Notable Jazz & Contemporary Music Alumni

Graduates of the Chicago College of Performing Arts and the Chicago Musical College include:

• Thurman Barker (drummer) - Drummer with Cecil Taylor and Anthony Braxton
• Stephen Berry (trombonist) - Faculty of CCPA
• Curtis Boyd (drummer) - Drummer with the Billy Taylor Trio and Freddy Cole
• Anthony Braxton (saxophonist) - Composer, saxophonist, clarinetist, flautist, pianist, and philosopher. Braxton has released well over 100 albums since the 1960s
• Oscar Brown Jr. (vocalist) - Singer, songwriter, playwright, poet, civil rights activist, and actor
• Steve Coleman (saxophonist) - Played with Dave Holland, Cassandra Wilson, founder of M-Base
• Rich Corpolongo (saxophonist) - Saxophonist, clarinetist, flautist, composer, author of 4 books on improvisation
• Richard Davis (bassist) - Bassist with Eric Dolphy, Elvin Jones, Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra
• District 97 (band) - Progressive rock band comprised of 5 CCPA alumni: Leslie Hunt, Rob Clearfield, Jim Tashjian, Patrick Mulcahy, and Jonathan Schang
• Hannah Ford (drummer) Award winning drummer and clinician; guest drummer for Prince's New Power Generation
• Larry Gray (bassist) - Known for his compositions and skill on the Double Bass and Cello
• Bunky Green (saxophonist) Alto sax player with Clark Terry and Elvin Jones
• Augie Haas (trumpeter)
• Herbie Hancock (pianist) - Grammy winning, influential jazz pianist and composer
• Eddie Harris (saxophonist) - Best known for playing tenor saxophone and for introducing the electrically amplified saxophone and composing songs such as “Freedom Jazz Dance” and “Listen Here”
• Roger Harris (pianist) - Faculty of CCPA
• Johnny Hartman (vocalist) - Best known for his legendary recording, John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman
• IndigoSun (band) - Psychedelic jamtronica group featuring 2 CCPA alumni, Kyle Liss and Steve Florian
• Isaac “Redd” Holt (drummer) - Drummer with the Ramsey Lewis Trio and Young-Holt Unlimited
• Stafford James (bassist) - Bassist with Dexter Gordon and Woody Shaw
• Harold Jones (drummer) - Drummer with Count Basie and Tony Bennett
• Lee Konitz (saxophonist) - One of the driving forces of Cool Jazz
• Robert Lamm (pianist) - Keyboardist, vocalist, composer, and founding member of the band, Chicago
• Lou Levy (pianist) - Best known for his bebop and cool-jazz-based playing style
• Ramsey Lewis (pianist) - Recorded over 80 albums and has received seven gold records and three Grammy Awards so far in his career
• Booker Little (trumpeter) - Jazz trumpeter and composer
• Bob Long (pianist) – Keyboardist with Streetdancer
• Junior Mance (pianist) - Jazz pianist and composer
• Kenny Mann (saxophonist) - Tenor sax player with Lionel Hampton and Howard McGhee
• Danny Markovitch (saxophonist) - Saxophonist and co-leader of the band, Marbin, member of Paul Wertico’s Mid-East/Mid-West Alliance
• Kendall Moore (trombonist)
• Kalyan Pathak (drummer/percussionist)
• Dave Samuels (vibraphonist) - Grammy Award winning vibraphonist and marimba player in the bands, Spyro Gyra and The Caribbean Jazz Project
• Jim Schwall (guitarist) - Best known as a co-founder and member of the Siegel-Schwall Band
• Joe Segal (club owner) - Started Chicago’s legendary Jazz Showcase in Roosevelt University in 1947 as a RU student
• Corky Siegel (harmonica player) - Best known as the co-leader of the Siegel-Schwall Band, and as the leader of the Chamber Blues group
• Frank Strozier (saxophonist) - Renowned for his playing in the Hard Bop idiom
• Maurice White (drummer) - Drummer with the Ramsey Lewis Trio and founder of the band, Earth, Wind & Fire
• Eldee Young (bassist) - Bassist with the Ramsey Lewis Trio and Young-Holt Unlimited
• Michael Zerang (drums/percussionist) - Drummer/Percussionist with Ken Vandermark and Joe McPhee, Composer