CHAMBER BLUES • SOLO • SYMPHONIC
Booking
For arts presenters
They Love Corky Siegel in Lincoln Center - NEW YORK TIMES • A Phenomenon - WASHINGTON POST • Outrageous fun - ARIZONA REPUBLIC • A resounding triumph... irresistible - CHICAGO TRIBUNE • Scandalous! - THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER • Extraordinary musicianship ...powerful musical insight - JAZZ NOW MAGAZINE • Mind-blowing mightiness - AMERICANA HIGHWAYS • Masterful blues harp - ROOTS MUSIC REPORT • A genuine hybrid ... complex ... clever and ambitious - LOS ANGELES TIMES • Mesmerizing, surprising, and all together pleasing - SING OUT • Awesome! …He’s a God! - SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS • Best Albums of 2022 and Editors Pick of 2017 - National treasure - DOWNBEAT MAGAZINE
For Arts Presenters
Dr. Jaime Gorgojo - Violin (Spain) • Chihsuan Yang - Violin/Erhu (Taiwan) • Rose Armbrust Griffin - Viola • Jocelyn Butler Shoulders - Cello • Kalyan Pathak - Tabla (India) • Holly Siegel - Management • Corky Siegel - Harmonica/Piano/Vocal/Composition • see COLLABORATORS
Re: Chamber Blues; “The Alchemy of blues and classical”
Dear Music Presenter,
Reflected in the sample of quotes above, are endless love letters from our diverse music journalists (blues, classical, folk, jazz, world …) pouring over their personal experience and sometimes going way overboard - to our delight.
Yet, this is not so compelling when we can hear thousands of great and unique artists, the most magnificent blues performers, incredible chamber groups, the best classical music, jazz, world, crossover, all genres and various mixes, just about any time and any place.
What is significant however, is that there is no other opportunity where one can experience an evening of ground-breaking compositions that place two of the most disparate musical forces - urban blues and classical - equally side by side. This powerful one-of-a-kind alchemy will take your audience on an absolutely unique magical musical joyride [San Francisco Chronicle] - a journey they will otherwise never experience any other time or place in the world.
These journalists are making our point:
Simply a thing of beauty …rarely do we associate blues and classical. Siegel has been doing that now for over five decades. Remarkably, he continues to make it work in astounding ways - Jim Hynes - MAKING A SCENE
For more than half a century, Corky Siegel has brought new colors to the blues ...to bridge musical genres and cultural divides, making the world slightly smaller and kinder - Steven Wine - ASSOCIATED PRESS
The combination of these two genres could be the greatest variation of all themes. By creating the 'potential' for a deeper enjoyment of music, Chamber Blues has the possibility to tear down the walls that keep music fans apart - LIVING BLUES
Siegel takes the listener to places one may not have realized were imaginable let alone possible. ...experience music without pre-existing limitations. ...Invigorating - Donald Teplyske - LONESOME ROAD REVIEW
It’s safe to say that no one in the blues world has pushed the boundaries of the blues more in the modern era than Corky Siegel. And he absolutely hits it out of the park - Marty Gunther - BLUES BLAST
The breadth and layers of this project are so stunning that I can’t recall hearing anything like this. - Jim Hynes - ELMORE MAGAZINE
This is definitely the most interesting, intricate, and daring … to come to this reviewer’s attention in quite awhile ...ever expanding vistas to wider exploration. …many disparate forces, interwoven by the visionary on the harmonica - Bob Gottlieb - THE JOURNAL OF ROOTS MUSIC - NO DEPRESSION
Corky Siegel is a force to be reckoned with - a magnificent musical hurricane creating musical masterpieces, tearing down the expected …Some of the most fascinating and interesting music to be found on the music scene today. Just Incredible ! - Raymond Muller - NEW JERSEY BLUES SOCIETY
We invite you to be a continuing part of this historic musical adventure.
Thank you for listening.
