Ugochi & African Soul Ensemble

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courtesy Ugochi

Ugochi and African Soul Ensemble.

Ugochi and African Soul Ensemble

Cafe Coda is a critical spoke in the wheel of the Madison Jazz Festival; three Coda concerts on June 7 marking the 60th anniversary of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians are a special highlight of the 2025 fest. Singer-songwriter Ugochi Nwaogwugwu & African Soul Ensemble, named Best African Entertainer by the Chicago Music Awards, kicks things off, followed by saxophone explorer Edwin Daugherty and Fivetet, and contemporary reed man Dushun Mosley's Interdimensional Sound Ensemble. And that’s just one day of the fest, which includes the traditional two-night stand at the UW Memorial Union Terrace (June 14-15, with headliners Isaiah Collier & the Chosen Few and Arturo O'Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble), an album release party for Emma Dayhuff (June 6, High Noon Saloon), and much more. It all kicks off June 5-8 with the Madison Jazz Society's iGnitE jAzz! summer camp for musicians and listeners of all ages. With shows all over town June 5-15 presented by Arts + Literature Laboratory, Wisconsin Union Theater, and partners, think of it as the Wisconsin Film Festival only with music and fewer rush lines. Find the full schedule below and updates at madisonjazzfestivalwi.org.

media release: The Madison Jazz Festival 2025 takes place from Thursday, June 5, through Sunday, June 15, 2025. The Festival is presented by  Arts + Literature Laboratory and Wisconsin Union Theater, collaborating with Madison Music Collective, Madison Jazz Society, and venues UW-Madison Memorial Union Terrace, Cafe CODA, North Street Cabaret, High Noon Saloon, MYArts, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, Allen Centennial Garden, Olin Park, and Warner Park.

Highlights include a special series on June 7 honoring the 60th Anniversary of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), a performance by the trailblazing Original Pinettes Brass Band from New Orleans, and weekend Union Terrace headlining sets by saxophonist Isaiah Collier & The Chosen Few and pianist Arturo O'Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble.

The AACM 60th Anniversary Series celebrates six decades of being at the forefront of redefining the landscape of music. The AACM is dedicated to creating opportunities for groundbreaking artists, amplifying voices that need to be heard, and nurturing, producing, and elevating original music that challenges the status quo. On Saturday, June 7, 2025, at Cafe CODA the series will present three distinct concerts: Ugochi and African Soul Ensemble at 5:00pm, Edwin Daugherty Fivetet at 7:00pm, and Dushun Mosley's Interdimensional Sound Ensemble at 9:00pm. Advance tickets, starting at $25.00, can be purchased at the Cafe CODA website.

Ugochi Nwaogwugwu is an internationally renowned poet, singer, writer, and founder of Spirit Speaks, Inc., whose band African Soul Ensemble has been named "Best African Entertainer" by the Chicago Music Awards multiple times. Edwin Daugherty is a Chicago saxophonist and a long-time member of the AACM, who has performed globally and recorded with artists like Quincy Jones and BB King. Dushun Mosley is a drummer known for his dynamic career and performances rooted in traditional jazz, blues, and funk, while also pushing boundaries. 

The Friday, June 6 headliner will be bassist Emma Dayhuff, who will celebrate the release of her new album, Inventions through Lineage, at the High Noon Saloon at 8:00pm. Featured musicians joining Emma will include Isaiah Collier (tenor saxophone), Dee Alexander (vocals), and JoVia Armstrong (percussion). Advance general admission tickets are $25.00, available online at Ticketmaster.

The Festival also welcomes The Original Pinettes Brass Band, described as the "ONLY female Brass Band in the Universe." Formed in 1991 in New Orleans, Louisiana, the band members are all female musicians, many of whom attended St. Mary's Academy High School. They have performed at major venues and festivals, including Preservation Hall and the Essence Music Festival.

The Pinettes will perform at Olin Park on Sunday, June 8, 2025, at 7:00pm. Prior to their concert, they will participate in a conversation and Q&A session at 5:00pm as part of the Madison Jazz Society's iGnitE jAzz! camp, from June 5-8. This concert at Olin Park is a free admission event. The Original Pinettes Brass Band performance is a collaboration between Arts + Literature Laboratory, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and Iowa Arts Festival, supported by the Chamber Music America Jazz Presenter Consortium program.

Weekday events include the NewBridge Summer Concerts Kickoff at Warner Park (June 9); a tribute to Mary Lou Williams by Poet Fabu Phillis Carter, pianist Chris Rottmayer and bassist Laurie Lang (June 10); Oscar-nominated documentary Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat (June 11); Sweet Tooth Jazz Band at North Street Cabaret (June 11); and DC & The Love with guest Mar Vilaseca at Cafe CODA (June 12)

The weeklong festival culminates with two full days of jazz on the UW-Madison Memorial Union Terrace featuring free concerts throughout the day on Saturday, June 14 from 1:00pm to 10:30pm and Sunday, June 15 from 1:00pm to 8:30pm. 

