Imani Winds is a Grammy Award-winning American wind quintet based in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, United States. The group was founded by flutist Valerie Coleman in 1997 and is known for its adventurous and diverse programming, which includes both established and newly composed works. The word Imani means "faith" in Swahili. They are also active commissioners of new music with the intent of introducing more diverse composers to the wind quintet repertoire.

Overview

The name "Imani Winds" was chosen by Coleman before she formed the quintet. She viewed it as a vision of what the quintet could mean to African-American and other underrepresented communities. Coleman wanted to form a chamber group to highlight the work of underrepresented composers and performers. Therefore, the group's initial members were all of

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

and Latino ancestry. The group first included Valerie Coleman on

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

, Toyin Spellman-Diaz on

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double-reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common type of oboe, the soprano oboe pitched in C, ...

, Monica Ellis on

bassoon The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuosity ...

, Mariam Adam on

clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

, and Jeff Scott on

french horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most o ...

. In 201
Mark Dover
replaced Mariam Adam, in 2018 Brandon Patrick George replaced Valerie Coleman, and in 2021, Kevin Newton replaced Jeff Scott. The group has released nine CDs. Their first CD on a major label, ''The Classical Underground'' ( Koch Entertainment), was released in January 2005 and was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

in 2006. Their 2023 album ''Passion for Bach and Coltrane'', a multimedia collaboration with poet A. B. Spellman, won the 2024 Grammy Award for Best Classical Compendium. In 2001 they won the Richard S. Weinert Award for Innovation in Classical Music from the

Concert Artists Guild The Concert Artists Guild is an American musical institution, based in New York City and established in 1951. It is dedicated to discovering and nurturing musical talent, and helping musicians start careers. It provides scholarships and grants, and ...

. In 2002, they won the CMA/

ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadc ...

Award for Adventurous Programming and the CMA/ WQXR Recording Award for their first album ''Umoja''. In 2006 & 2009, they performed with the

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts Naumburg () is a town in (and the administrative capital of) the district Burgenlandkreis, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Central Germany. It has a population of around 33,000. The Naumburg Cathedral became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018. ...

, in the Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, in the summer series. In 2007, they won the

Concert Music Award. Imani Winds have toured throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe, and participated in Chamber Music Society Two, a professional residency program of

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

. In addition, Imani has toured internationally and recorded with saxophonist

Steve Coleman Steve Coleman (born September 20, 1956) is an American saxophonist, composer, bandleader and music theorist. In 2014, he was named a MacArthur Fellow. Early life Steve Coleman was born and grew up in South Side, Chicago. He started playing ...

, performed with pop recording artists Morley, and opened for

Cassandra Wilson Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed wit ...

and

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, and music instructor, who is currently the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has been active in promoting classical and jazz music, often to young ...

. They have performed with several notable jazz musicians such as

Wayne Shorter Wayne Shorter (August 25, 1933 – March 2, 2023) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer and bandleader. Shorter came to mainstream prominence in 1959 upon joining Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, for whom he eventually became the primary comp ...

Paquito D'Rivera Francisco de Jesús Rivera Figueras (born 4 June 1948), known as Paquito D'Rivera, is a Cuban-American alto saxophonist, clarinetist and composer. He was a member of the Cuban songo band Irakere and, since the 1980s, he has established him ...

, and Steffon Harris. They have appeared on radio programs including '' Saint Paul Sunday'', '' Performance Today'', '' Performance Today,'' ''

News & Notes ''News & Notes'' was a National Public Radio (NPR) program focusing on issues affecting African Americans and African diaspora communities. The listenership was multiracial and international. The program aired for one hour each weekday and was h ...

'', '' The Bob Edwards Show'', and '' The World''.

Legacy Commissioning Project

Imani Winds began the Legacy Commissioning Project in 2008 with the intention of commissioning and premiering ten new works for wind quintet by composers of color and diverse backgrounds over a five-year period. The group has continued to commission and premiered more works after the initial five-year time frame, and the group has continued their original intent to introduce more diverse composers to the standard wind quintet repertoire.

Commissions

Discography

Source: With

* 1999 – ''The Ascension to Light'' With Brubeck Brothers Quartet * 2008 – ''Classified'' With

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain (instrumental), Spain", "500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba" ...

* 2012 - ''The Continents: Concerto for Jazz Quintet & Chamber Orchestra'' With

* 2013 – '' Without a Net'' With Mohammed Fairouz * 2013 – ''Native Informant'' With Edward Simon * 2018 – ''Sorrows & Triumphs''

References

External links

Imani Winds official site
at Jay K. Hoffman & Associates, Inc. site

Listening

Imani Winds on ''All Things Considered'' radio program
June 8, 2005
Imani Winds on ''Performance Today'' radio program
February 22, 2006
Imani Winds on ''News & Notes'' radio program
May 23, 2006
Imani Winds on ''All Things Considered'' radio program
June 11, 2007

Video

{{Authority control Musical groups established in 1997 Chamber music groups African-American musical groups Musical groups from New York City Wind quintets Grammy Award winners