Sun Ra Arkestra in Chicago

Sun Ra Arkestra is an American experimental jazz ensemble formed by pianist and composer Sun Ra in Chicago during the 1950s. Its music ranges across swing, free jazz, electronic sound and collective improvisation, while albums such as Jazz in Silhouette, The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra and Space Is the Place established its cosmic mythology and theatrical identity. In 1970, the ensemble made its first European tour and performed a series of concerts at Fondation Maeght in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, documented on Nuits de la Fondation Maeght. Sun Ra took the group to Egypt the following year, and its 1976 appearance at Montreux Jazz Festival was released as Live at Montreux. A Sun Ra Arkestra concert centers on a large ensemble of brass, reeds, percussion and electronic keyboards, incorporating improvised solos, chants, processions, robes and headdresses. Saxophonist Marshall Allen took over the ensemble after Sun Ra’s death in 1993 and carried that stage tradition into later tours.