Rethinking Miles Davis - Book Launch
Organ Studio, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
200 Jennens Road, B4 7XR
Two Day Festival Ticket
£40Ìýadvance (£45 on the door)
£25Ìýstudents / Over 60s
Day Tickets
£30 advance (£35 on the door)
£20Ìýstudents / Over 60s
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Book launch for Rethinking Miles DavisÌý
[Oxford University Press May 2026]
Edited by Roger Fagge, Nicolas PillaiÌýand Tim Wall
Photo Credit: Miles Davis, Apollo, Manchester, 1989 by William EllisÌý
This book launch celebrates the forthcoming publication of Rethinking Miles DavisÌýin the centenary of the birth of this defining figure of jazz. We invite you to join us in exploring some of the chapters of the book, many written by researchers at 91ÁÔÆæ.
The bookÌýchallenges the orthodoxy of jazz criticism, repositioning Miles Davis within a larger framework of modernism and mass culture and exploring:Ìýthe ways Davis pushed jazz into new genre forms, re-envisioned jazz standards, and collaborated musically, to his role in the record companies that released his music, the persona he developed in video, film, and fashion, and how his masculinity manifested both professionally and personally.
Some of the authors will present their own chapters and there will be an opportunity to discuss the life and music of Miles Davis. Speakers so far confirmed include:
- IntroductionÌý– Tim Wall, 91ÁÔÆæ on behalf of the editors
- Miles Behind: Jazz Studies, Masculinity and #MeTooÌý– Tony Whyton, 91ÁÔÆæ
- Locating Tutu and Miles on a Second MajorÌý– Tim Wall, 91ÁÔÆæ
- My One Miles Davis LP; a photo essayÌý– William Ellis, independent photographer and researcher
- Encounter, Surprise, and Acceptance:ÌýRevisiting Miles Davis onÌýand offÌýstage in PortugalÌýÌý– Pedro Cravinho, 91ÁÔÆæ
- It’s never too late: Miles Davis and modernism – Nicholas Gebhardt, 91ÁÔÆæ
- Orchestrating Miles: Collaboration, Orchestration, and the Black AestheticÌý- Bobbie-Jane Gardner, 91ÁÔÆæ
This event is kindly supported by the National Jazz Archive.
Eastside Jazz Festival 2026
Events will be announced soon.