Arts For Art / Vision Festival

Arts For Art / Vision Festival FreeJazz embodies music, dance, poetry and visual arts. It is recognized for its variety of highly developed and personalized improvisational languages.

Arts for Art is dedicated to the exceptional creativity that originated in the African American multi-arts jazz culture that utilizes improvisation to express a larger, more positive dream of inclusion and freedom. Founded in 1996, AFA’s work is rooted in a commitment to social justice as equity and the promotion and advancement of FreeJazz, an African American indigenous art form in which improvi

sation is principle. AFA works not only to preserve the legacy of FreeJazz as an African American multicultural art form, but to ensure a vital future through its re-imagination by new generations of artists. AFA offers multi-arts programs throughout the year that fulfill the role of arts in society, that is, to reflect and respond to the world. Our programming brings together multiple generations of vibrant, diverse and highly skilled artists, including the Artists for A Free World project that includes a band directed by William Parker. AFA cultivates new audiences to protect this unique aesthetic so as to remain contemporary and available. To further our goals of diversity and accessibility, we foster education through our youth programs. Follow Us on Instagram
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05/12/2026

🎹 Artist Spotlight: Hans Young Binter

American pianist and composer Hans Young Binter works within NYC's vibrant creative music scene, with a practice rooted in improvisation and centered on core elements of music making: conversation and ritual. Binter came up through the New School's School of Jazz and Contemporary Music and has since become a vital presence in the city's downtown and experimental scenes — performing everywhere from Ibeam to the Jazz Gallery to Governors Island with Arts for Art.

A long-running collaborator of William Parker, he has been a key member of the PocketWatch ensemble, and has performed and recorded alongside Brandon López, Cooper-Moore, Diego Hédez, and Francisco Mela, among many others.

This Wednesday, May 13, he closes out the Inter(Space) season with his residency project Working Ornament:

Hans Young Binter (.wyb) - electric piano, composition
Vivek Menon () - violin
Gían Pérez ()- guitar
Orchid McRae () - percussion

Also on the bill: Jason Kao Hwang's Resonance Quintet and a quartet featuring Ray Anderson, Neil Podgurski, Diallo House, and Jeremy Carlstedt. A fitting finale to a remarkable season.

Last day of Inter(space) 📢Join us Wednesday for Inter(Space) at Loove Annex ()!📆 7:00pm📍 Loove Annex ()🎟️ Tickets $5-25🔗...
05/11/2026

Last day of Inter(space) 📢
Join us Wednesday for Inter(Space) at Loove Annex ()!

📆 7:00pm
📍 Loove Annex ()
🎟️ Tickets $5-25
🔗 Link in bio

Schedule:
7:00pm Jeremy Carlstedt, Ray Anderson, Neil Podgurski, Diall House
8:00pm Jason Kao Hwang Residency "Critical Response"
9:00pm Hans Young Binter Residency "Working Ornament"

Jeremy Carlstedt () - drums
Ray Anderson () - trombone
Neil Podgurski ()- piano
Diallo House () - bass

Jason Kao Hwang Residency Resonance Quintet
Jason Kao Hwang () - violin
Chris Forbes - piano
Bryan Carrott () - vibes
Ken Filiano - bass
Andrew Drury ()- drums

Hans Young Binter Residency Working Ornament
Hans Young Binter (.wyb) - electric piano, composition
Vivek Menon () - violin
Gían Pérez ()- guitar
Orchid McRae () - percussion

05/06/2026

Artist Spotlight: Jason Kao Hwang 🎻

A Chinese American violinist and composer, Jason Kao Hwan() has spent decades building one of the most distinctive voices in creative music — one rooted equally in free jazz, Asian musical tradition, and a deep sense of narrative. The El Intruso International Critics Poll has voted him #1 for Violin/Viola five times, and his work ranges from intimate improvised duos to large-scale chamber operas. His chamber opera The Floating Box: A Story in Chinatown was named one of Opera News's Top Ten Opera Recordings of 2005.

His compositions are often described as narrative landscapes through which sonic beings embark on extemporaneous, transformational journeys. As a collaborator, he has worked alongside William Parker, Henry Threadgill, Anthony Braxton, Butch Morris, Tomeka Reid, Pauline Oliveros, and Wadada Leo Smith

Tonight he brings his residency project Critical Response to the Inter(Space) series:

Jason Kao Hwang – violin
Anders Nilsson – guitar
Michael TA Thompson – drums

We're also excited to catch Jason again at Vision 2026, see you there!

Join us Wednesday for Inter(Space) at Loove Annex ()!📆 7:00pm📍 Loove Annex ()🎟️ Tickets $5-25🔗 Link in bioSchedule:7:00p...
05/04/2026

Join us Wednesday for Inter(Space) at Loove Annex ()!

