Imani Winds is an ensemble that has continually fulfilled its mission to inspire generations of musicians through adventurous and innovative programming. Founded in 1997 by Valerie Coleman (flute), Toyin Spellman-Diaz (oboe), Mariam Adam (clarinet), Jeff Scott (French horn), and Monica Ellis (bassoon), the quintet has maintained an unshakable commitment to highlighting and strengthening the rich diversity of chamber music.
The ensemble’s latest release, RISE, features the second generation of artists to carry Imani Winds forward. Bassoonist Monica Ellis anchors the ensemble as the sole remaining founding member. The recording is split across the transition from founding oboist Toyin Spellman-Diaz (tracks 1-4, 10) to newcomer Mekhi Gladden (tracks 5-9), and they are joined by flutist Brandon Patrick George, clarinetist Mark Dover, and hornist Kevin Newton.
A great chamber ensemble is composed exclusively of principal players. A large symphony orchestra may be defined by the comings and goings of music directors, but the institution itself tends to remain constant through other personnel changes. So how much of a chamber ensemble’s critical identity departs with the exit of a founding member or, indeed, the eventual turnover of the entire group?
I don’t necessarily think it’s inevitable that these small ensembles with a strong founding message eventually become a mere tribute to their origins. For example, Afrofuturist composer and keyboardist Sun Ra established the Sun Ra Arkestra in the mid-1950s and passed away in 1993. Today, the group still bears its founder’s name, and in 2026, it was nominated for its first GRAMMY Award under the stewardship of Marshal Allen, the band’s last original member. There’s no question that if I were to see the Arkestra perform today, some part of me would lament missing the chance to have seen Sun Ra himself appear on the stage. Nonetheless, the idea of Sun Ra carries on in the capable hands of his disciples.
In this spirit, RISE exemplifies Imani Winds’ unwavering dedication to commissioning new works and presenting them with thoughtful and creative thematic curation. With music by 20th century Czech composer Pavel Haas, Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway and Billy Taylor bookending a new work by GRAMMY-nominated composer Shawn Okpebholo, the album effectively explores the juxtaposition of oppression and liberation, while celebrating the resilience of persecuted peoples.
Haas, a student of Leoš Janáček, wrote his Wind Quintet, Op. 10 in 1929. While the piece does not explicitly comment on social or political themes, it exudes a strong sense of cultural and spiritual identity through folkish, modal melodies and reverent, psalm-like invocations. Imprisoned in 1941 with a number of other Jewish composers and musicians, Haas contributed to the artistic and cultural microcosm that formed in the Theresienstadt Ghetto. Though he and most of his peers were murdered during the horrors of the Holocaust, they are survived by their music, which has become emblematic of their remarkable perseverance under such abhorrent treatment.
This theme of artistic expression under or in defiance of mortal oppression is a throughline on the remainder of the album. Okpebholo’s RISE is, in the words of the composer, “a musical journey through the ongoing struggle for racial justice” inspired by progress, unity, and collective resolve. Co-commissioned by Imani Winds, the three-movement piece is an optimistic echo of the warnings left behind by Haas and his contemporaries who were unable to escape the fatal persecution that is assuredly preventable for future generations.
The first movement, “Seeds,” rushes forward with urgency, vacillating between long, lyrical unisons and textured, chunking staccatos. “Deep Harmony” expands with swirling, hymn-like motion that pauses around each corner with questioning tonalities. There is a mixture of uncertainty and hopefulness in the language that finally gives way to the final movement, “Spark!,” which builds in intensity from spacious pointillism to dense, frantic chords, like some new creature fighting to emerge from its chrysalis and take flight.
To close out the tracklist, horn player Kevin Newton puts his commendable versatility as a vocalist on display with a velvet tone well worthy of singing songs by Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, and Billy Taylor, all arranged by clarinetist Mark Dover.
Taylor’s “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to be Free” notably began as an instrumental tune that was later amended with words by Dick Dallas and made famous by Nina Simone. In this final track, the group’s remarkable skill waxes on for nearly seven minutes with the ecstatic vibe of an improvised praise break before Newton returns to the vocal line and sees the listener out. The structure of Dover’s skillful arrangement, which largely develops without vocals, in a way outlines the story of the song’s compositional history from jazz instrumental to one of the defining anthems of the Civil Rights Era.
The word Imani means “faith” in Swahili, and was chosen by flutist Valerie Coleman before founding the group to herald the quintet’s significance to African-American and underrepresented communities. Though she departed in 2018, the ensemble’s core identity seems indelibly linked with Coleman’s founding vision and for many, with her presence in the group along with the other co-founding members. Still, Imani Winds carries on with no signs of stopping, and is no less significant today in carrying its founders’ banner.
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