David Ambrosio: Civil Disobedience Through Jazz

At the height of this country’s fight for civil rights, some of America’s Black jazz artists were composing would-be soundtracks to the movement. Many of the charts and recordings they created for the Blue Note label were lost or forgotten through the decades. New York bassist David Ambrosio has done his part to bring them back to life through a project called Civil Disobedience. 

Ambrosio led a quartet of New Yorkers two years ago in a fantastic concert of this music at Mars Landing Arts Center, in Mars Hill. Now, with a new album of this music in hand, Ambrosio’s returning to Mars Hill for a performance Saturday, Aug. 22. 

On this episode of the See Hear podcast, Matt Peiken talks with Ambrosio about his initial interest in this music, how the social and political undertones of the day shaped the sound and the contemporary relevance for both himself and his audiences.