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Culture Crawl 1203 “Diabolical Plan”

CR Community Orchestra presents, “Joy, Celebration, & the American Spirit!” Ft. special guest Red Cedar Chamber Music. Orchestra conductor, Josh Reznicow, and Red Cedar Music directors Carey Bostian & Miera Kim are in the studio with the details. It’s Sunday, May 3, 3pm at Ballantyne Auditorium.

Tickets and more info at crcorchestra.org.

Subscribe to The Culture Crawl at kcck.org/culture or search “Culture Crawl” in your favorite podcast player. Listen Live at 10:30am most weekdays on Iowa’s Jazz station. 88.3 FM or kcck.org/listen.

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Culture Crawl 1202 “We Have To Do This Play!”

Cedar Valley Christian School presents “Don Quixote de la Center” May 1-2. Director Robin Crow says the students had been asking for a more serious play, and the experiment is working out well. The play reimagines Don Quixote inside a dementia care home, where Ethan’s character, Donald, believes he’s the famous knight, and Atticus plays his son trying to handle the situation. The show is funny, emotional, and meant to highlight the value of caring for the elderly. Performances are May 1–2 at 7 p.m., free with donations accepted. Visit facebook.com/cedarvalleychristianschool/ for details.

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New Music Monday for April 27, 2026

Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify
Chris Potter’s “Alive with Ghosts Today” brings together Bill Frisell, Nate Smith and Burniss Travis with Rane Moore (clarinet), Zekkereye El-Magharbel (trombone) and Sara Caswell (violin) in a deliberately off-center ensemble that places Potter’s tenor and soprano inside a textural, human-scale sound world. Written around the story of abolitionist John Brown and the 1859 raid on Harper’s Ferry, the album confronts a moment that exposed deep fractures at the heart of the American narrative. “It’s a story that holds the complexity and tragedy of America in one moment,” Potter says. “It felt important to engage with it now.”

For decades, vocalist and drummer David Basse has been at the forefront of the Kansas City music scene. His singing has been compared to Mel Torme, Jon Hendriks and Al Jarreau. In 1997, his City Lights Orchestra performed at the inaugural gala for President Clinton. David is also an award-winning radio programmer, winning a Kansas Association of Broadcasters Award for his program, “The Jazz Scene,” which he has hosted for over twenty-five years. His new release, “The War Within,” was recorded live in North Hollywood at Kulak’s Woodshed.

Also this week, Juno Award-winning trumpeter and singer Bria Skonberg focuses on the horn on her new disc, “Brass,” celebrating her favorite elements of playing the trumpet; composer, arranger and guitarist Russ Spiegel continues his run of outstanding releases with “Timepieces,” his fourth as a leader; and Oakland-based guitarist Ray Obiedo brews a rhythmic, energetic soundscape on “Slight Accent,” revealing his passion for the diverse flavors of his Bay Area home.

Big Mo to Retire May 15

After more than 25 years at KCCK, John Heim, aka “Big Mo” is hanging up the headphones. May 15 will be his last show.

“So many of our KCCK personalities have really become institutions to our audience. None more so than John Heim,” says KCCK general manager Dennis Green. “I appreciate how he has delivered an upbeat and fun show year after year in spite of everything life has thrown at him. We’ll miss him a lot, as will his dedicated fans and friends.”

John came to KCCK after a long career as a music teacher and musician in groups such as The Moe Band, which gave him his nickname. After coming to KCCK, he joined the Schoolhouse Jazz Band and helped re-start Blues in the Schools, after KCCK took the program over. His ‘da Friday Blues show is notable for the “shoutouts” that John gives to his regular listeners who check in regularly from all over the country. He also orginated the Beaker Street Tribute Hour, featuring underground rock inspired by the legendary show on Little Rock’s KAAY hosted by Clyde Clifford. John occasionally chatted with Clyde and interviewed him in 2020.