Headlining Saturday, June 14 will be saxophone virtuoso Isaiah Collier & The Chosen Few. Hailed by the New York Times as "an heir apparent to both the Chicago lineage and the post-Coltrane sax tradition," Collier fuses spiritual jazz, cosmic improvisation, and social commentary. His critically acclaimed albums include Cosmic Transitions (2021) and The World Is On Fire (2024). 

Concluding the free Sunday, June 15 events on the Terrace is six-time GRAMMY-winner Arturo O'Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble. Arturo O'Farrill is a pianist, composer, and educator known for fusing the rich traditions of Afro Cuban jazz with a bold, contemporary vision. O'Farrill has won multiple GRAMMY awards, including for "Afro-Latin Jazz Suite" (2016), "Three Revolutions" (2018), and the album Four Questions (2021). He was awarded his eighth Grammy in February 2023 for the album Fandango at the Wall in New York. 

Ticketed events marked with ($). All other events free admission or suggested donation.

Schedule of Events

Thursday, June 5-Sunday, June 8, 2025: Madison Jazz Society presents iGnitE jAzz! An All Ages, All Levels Jazz Camp at MYArts on Thursday 5:00-8:30pm; Friday 5:00-9:00pm, Saturday 9:00am-6:00pm, and Sunday at Olin Park with The Original Pinettes (info below). Find the schedule at https://www.madisonjazz.com/ignite-jazz-camp/

Friday, June 6, 2025: Emma Dayhuff's "Inventions through Lineage" album release at the High Noon Saloon. 8:00pm ($25 adv.; tickets at https://www.ticketmaster.com/emma-dayhuff-quartet-live-album-release-madison-wisconsin-06-06-2025/event/0700629991901A5C)

Saturday, June 7, 2025: AACM 60th Anniversary Series featuring three concerts at Cafe Coda ($25 adv. each): Ugochi and African Soul Ensemble at 5:00pm, Edwin Daugherty Fivetet at 7:00pm, and Dushun Mosley's Interdimensional Sound Ensemble at 9:00pm ($)

Sunday, June 8, 2025: Charlie Sepúlveda and The Turnaround, Cafe Coda, 2 pm. $30.  https://sepulveda.bpt.me/ 

Sunday, June 8, 2025: The Original Pinettes Brass Band from New Orleans at Olin Park. Conversation/Q&A at 5:00pm / Concert at 7:00pm

Sunday, June 8, 2025: Summer Sundays Jazz in the Garden Kick Off: Yorvanis Duran Quartet at Allen Centennial Garden. 5:00-6:15pm (lineup change)

Monday, June 9, 2025: NewBridge Summer Concerts Kick Off: Nu Jazz Journey with Kase, feat. Rob Dz at Warner Park. 6:00-7:30pm

Tuesday, June 10, 2025: Remember Me: Celebrating Mary Lou Williams in Poetry and Music at Arts + Literature Laboratory. 7:00pm

Wednesday, June 11, 2025: Documentary Screening of Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat at Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. 7:00pm

Wednesday, June 11, 2025: Sweet Tooth Jazz Band at North Street Cabaret. 7:00pm ($20 tickets:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sweet-tooth-jazz-band-tickets-1342766443579)

Thursday, June 12, 2025: DC & The Love with guest Mar Vilaseca at Cafe CODA. 7:00pm ($10 suggested donation)

Friday, June 13, 2025: DIG JAZZ presents Exclusively for Our Friends: An Oscar Peterson Centennial Concert at Arts + Literature Laboratory. 7:30pm

Saturday, June 14, 2025: Jazz on the UW-Madison Memorial Union Terrace: 1:00 pm | High School Jazz All-Stars, 
3:00 pm | Mr. Chair feat. Jon Irabagon, 
5:00 pm | Camille Thurman and Darrell Green Quartet
, 7:00 pm | Isaiah Collier & The Chosen Few
, 9:00 pm | La Combi

Sunday, June 15, 2025: Jazz on the UW-Madison Memorial Union Terrace: 1:00 pm | Devin Drobka Bell Dance Songs
, 3:00 pm |  Kal Bergendahl Project, 
5:00 pm | Melanie Charles, 
7:00 pm | Arturo O'Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble

*Please note the Terrace schedule is subject to change.

Major partners providing support for the 2025 Madison Jazz Festival include Arts + Literature Laboratory, Wisconsin Union Theater, The Capital Times, Evjue Foundation, Chamber Music America, and the John and Carolyn Peterson Charitable Foundation, Inc. Support is also provided by Madison Arts Commission, Dane Arts, Madison Music Collective, Madison Jazz Society, Ruth Foundation for the Arts, The Madison Concourse Hotel, Gunderson Funeral and Cremation Care, Hotel Indigo, and Audio for the Arts, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, NewBridge Madison, Madison Gas and Electric, High Noon Saloon and Cafe CODA. Additional funding for the festival events is provided by the Endres Manufacturing Company Foundation, the W. Jerome Frautschi Foundation, and the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation.