Jazz Journeys: A Musical Tour of In Spite of Modernism with Frank Mitchell

Join us for a musical tour of In Spite of Modernism with local jazz artists. Each Sunday in March, during the run of the exhibition, a local musician will lead visitors on a jazz journey creating improvisational music in response to the artworks within the galleries. Roving jazz tours will start every 30 minutes from 2PM to 4PM. This program is free for all and presented in collaboration with Arlington Cultural Affairs, a division of Arlington Economic Development that delivers public programs as Arlington Arts.

Advance registration is not required.

March 13: Frank Mitchell

March 20: Elijah Jamal Balbed

About the Artist

Frank Mitchell, Jr. was born in Washington, DC and started playing saxophone at age eight. At fourteen, Frank discovered Jazz and Blues music while listening to the radio, which led to practicing his talent at local jam sessions where he was mentored by various established Jazz and Blues musicians. By the time he was sixteen, he was performing full-time and beginning to make a name for himself in the regional music scene.

In his late twenties, Mitchell moved to New Orleans to study the culture and music of a place that he had always been drawn to. Upon returning to the DC area in the late 1990s, he began playing all over the region, playing with Thievery Corporation, SEE-I and Fort Knox Five.

Throughout his career, Mitchell has studied and performed with some of the leading Jazz musicians, including Dale Underwood, Bob Berg, Tony Dagradi, Dr. Joseph Briscuso, Alvin Baptiste, Marva Wright, Danny Barker, George Porter, Sister Nancy, Bebel Gilberto, and the New Orleans Saxophone Ensemble.

Mitchell continues to play in the DC region, leading various jazz configurations including the Mtrane Trio, the Frank Mitchell Quartet, the Speed Tribe, and Three Man Soul Machine.