This Saturday, May 26, The Jazz Gallery welcomes saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins and his quartet back to our stage. Since his last show at the Gallery in March, Wilkins has been quite busy, appearing regularly in the city at Smoke and Smalls, as well as heading out of town to play with the likes of Gerald Clayton and E.J. Strickland.With his working quartet, Wilkins has been exploring a spiritual vein in his music, drawing from his upbringing playing in church. In a previous interview with Jazz Speaks, Wilkins described his quartet music thusly:

The idea was to write modern day hymns—music that is influenced by my upbringing. But the [gospel harmony] sound that you’re referring to almost came about by accident. I didn’t necessarily try to do it. It was just what was on my fingers at the time. I wanted a band that understood my vision of what the music was and I also wanted individual voices that would be able to bring it beyond what I had had in mind.

Before coming out to see Wilkins and company continue to expand this musical vision, check out the group's performance of Wilkins's composition, "Warriors."https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36o5nYFK8kc The Immanuel Wilkins Quartet plays The Jazz Gallery on Saturday, May 26, 2018. The group features Mr. Wilkins on alto saxophone, Micah Thomas on piano, Rick Rosato on bass, and Kweku Sumbry on drums. Sets are at 7:30 and 9:30 P.M. $25 general admission ($10 for members), $35 reserved cabaret seating ($20 for members) for each set. Purchase tickets here.