- DuSable Museum of African American History, 740 East 56th Place, Chicago, IL 60637
A slightly edited description:
The phrase "Free At First" is meant to reflect that at the very birth of the AACM, its members were unfettered by convention and
tradition and adopted a "free" style that recognized no boundaries and defied categorization. The AACM had the audacity to
compose, perform, publish, own, and institutionalize their own music and to prepare future exponents of their genre-bending,
experimental form. Further, their collective, rather than confining the individual, actually made room for individual freedom
of expression.
"Free At First" is also a reference to the sense of freedom with which the founders and early members approached musical
compositions, organizational concepts, and institution building—especially with the AACM School of Music. The scope of the
exhibition is intended to provide the social framework, political climate, cultural milieu, and philosophical underpinnings within
which this musicians' collective has thrived and survived—the only musicians' collective still standing!
Free At First is as broad and wide-ranging as the music created by the AACM—from historic and iconic photographs to a
musical soundscape inclusive of AACM founders and the newest generation; from performance costumes and uniquely crafted
awards of recognition to performance posters from around the globe; from a re-creation of the famous Henry Threadgill
"Hubkaphone" as an installation piece to be experienced by all visitors to a long-ago silent film of Threadgill playing this
unique instrument. . . .
http://www.dusablemuseum.org/