Marshall Belford Allen was born in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1924. He is a famed and beloved jazz musician specializing in American free Jazz and performing as an avant-garde jazz alto saxophone player. He is also accomplished performer on the flute, oboe,and the piccolo.

During World War II, Marshall Allen joined the United States Army and served our nation with honor and distinction in France as a member of the 92 nd Infantry Division. He is one of the last surviving Buffalo Soldiers and was a member of the famous Black Cavalry Unit, and as a soldier, Mr. Allen began to study and learn how to play the clarinet, saxophone and directed a small musical unit to entertain the troops.

After World War II, he continued his clarinet studies under the GI Bill at the Paris Conservatory. He played the saxophone and toured Europe with numerous influential Jazz Musicians as well as playing in small groups he formed.

In 1955, Mr. Allen began performing for famed jazz artist Sun Ra (Herman Poole Blount) and his popular group “The Arkestra”. Since Sun Ra’s passing in 1993, John Gilmoremled the band until his passing in 1995. Soon after Mr. Allen led the Arkestra and helped maintain its status as an elite jazz performing group, and under his guidance, has helped the Arkestra record numerous albums as their bandleader.

Pianist, composer, and artist Jason Moran has released 18 solo recordings with Blue Note Records and Yes Records. In 2022, he was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and was recently awarded the 2023 German Jazz Prize for Pianist of the Year. His latest recording, From the Dancehall to the Battlefield, is devoted to the music of World War I jazz pioneer and organizer James Reese Europe.

Moran has collaborated with several contemporary artists, such as Joan Jonas, Kara Walker, Stan Douglas, Theaster Gates, and Remy Jungman.

Alicia Hall Moran, mezzo-soprano, is a multi-dimensional artist performing and composing between the genres of Opera, Art, Theater, and Jazz. Ms. Moran made her Broadway debut in the Tony-winning revival The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, starring as Bess on the celebrated 20-city American tour. "Moran finds the truth of the character in her magnificent voice," Los Angeles Times.

A unique vocalist performing across the fine arts and in her own contemporary work, Ms. Moran's creativity has been nurtured by, and tapped by celebrated artists including Carrie Mae Weems, Adam Pendleton, Joan Jonas, Ragnar Kjartansson, Simone Leigh, Liz Magic Laser, curator Okwui Enwezor, and choreographer Bill T. Jones, musicians like Bill Frisell, Charles Lloyd, and the band Harriet Tubman, diverse writers from Simon Schama to Carl Hancock Rux, as well as institutions at the forefront of art and ideas worldwide.

John Schreiber is President and CEO of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Born in Queens, New York. An Emmy and Tony award-winning producer, John’s career has spanned festivals, concerts, television, film, and theater.