Holly Siegel
Corky Siegel’s Chamber Blues • Corky Siegel Solo, Symphonic and special duets
holly@chamberblues.com - 773-551-6141
P.S. Chamber Blues is also presented, and fits most beautifully. into venues and music series that are exclusively Blues, Classical, Jazz, Folk, Modern Classical, and World music. The presenter is effectively helping to dissolve the faux walls between music genre in a real world capacity, not separating, but bringing cultures together and people together at a time when it is most needed:
Aspen Music Festival CO • Grand Teton Music Festival WY • Montreal International Jazz Festival • Winnipeg Folk Festival CANADA • Strathmore Hall DC • Symphony Center Chicago • Blues Sur Seine FRANCE • John Lee Hooker’s Boom Boom Room SAN FRANCISCO • Jazz Showcase CHICAGO • Primavera Festival MEXICO CITY • Angela Paralta Opera House MAZATLAN MX • Ford PAC TORONTO CANADA • Kravis Center FL • Wadsworth Theatre L.A. • Interlochen MI • Kodaly Festival CT • Banff PAC CANADA
MARCH 2020: Airport in St. Thomas Virgin Islands. “Along with the arts community we are coming together to cover the world with joy and unity,”
VIDEO - CHAMBER BLUES
2014 from the Shure Studio Sessions
A special Chamber Blues style sonata orchestration inspired from a classic 1970s Siegel-Schwall song.
Classic Chamber Blues and Harmonica instrumental
Classic Chamber Blues and Piano Instrumental
Featuring Chihsuan Yang - Erhu - Galloping Horseplay - a chamber blues version of a classical erhu piece.
Piano improv. with full group joining in on the piano. Not a chamber blues composition. (2014)
AUDIO - CHAMBER BLUES
BIOS
Photo: Chuck Osgood
Synopsis: Corky Siegel is known internationally as one of the worlds great blues harmonica players, blues pianist, singer-songwriter, creator of CHAMBER BLUES and the sole pioneer/composer of award-winning revolutionary works that weave blues and classical forms together. Co-founder of the SIEGEL-SCHWALL BAND, and Blues Hall of Fame Inductee, Corky Siegel has a catalogue of recordings on RCA, Vanguard, Alligator, and million selling blues/classical recordings on the iconic classical label Deutsche Grammophon. His close associations with the blues masters in the earlier days of Chicago blues, his essential part in the blues rock revolution, and his surprising success in bringing together blues and classical audiences make him a pivotal (though inconspicuous) figure in modern music history. “underappreciated national treasure” - DOWNBEAT MAGAZINE. … FULL BIO and MEMBERS BIOS
Special Guest COLLABORATORS
Cantor Pavel Roytman • Marcella Detroit • Frank Orrall • Ernie Watts • Howard Levy • Tracy Nelson • Rollo Radford • Lynne Jordan • Sandeep Das • Mathew Santos • Randy Sabien • Sons of the Never Wrong • Sue Demel • and in memoriam Sam Lay
EARLY HISTORY
PHOTO ON LEFT: 1967: Jack Myers (bass player for Siegel-Schwall), Jim Schwall (guitar), Howlin Wolf, Corky on Wolf’s knee, Russ Chadwick (drums). New York City, back stage at Cafe Au Go Go - Howlin’ Wolf was a fan of Siegel-Schwall Band and invited the band to open shows for his band. Jim and Corky had a steady gig at Pepper’s on 43rd street in Chicago in 1965 where all the blues masters like Wolf, Muddy, Willie, and Walter came to join them on stage. and took them under their wing. Photo by Michael Ochs. JANUARY 1967
PHOTO ON RIGHT 1968: Corky (with harmonica) William Russo, Maestro Seiji Ozawa. Before rehearsal with Chicago Symphony Orchestra JULY 1968. Seiji was a fan of Siegel-Schwall and in 1966 showed up to their performances at Big Johns on Wells Street in Chicago, night after night. One night Maestro Ozawa asked Corky if Siegel-Schwall would jam with his band. Corky thought; “who is this guy and who is his band?”
HISTORIC VIDEO
1971 PBS Great Performances with Siegel-Schwall as guests soloists with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops at Symphony Hall in Russo’s Three Pieces for Blues Band and Symphony Orchestra. This followed a performance with Siegel-Schwall, Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood.
• Solo and Symphonic •
Please contact holly@chamberblues.com
773-551-6141
SINGER-SONGWRITER Corky Siegel continues - to offer solo performances as well as duets with Ernie Watts, Randy Sabien, Howard Levy, Kalyan Pathak, duets trios and even quartets on occasion. In addition he performs as guest soloist with symphony orchestras in popular works that he has composed as well as the celebrated works by William Russo. Visit Corky Siegel’s SYMPHONIC BLUES page.