributions to the Minneapolis and New York jazz scenes are incalculable, and his imagination and boundless enthusiasm behind (and around) the drum set are singular and stunning. In 2000, King co-founded The Bad Plus in New York City. He also co-founded The Gang Font featuring Greg Norton of punk icons Husker Du and has appeared on more than fifty recordings.
He has performed in seventy-five countries on six continents and has been a member of bands like The Bad Plus, Happy Apple, Halloween Alaska, 12 Rods, Love Cars, The Gang Font, and others. He has also recorded or performed with Bill Frisell, Joshua Redman, Jeff Beck, Tim Berne, Mason Jennings, Mark Morris Dance Company, Haley Bonar, Meat Beat Manifesto, Craig Taborn, Jason Moran, David Torn, Atmosphere, and many others.
Tickets are available here.
I heard Brandon Woody with Upendo for the first time at Monterey Jazz this year. Stumbled into one of the grounds venues and stayed for the whole set. Having been married to the late trumpeter Mike Lawrence, and came of age listening to his buds, Lew Soloff and Randy Brecker, and a big fan of Ambrose, I have a pretty high bar for tone, voice, composition and musicality and IMHO, Brandon has it all and is the one to watch!