📆 7:00pm
📍 Loove Annex ()
🎟️ Tickets $5-25
🔗 Link in bio

Schedule:
7:00pm Ayumi Ish*to Farcadia
8:00pm Jason Kao Hwang Residency "Critical Response"
9:00pm Hans Young Binter Residency "Working Ornament"

Ayumi Ish*to Farcadia
Ayumi Ish*to () - sax
Remi Hasumi - piano
Yuko Togami () - drums

Jason Kao Hwang Residency Critical Response
Jason Kao Hwang () - violin
Anders Nillson () - guitar
TA Thompson - drums

Hans Young Binter Residency Working Ornament
Hans Young Binter (.wyb) - electric piano, composition
Vivek Menon - violin
Gían Pérez ()- guitar
Orchid McRae () - percussion

05/01/2026

SCREENING VISION: This Week's Feature 🎬
Ingrid Laubrock: Monochromes
Vision Festival 2021

“2020 was the strangest year — seemingly endless, disconcerting and full of anxiety. As we musicians had the rug of our existence pulled from underneath us, I found there was also an opening for reflection and learning. These pieces stem from my explorations into a more technological realm than where I usually live... The pandemic highlighted worldwide inequality over and over again and I am hopeful that the forced pausing and reflecting we did as individuals, cities and nations will bring much needed change.” — Ingrid Laubrock

Born from a time of isolation, "Monochromes" are pre-recorded, layered tape pieces that serve as a landscape for live interaction. Laubrock sculpted these works from the sounds of Nate Wooley and Adam Matlock, inviting three master improvisers to reflect on these sonic sculptures and bridge the gap between the technological and the human.

Featuring:
Ingrid Laubrock – saxophones ()
Jon Irabagon – saxophones ()
Zeena Parkins – harp ()
Tom Rainey – drums

Catch Ingrid Laubrock with us again at the Vision Festival 2026 👀

04/29/2026

🎼Artist Spotlight: William Parker () Tonight, Wednesday, April 29 concludes the month long residency of William Parker’s PocketWatch at Loove Annex.

William Parker is a legendary bassist, composer, improviser, multi-instrumentalist, author, and community leader. He has recorded over 40 albums as a leader that feature a range of concepts, and ensembles from solo bass, quartets, sextets, large ensembles such as the Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra, as well as special projects such as The Essence Of Ellington, The Inside Songs of Curtis Mayfield etc. He has composed music and librettos for numerous multi-media operas such as Trail of Tears, Vision Peace and Battle Cries, Mass for the Healing World in addition to hundreds of pieces of vocal music. All of Parker’s music incorporates his concept of Universal Tonality. They all include improvisational languages and possibilities.

Parker’s PocketWatch Orchestra featured a host of voices both seasoned and emerging, with multiple generations of musicians including saxophonists Rob Brown () , Alfredo Colón (), Aakash Mittal (), Devin Brahja Waldman (), and Isaiah Barr, with Diego Hernández () on trumpet, Colin Babcock () and Masahiko Kono on trombone, bassist Colson Jiménez (), drummer Juan Pablo Carletti (), and keyboardist Hans Young Binter (.wyb), alongside vocalists Ellen Christi (), Kyoko Kitamura, and Patricia Nicholson ()

Join us at 7pm at Loove Annex!

04/28/2026

🎷Artist Spotlight: Sam Newsome ()
Sam Newsome stands as a multifaceted figure in the world of jazz: a saxophonist, music professor, and accomplished writer. Newsome has released six ground-breaking solo saxophone recordings pushing the boundaries of his instrument. His Blue Soliloquy: Solo Works for Soprano Saxophone earned a five-star review and DownBeat has called his Straight Horn of Africa "a modern masterpiece." A recipient of the Bronx BRIO Award, the Alpert/Ragdale Prize, and the NYFA Fellowship for Music Composition, Newsome has collaborated with William Parker, Andrew Cyrille, Fay Victor, and Daniel Carter; and is an associate professor at Long Island University Brooklyn. Beyond his musical accomplishments, Newsome is a prolific author, having penned two books of personal essays: "Be Inspired, Stay Focused" (2022) and "Life Lessons from the Horn" (2015). In 2023, his piece, “From NoHa to SoBro” was featured in the Bronx Memoir Project Anthology, VII.

His quartet for this evening features:

Sam Newsome – soprano saxophone
Brittney Karlson – bass
Nick Neuberg – drums
Tash Nikol – spoken word

This Wednesday, April 29, catch them live at Loove Annex as part of Arts for Art's Inter(Space) series, followed by William Parker's PocketWatch Residency.

Join us Wednesday for Inter(Space) at Loove Annex ()!📆 7:00pm📍 Loove Annex ()🎟️ Tickets $5-25🔗 Link in bioSchedule:7:00p...
04/27/2026

Join us Wednesday for Inter(Space) at Loove Annex ()!

