Have any questions?
(614) 292-3535
Contact Us
Past Talks & More
Book Signing
Free for all audiences with ticket
ACCESSIBILITY We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. If you have questions about accessibility or require an accommodation such as CART captioning or ASL interpretation to participate in this event, please email accessibility@wexarts.org or call (614) 688-3890. Requests made by two weeks in advance will generally allow us to provide seamless access, but the Wexner Center for the Arts will make every effort to meet requests made after this date.
Ohio State Professor and jazz musician Michael Smith launches his new book, which looks into the untold histories of lesser-known popular jazz musicians.
Join Smith to celebrate the launch of his new book, In with the In Crowd: Popular Jazz in 1960s Black America (University Press of Mississippi). The book explores the hidden history of best-selling jazz musicians of the 1960s who were popular in clubs, on the radio, and in record-store sales, but are excluded from most studies of the era. Learn more about musicians like Eddie Harris, Nancy Wilson, Ramsey Lewis, and Jimmy Smith, who helped build and sustain a vibrant, celebratory cultural scene defined by Black pride. After the talk and reading, Smith will sign copies of the new book, which is available for purchase in the Wexner Center Store.
IMAGE CAPTIONFrom left to right: In With the In Crowd: Popular Jazz in 1960s Black America book cover, Mike Smith; images courtesy of the author.
Michael Smith has played drums in numerous jazz, soul, rock, country, and polka bands; he has performed as a jazz, rock, and choral ensemble vocalist; he has been an orchestral percussionist; and he has conducted jazz bands, concert bands, and orchestras across the country, including in New York’s famed Carnegie Hall. Smith has been a music educator for more than 40 years, with experiences teaching at every level from kindergarten through university. The coordinator and area head of Jazz Studies at Ohio State, he conducts the University Jazz Ensemble and the jazz fusion combo, as well as teaching jazz history and jazz education classes. In 2024, Smith received The Ohio State University Distinguished Scholar Award.
LEARNING & PUBLIC PRACTICE PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BYAmerican Electric Power FoundationCoverMyMedsHuntington
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BYIngram-White Castle FoundationOhio Arts CouncilThe Ohio State University Office of Outreach & EngagementMilton and Sally Avery Arts FoundationMartha Holden Jennings Foundation
SUPPORT FOR LEARNING & PUBLIC PRACTICE RESIDENCIES PROVIDED BYMike and Paige Crane
WEXNER CENTER PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BYGreater Columbus Arts CouncilThe Wexner FamilyInstitute of Museum and Library ServicesMellon FoundationEvery Page FoundationOhio Arts Council, with support from the National Endowment for the ArtsCampusParcNationwide FoundationLois S. and H. Roy Chope Fund of The Columbus FoundationOhio State’s Global Arts + Humanities Discovery ThemeThe Columbus FoundationAxium Packaging
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BYOhio State Energy PartnersOhio History Fund/Ohio History ConnectionDavid Crane and Elizabeth DangMelissa Gilliam and William GrobmanRebecca Perry Damsen and Ben Towle
Michael Smith
