Shawn Maxwell Band

BlueStem Jazz.

media release:

“This is bold music. Maxwell isn’t afraid to try out new ideas and take chances...” – Frank Alkyer, Downbeat Magazine

“A spirited free-thinker and committed non-conformist” – Bill Milkowski 

“Nobody writes like this.” – Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune  

From his youth in the school music programs of Joliet, IL, through the Music B.A. programat Millikin University, to 25 years of performing on the Chicago music scene and touring the United States, Shawn Maxwell has developed a unique voice on the saxophone. From his first album of original compositions in 2005, to the 2023 release of his twelfth album J Town Suite, he has forged a distinctive style of writing and arrangement. The traditions of jazz form the foundation for Shawn’s music though his compositions have been compared to Frank Zappa, Philip Glass, the Canterbury Sound, and Bach...

Mark Nelson is a Chicago-based pianist and keyboardist, synth programmer and audio engineer. His work with Johnny Blas, Joshua Jern, and others can be heard on the radio.  He is drawn to exploring a wide variety of music; he plays jazz, musicals, Afro-Cuban styles, original rock projects, classical, and gospel music. He regularly performs or has recorded with his jazz trio, the Latin jazz- fusion ensemble: Contrabanda, the No Reservations Orchestra, Johnny Blas’s Afro Libre...

Michael Barton is a musician and visual artist working around the Chicago area. While earning a bachelor and master of music degree from the University of North Texas Barton was the recipient of four Downbeat awards with the UNT Jazz singers, the Two O'clock Lab Band and the NJPT Quintet. After graduating, Barton worked in Dallas steadily as a studio musician and performer in some of Texas' top venues and recorded for Radio Disney, ESPN, EDS, Genevox and Lifeway Music. Since returning to Chicago, Barton has performed at the Jazz Showcase, House of Blues and many other top venues in the city.

Nils Higdon is one of Chicago’s most prominent young percussionists, having performed at the United Center, Orchestra Hall, The Green Mill, The Logan Center for the Arts, The Chicago Cultural Center, The Jazz Showcase, Pritzker Pavillion at Millenium Park, and six appearances at the Chicago Jazz Festival. While specializing in drum set and improvised music, Nils routinely performs in a wide variety of musical styles and various percussion instruments ranging from vibraphone to latin percussion to timpani. NilsHigdon.com.