WKCR is excited to announce our upcoming Anthony Braxton Birthday Broadcast, in honor of the musical pioneer’s 81st birthday. The broadcast will run for 24 hours from 12 am to midnight on June 4th in place of regularly scheduled programming.

Born in 1945 in Chicago, IL, Anthony Braxton is a pioneering experimental jazz musician and composer. As a child, Braxton sang in a choir and loved rock music, but he also nurtured an early love for technology and electronics. His first gig was with Roscoe Mitchell, whom he had seen live. A talented multi-instrumentalist, Braxton played over ten instruments on his astonishing 1968 debut. His small ensembles from the 1970s to the present day are considered among the most innovative groups of their respective eras, while his Creative Orchestra Music has brought together the diverse musical traditions of America and Europe. Today, Braxton is best known for playing the saxophone. Considering himself “transidomatic,” his work questions the dichotomy between composition and improvisation. His work as a composer brims with innovation – pushing boundaries through the limited parameters of his language music, collage-form quartets, and Ghost Trance Music, among many others. Braxton has undoubtedly cemented himself as a visionary in free jazz and avant-garde music. He even inspired a future generation of avant-garde artists through his tenure at Wesleyan University.

It is our pleasure to pay homage to his illustrious and prolific career. Listeners can join us at 89.9 FM or at wkcr.org.