Christian McBride & Ursa Major

Christian McBride & Ursa Major Bring GRAMMY-Winning Jazz Power, New Jersey Legacy, and the Future of Modern Improvisation to the Berlind Theatre

New Jersey’s relationship with jazz has never been passive.

This is a state that helped shape the music itself — from the clubs of Newark and Jersey City to the legendary artistry that emerged from towns and cities across the region. Jazz in New Jersey has always existed as both cultural identity and artistic language, carried forward through generations of musicians, educators, broadcasters, institutions, festivals, and audiences who understand that the music is not frozen in history. It is constantly evolving.

That continuing evolution will take center stage on Sunday, June 7, 2026 at 7:00 PM, when internationally celebrated bassist, composer, bandleader, educator, and eleven-time GRAMMY winner Christian McBride arrives at the Berlind Theatre alongside his electrifying ensemble Ursa Major for what promises to be one of the most important jazz performances of New Jersey’s summer arts season.

Running 90 minutes without intermission, the evening represents far more than a major concert booking.

It is the convergence of New Jersey jazz history, contemporary virtuosity, intergenerational mentorship, and the future of modern improvisational music all unfolding in real time on a single stage.

Few artists in contemporary music possess the stature, versatility, influence, and universal respect commanded by Christian McBride.

For more than three decades, McBride has occupied a singular position within the global music world — one equally grounded in technical mastery, artistic curiosity, cultural leadership, and relentless innovation. Although widely recognized as one of the greatest jazz bassists of his generation, that description alone barely scratches the surface of his impact.

McBride has become one of the defining ambassadors of American music itself.

Whether performing straight-ahead acoustic jazz, avant-garde improvisation, fusion, R&B, funk, orchestral composition, neo-soul, or cross-genre collaborations, he approaches every musical setting with remarkable fluidity and emotional intelligence. His work continuously demonstrates that jazz is not a museum piece but a living artistic force capable of absorbing and transforming virtually every musical language it encounters.

That expansiveness has helped make McBride one of the most respected figures not only in jazz circles, but across the broader global music industry.

His career has included collaborations with legends spanning multiple generations and genres, while his role as a bandleader continues pushing contemporary jazz into new territory without abandoning the deep traditions that shaped it.

Importantly for New Jersey audiences, McBride’s influence extends far beyond performance alone.

He currently serves as Artistic Director for several of the nation’s most important jazz institutions, including the historic Newport Jazz Festival, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, the TD James Moody Jazz Festival, and the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. His leadership inside these organizations reflects a larger mission that has become central to his career: preserving jazz history while aggressively investing in its future.

That investment in future generations remains one of McBride’s defining characteristics.

As Artistic Director of Jazz House KiDS and the Jazz Aspen Snowmass Summer Sessions, McBride has become deeply involved in mentoring and supporting emerging musicians. His work as an educator and advocate continues shaping the next generation of jazz artists while expanding access to music education for young performers nationwide.

In many ways, Ursa Major represents the purest extension of that philosophy.

Rather than surrounding himself exclusively with established veterans, McBride intentionally assembled Ursa Major around four extraordinary rising musicians whose collective chemistry, technical daring, and creative fearlessness embody the future of contemporary jazz.

The ensemble features saxophonist Nicole Glover, guitarist Ely Perlman, pianist Mike King, and drummer Savannah Harris — each already rapidly emerging as major voices within the modern jazz landscape.

Together, the group creates a sound that feels simultaneously rooted in classic jazz language and entirely forward-looking.

Nicole Glover’s saxophone work brings a powerful combination of lyricism, harmonic sophistication, and spiritual intensity that has quickly established her as one of the most compelling improvisers of her generation. Her playing balances emotional warmth with technical authority, capable of moving seamlessly from intimate melodic passages into explosive improvisational flights.

Ely Perlman contributes a guitar voice that resists easy categorization, blending jazz tradition with contemporary harmonic experimentation and rhythmic fluidity. His work inside the ensemble adds both atmospheric texture and sharp-edged improvisational momentum.

Mike King’s piano playing introduces another dimension entirely — one balancing rhythmic drive, harmonic daring, and modern compositional sensibility. His ability to shift dynamically between supportive ensemble work and highly adventurous solo exploration helps give Ursa Major much of its unpredictable energy.

Meanwhile, drummer Savannah Harris continues establishing herself as one of the most exciting rhythmic voices in contemporary music. Her playing combines precision, emotional instinct, and explosive creativity, creating rhythmic environments that continuously push the ensemble into new terrain.

At the center of it all remains McBride himself.

His bass playing has long been celebrated not simply for technical excellence, but for its extraordinary ability to unify ensemble performance. McBride functions simultaneously as rhythmic anchor, melodic counterpoint, emotional guide, and improvisational instigator. Few musicians possess his ability to elevate every player around them while still commanding the full emotional gravity of a performance.

That leadership becomes especially compelling inside a group like Ursa Major.

The ensemble operates less like a traditional hierarchy and more like an evolving musical conversation between generations — one where experience and emerging innovation continuously challenge and inspire each other. The result is jazz that feels urgent, adventurous, and deeply alive.

For New Jersey’s arts scene, the performance also represents another major moment in the state’s continuing emergence as a premier destination for world-class live jazz.

Over the past decade, New Jersey’s jazz ecosystem has expanded dramatically through a combination of institutional investment, educational outreach, performance programming, and audience development. Venues throughout Newark, Princeton, Montclair, Red Bank, Jersey City, and beyond have increasingly attracted elite international performers while simultaneously supporting local musicians and youth development initiatives.

Christian McBride stands directly at the center of that cultural movement.

As both performer and arts leader, he has become one of the most important figures shaping New Jersey’s contemporary jazz identity. His involvement with NJPAC and Jazz House KiDS has helped reinforce the state’s position as one of the nation’s most vibrant jazz communities while ensuring younger audiences continue discovering the music in meaningful ways.

The upcoming Berlind Theatre performance therefore carries significance beyond entertainment alone.

It reflects the ongoing vitality of jazz culture itself.

At a moment when live music audiences increasingly crave authenticity, improvisation, emotional connection, and artistic risk-taking, jazz has experienced a renewed cultural resurgence. Younger listeners are discovering the genre not as historical artifact, but as one of the few remaining musical forms built around spontaneity, interaction, and real-time creativity.

Ursa Major embodies that resurgence perfectly.

The group refuses predictability. Songs evolve organically. Solos become conversations. Rhythms fracture and reconnect. Harmonies expand unexpectedly. Every performance becomes unique because the music itself is being actively discovered in the moment.

That sense of unpredictability remains one of jazz’s greatest powers.

And few musicians understand how to harness that power more effectively than Christian McBride.

His work consistently demonstrates that technical brilliance alone is never enough. The greatest jazz performances create emotional immediacy — the feeling that anything might happen at any moment, and that the musicians themselves are discovering new possibilities alongside the audience.

For attendees entering the Berlind Theatre on June 7, that is precisely the experience awaiting them.

An evening led by one of the most important musicians of his era. A rising ensemble helping define the future of modern jazz. A performance rooted deeply in tradition while fearlessly reaching toward new artistic ground. And a reminder that in New Jersey, jazz is not simply preserved.

It is still evolving.