Performance | Vibes at Slugs’ Saloon

Join Jalen Baker, a Houston-based vibraphonist and composer, for a special activation of STAGED: Slugs’ Saloon by Jason Moran, a key work in the exhibition, The Dirty South: Contemporary Art, Material Culture, and the Sonic Impulse. Accompanied by musicians Gavin Moolchan and Brooke Wyatt, Baker performs a set of music inspired by legendary jazz vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson primarily using instruments that are part of the installation. The musical selections for this performance will include compositions by Hutcherson as well as re-imagined jazz standards that he often played.
About Jalen Baker
Jalen Baker, born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Houston, Texas, is a vibraphonist and composer whose early training involved both classical and jazz. Baker received his BA in Jazz Studies from Columbia College Chicago. He distinguished himself as a jazz vibraphonist and received several accolades including outstanding soloist at both the Notre Dame and Elmhurst Jazz Festivals. Jalen was accepted as a Graduate Assistant in the Jazz Performance program at Florida State University and in 2019 received his MM in Jazz Studies. During his tenure at Florida State he was chosen as a Ravinia Jazz Fellow in 2018. He has been a performer with the Leon Anderson Quartet, The Ulysses Owens Trio and Quartet, Jeremy Pelt Quintet, Michael Mwenso, Paul Cornish Group as well as leading his own band Tano in venues in and around Georgia and Northern Florida. In 2021, Jalen released his debut album, This Is Me, This Is Us, which was chosen as the #4 Best Jazz Album of 2021.
About Gavin Moolchan
Gavin Moolchan was born and raised in Houston, Texas. After graduating high school in 2013, Moolchan studied with Sebastian Whittaker, Daniel Dufour, and Will Kennedy, some of the most notable drummers in the city. He also began his career working as a freelance musician and private instructor covering a wide range of genres. While living in Houston, he has had the opportunity to perform and tour both nationally and internationally with some of Houston’s most respected musicians and groups such as David Caceres, Jalen Baker, Diunna Greenleaf, Stratus, Frank Lacy, Leron Thomas, and many others. More recently, Moolchan has been a member of the Jalen Baker quartet, recording his debut album, This Is Me, This Is Us, at Big Orange Sheep Studios in New York City. After that, the quartet went on the road for the album release tour, concluding the tour at the renowned Jazz Showcase in Chicago. Moolchan also works as a young artist for the Da Camera organization in Houston. He currently resides in Houston and remains one of the most active performers in the music scene.
About Brooke Wyatt
Brooke Wyatt is a 21-year-old pianist and songwriter from Houston, Texas. She began playing the piano at a young age and was enrolled in lessons with her childhood friend. She first took interest in jazz when she began attending the Summer Jazz Workshop in Houston the summer before she entered middle school. She continued attending the workshop every summer leading up to high school-from there, she knew she wanted to continue studying music. When it was time for her to go to high school, she auditioned and was accepted into the Kinder High School for Performing and Visual Arts (HSPVA). After high school, she spent a year in New York attending school before she transferred to Columbia College Chicago where she just recently completed her Bachelor of Arts degree.
Visit CAMH’s website for more information on exhibition The Dirty South: Contemporary Art, Material Culture, and the Sonic Impulse.
camh.org/event/dirty-south/
© Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, 2022.