Gulf Coast Jazz Collective celebrates the music of Chick Corea tonight (Oct. 22).
A wizard of melody and improvisation, Corea was equally at home in a quiet acoustic trio or at the forefront of the jazz fusion revolution. He is one of the most nominated artists in the history of the Grammys, with 71 nominations and 27 wins. He also earned five Latin Grammy Awards, with an additional seven nominations.

The Collective’s celebration of this jazz legend starts at 7 p.m. in the Music & Arts Community Center on Shire Lane, just off Daniels Road.

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Known for adventurous improvisation, genre-crossing collaborations and an endlessly curious musical mind, Corea attained legendary status after five decades of unparalleled creativity and artistic output. He helped usher in jazz fusion as a keyboardist with icon Miles Davis' band starting in the late 1960s before forming Return to Forever, one of the most acclaimed jazz-rock bands, which included Stanley Clarke and Lenny White. A NEA Jazz Master, Corea was named Artist of the Year three times between 2014 and 2018 in the DownBeat Readers Poll, a publication that called him “a pianist virtually without peer.”

From straight ahead to avant-garde, bebop to fusion, children's songs to chamber music, Mozart to Thelonious Monk, Corea ventured into an astonishing number of musical genres during his career.

“His legacy is integrity,” said famed bassist Christian McBride, who — along with drummer Brian Blade — played on Corea’s last tour, which was captured in the recording that won the 2026 Grammy, "Windows (Live),” a track from the album “Trilogy 3.”

Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.