Taking over the show is another Eastern Iowa music stalwart, Ed “Unka Led” English. And, coincidentally, like Big Mo, also a bass player! An original member of Kevin Burt’s Blues Instigators, Ed is a founding member of the Beaker Brothers, and also performs with Johnny Kilowatt and the Tanya English Band.

2026 is the farewell year for the Beaker Brothers, so it will be this summer before Ed assumes the show on a regular basis. In the meantime, listen for him to pop up when he can. KCCK’s Bob DeForest and Craig Kessler will fill in on Fridays in the meantime.

This Week’s Shows April 27 – May 2

Jazz Corner of the World (Encore)

Mondays at 6:00pm

Herbie Hancock as a Sideman

Aside from his 50-plus albums as leader, Herbie Hancock has also serves as pianist on some 160 releases by other artists. In this first of several shows, we’ll hear from some of his many stellar dates for others (like Donald Byrd, Jackie McLean, Miles Davis, Grant Green, Freddie Hubbard, Joe Henderson, and more).

Wednesday Night Special

Wednesdays at 6:00pm

Corridor Jazz Concert, Night Two

It’s a jazz concert too big for one night to contain! This week, we enjoy the second night of the Corridor Jazz Project concert, performed at the Voxman Hall of Music in Iowa City. This was the culmination of KCCK’s 19^th Corridor Jazz Project, partnering 21 of the area’s best high school jazz bands with a professional musician to rehearse, record, and perform together.

Jazz Corner of the World

Saturdays at 12:00 noon

Miles On Prestige – 1951-1956

All through May, Craig celebrates the Miles Davis centennial. He begins with featured recordings of young Miles coming into his own, with jazz greats like Milt Jackson, Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Jackie McLean, and many others!

KCCK’s Midnight CD (April 27 – May 2)

Every Night at Midnight

KCCK features a new album every night, played from start-to-finish.

Soundscape by the Bill Mays Trio on Monday; Twio, Vol. 2 by Walter Smith III on Tuesday; Triological by Ben Allison, Steve Cardenas & Ted Nash on Wednesday; Forever Yours: The Farewell Performances by Chick Corea on Thursday; Slidemaster by Rick Vito on Friday; Legacy Rewind: Live in ’25 by Curtis Salgado on Saturday; I Really Oughta Tell You by Alex Robinson on Sunday.

This Week In Jazz April 26 thru May 2

Hey, Jazz fans! Be sure to tune in this week as we celebrate the birthdays drummers Denzil Best and Connie Kay, singers Blossom Dearie and Shirley Horn, harmonica player Toots Thielemans, bassists Percy Heath and Martin Wind, flautists Dave Valentin and James Newton, percussionist Ray Barretto and more. We’ll also mark the recording anniversaries of Peggy Lee with George Shearing’s “Beauty and the Beat” (1959), Pat Martino’s “El Hombre” (1967), Jimmy Rushing’s “The You and Me That Used to Be” (1971), Arnett Cobb/Jimmy Heath/Joe Henderson’s “Tenor Tribute” (1988), “McCoy Tyner w/Stanley Clarke and Al Foster” (1999), Charnett Moffett’s “Music from Our Soul” (2015) and many others, Mondays thru Fridays and at noon on JAZZ MASTERS on Jazz 88.3 KCCK.

Culture Crawl 1201 “X-Men-ey”

The 16th edition of MusicIC, “THE BLACK ANGEL: Music, Myth, and Memory,” is April 30-May 2. MusicIC founder Tricia Park, a violinist and writer, says the signature piece, George Crumb’s “Black Angels,” features an amplified string quartet, where the players incorporate voice, electronic and other ambient sounds into the work, performed May at at the Masonic Building. The literature side of the festival will be April 30 at The Black Angel. Writers will present short works that respond to the musical pieces, as well as incorporating Iowa City’s Black Angel a landmark in Oakland Cemetery.