brown savage world music

Saturday, September 23

TIME: 7:00-8:00PM

VENUE: international house. 1414 East 59TH ST.

Three members of the Brown Savage World Music band sitting next to each other on a green couch.

Three members of the Brown Savage World Music band sitting next to each other on a green couch.

brown savage world music project

In 2022, Maggie Brown, Africa Pace Brown, and Cécile Savage began developing a repertoire of songs to which Oscar Brown, Jr. had put his own English lyrics. This catalog included classic songs, originally in French and Portuguese; songs from the 1966 duet LP, Finding A New Friend, which Brown recorded with Brazilian guitarist Luiz Henrique; and Brown’s English versions of compositions by Jacques Brel, Charles Aznevour, and Carolos Jobim, among others.

The Brown Savage vocal trio has drawn from this classic, international material in hopes of breaking new ground, presenting their own talents in a fresh light, and guiding audiences to discover some of the world music songs and sounds that have had an influence on jazz. 

Vocalist, songwriter, and producer Maggie Brown is a veteran performer who has performed with, among others, Orbert Davis’ Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, Tom Washington’s South Side Big Band, Ensemble Stop Time, and AACM’s Great Black Music Ensemble. She is excited about developing a fresh set of material for the Brown Savage World Music Project. 

Jazz vocalist, bassist, and performer Cécile Savage performs who she is: a blend of French cabaret and American jazz. Born in Martinique and raised in Paris, France, Cécile moved to Chicago and began performing and touring with jazz and blues musicians including Sugar Blue, Jimmy Dawkins, Von Freeman, Fred Anderson, Franz Jackson, Floyd McDaniel, George Freeman, Oscar Brown Jr., and Redd Holt. She now focuses on teaching, singing, and writing new music. 

Africa Pace Brown is the daughter of music performers and 1960s cultural icons Oscar Brown, Jr. and Jean Pace. It’s no wonder she made an early start in professional theater! At the tender age of eight, she became the youngest actress to win a Joseph Jefferson award. Growing up on the road with her parents prepared her for a life in the arts. Since then, she has honed her talents in singing, acting, and directing, and in recent years, added African drumming and dance.

The musicians:

Maggie Brown - vocals

Africa Pace Brown - vocals

Cécile Savage - vocals

Leandro Lopez - piano

Stewart Miller - bass

Ernie Adams - drums