📆 7:00pm
📍 Loove Annex ()
🎟️ Tickets $5-25
🔗 Link in bio

Schedule:
7:00pm Sam Newsome Quartet
8:30pm William Parker PocketWatch Residency

Sam Newsome Quartet
Sam Newsome () - soprano
Brittany Karlson () - bass
Nick Neuberg () - drums
Tash Nikol - spoken word

William Parker PocketWatch Residency:
William Parker () - composition, conducting, double reeds, etc
Rob Brown (), Aakash Mittal (), Devin Waldman () - alto
Alfredo Colon (), Isaiah Barr - tenor sax
Dave Sewelson () - baritone
Diego Hedez () - trumpet
Colin Babcock (), Masahiko Kono ()- trombone
Colson Jimenez () - bass
Juan Pablo Carletti () - drums
Hans Young Binter (.wyb) - piano
Ellen Christi (), Kyoko Kitamura - voice
Patricia Nicholson () - voice, spoken word

04/24/2026

SCREENING VISION: This Week's Feature 🎬
Jason Kao Hwang's Orchestra: Myths of Origin for 30 Strings
Vision Festival 2022

Myths of Origin, a diverse improvising orchestra, defies mainstream society's enduring fe**sh for Orientalist fantasies — a history woven inextricably into unconscious biases that have progressed into explicitly racist violence. Inspired by jazz, funk, new music, classical and world traditions, Myths of Origin forges a unique language, free of genre expectations, to revolutionize our relationships to each other. Through a notated score interacting with improvisations shaped by a lexicon of conducting gestures, the flow of spontaneous music illuminates the possibilities of our journey. To be transformed by possibilities grounded in truth, is to transcend all Myths of Origin.

Featuring:
Jason Kao Hwang – conductor & composer ()
Violins: Charles Burnham, Mark Chung, Keir GoGwilt (), Rosi Hertlein, Gwen Laster (), Talice Lee, gabby fluke-mogul ), Elena Moon Park (), Ben Sutin (), Tom Swafford (.tom), Johnna Wu
Violas: Ginger Dolden (), Melanie Dyer(), Judith Insell (@
viola.jazz1), Pete Lanctot (), Eric Salazar ()
Cellos: Dara Bloom, Kirin McElwain(), Lester St. Louis (.louis), Tomas Ulrich
Guitars: Che Chen, James Keepnews (), Anders Nilsson (), Hans Tammen ()
Bass: Ken Filiano
Drums: Andrew Drury ()

Catch Jason Kao Hwang with us in Inter(space) residency and again at the Vision Festival 2026 👀

04/22/2026

🎹Artist Spotlight: Mara Rosenbloom & Siren Xypher Collective

Mara Rosenbloom (.rosenbloom) is a Brooklyn-based pianist and composer praised as "a whole-hearted poet of the piano," whose trio debut earned a rare 4.5 stars from DownBeat and a spotlight in the New York Times. She has performed and recorded with William Parker, William Ho**er, and Cooper-Moore, and serves as artistic director of the Brooklyn Free Spirit Festival.

Tonight she performs as part of Siren Xypher () a collective of three composer-performers: Mara Rosenbloom (piano), Melanie Dyer (.viola) (viola), and Kyoko Kitamura (voice). Together, they weave art songs, spoken word, and free improvisation into something DownBeat Magazine called "speculative improvising at its finest: virtuosic, with intelligently controlled abandon."
Based in New York City, Siren Xypher has performed at City of Asylum in Pittsburgh, the InGardens series at Governors Island, and was featured on the BBC3 Freeness podcast "Peace Pieces." They're also the creative team behind the Brooklyn Free Spirit Festival, now in its second year at Ibeam.
Tonight, Wednesday, April 22 — catch them live at Loove Annex as part of Arts for Art's Inter(Space) series, including performances by Ellen Christi's Flux in Chaos and William Parker's Pocketwatch Residency.

Link in bio.

04/22/2026

🎹Artist Spotlight: Mara Rosenbloom & Siren Xypher Collective
Mara Rosenbloom (.rosenbloom) is a Brooklyn-based pianist and composer praised as “a whole-hearted poet of the piano,” whose trio debut earned a rare 4.5 stars from DownBeat and a spotlight in the New York Times. She has performed and recorded with William Parker, William Ho**er, and Cooper-Moore, and serves as artistic director of the Brooklyn Free Spirit Festival.
Tonight she performs as part of Siren Xypher () a collective of three composer-performers: Mara Rosenbloom (piano), Melanie Dyer (.viola) (viola), and Kyoko Kitamura (voice). Together, they weave art songs, spoken word, and free improvisation into something DownBeat Magazine called “speculative improvising at its finest: virtuosic, with intelligently controlled abandon.”
Based in New York City, Siren Xypher has performed at City of Asylum in Pittsburgh, the InGardens series at Governors Island, and was featured on the BBC3 Freeness podcast “Peace Pieces.” They’re also the creative team behind the Brooklyn Free Spirit Festival, now in its second year at Ibeam.
Tonight, Wednesday, April 22 — catch them live at Loove Annex as part of Arts for Art’s Inter(Space) series, including performances by Ellen Christi’s Flux in Chaos and William Parker’s Pocketwatch Residency.
🎟️Link in bio.
CreativeMusic FreeJazz Brooklyn WomenInJazz BrooklynFreeSpirit

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