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Friday, October 2, 2026
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All That Jazz
Musicians from Dialogues and Dialects. From left: Godwin Louis, Aaron Rimbui, Eric Wheeler, Weedie Braimah, Marc Whitfield Jr., and Naledi Masilo. (Photo by Janel Martinez)
October 2, 2026
Lehman College, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and acclaimed Kenyan pianist Aaron Rimbui came together on September 24 for a day of music and learning, culminating in a free performance at the Lovinger Theatre.
“To listen is the key. Back home in Kenya, we say— and even in many other parts of Africa— there's no word for ‘music’. The word for music is ‘spirit’," explained Aaron Rimbui to Lehman students at a workshop held the morning of the concert for music majors “If you decide to pursue a different path, let this time in the music department mean something. That you shared your gift and left a piece of yourself on the stage.”
Students later returned to the Lovinger Theatre to sit in on rehearsal and get a behind-the-scenes look at the musicians preparing for the evening’s performance.
"As an individual who started off being self-taught, it is nice to see someone else who was self-taught progress this far into the industry,” stated student Golden Philbert. “To incorporate East African-ness into jazz is always beautiful and it's amazing to see different rhythms than what we are used to in jazz.”
When night fell, Rimbui took the stage alongside Weedie Braimah, Godwin Louis, and fellow musicians for Dialogues and Dialects, a celebration of jazz and music of the African diaspora.
The musicians spiked the theatre with hybrid, hard-hitting rhythms and melodies, creating an immersive jazz performance merging tributes to East Africa. The performance closed with South African vocalist Naledi Masilo joining the musicians for “Batho Baka,” a song inspired by home and belonging.
The program was presented in collaboration with Jazz at Lincoln Center as part of CUNY Arts.