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Corky Siegel
Corky Siegel Solo - Too Many Birthdays Decelebration.
Anodyne Coffee Roasting Co.
224 W Bruce St
Milwaukee, WI 53204
Oct 26, 2025
6:00 PM CDT
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About this concert
Sagacious songs and instrumentals from the pioneer of the Siegel-Schwall Band, Chamber Blues, and Symphonic Blues.
“A piano and harmonica virtuoso of remarkable invention and wit” - BILLBOARD
Little know tidbits:
1965-1966: Corky and Jim Schwall were still in College and did not have any name recognition.
1965: Corky and his partner Jim Schwall began writing a musical with unknown playwrights Rado and Ragni. The play later became the musical HAIR. Some of the story is on the HAIR website.
1965: Corky and Jim got a weekly gig across the tracks. Surprise! The Chicago blues masters that they were just listening to on their record player, including Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Little Walter, Buddy Guy, hopped on stage with them night after night to jam and take them under their wings.
1966: Howlin’ Wolf brought his whole family to the North side to hear Siegel-Schwall. He invited the band to go on the road. For their weeklong stay in New York City, Wolf would knock on Siegel’s door every morning and they would take long walks in the Village together.
1966: Corky and Jim produced Joni Mitchell’s demo tape that included her hit song Circle Game. The story is on Joni’s website.
1966: Some fan of the band approaches Corky; “I’d like your band to jam with my band.” “Who’s your band?” Inquires Corky. His band was the Chicago Symphony and the person was Maestro Seiji Ozawa. Thus began Corky’s 60 years of bringing blues and classical audiences together.
Managed for a year by the owner of San Francisco's Avalon Ballroom, Chet Helms who was the founder of San Francisco's Summer of Love - 1967. Siegel-Schwall was at the center of the storm in San Francisco with artists opening their shows like Steve Miller, Buddy Guy, Steppenwolf, Santana, Wow! Some stories to tell.
Corky Siegel first appeared on the American music scene in the early 1960's when his ability to provoke stirring emotions through his unique synergy of vocals, keyboards, and electrifying blues harmonica quickly established him as a contemporary among the leading artists of his generation. In the beginning, Siegel teamed with his friend and guitarist, Jim Schwall to form the Siegel-Schwall Band. They were signed overnight by Vanguard, and later RCA Wooden Nickel. During the 60's and early 70's the band drew capacity crowds to the most popular clubs and auditoriums while their recordings received world acclaim. - Chicago Tribune
From 1975 through the early 1980's Siegel toured more exclusively as a solo artist, and singer-songwriter, showcasing his engaging blend of pure virtuosity, mixed with tongue-in-cheek humor. As a solo artist he has performed internationally from the Grenoble Jazz Festival in France to Canada's Montreal Jazz Festival and also toured with comedic icons Bob Hope and George Carlin. During this period, Siegel released two critically acclaimed solo recordings that captured his sterling harmonica, dazzling piano chops, and satirical lyrics.
Also during this period he released his 2nd ground-breaking recording as guest harmonica and piano soloist with Seiji Ozawa and the San Francisco Symphony on the classical label Deutsche Grammophon and continues performing worldwide as guest soloists with major symphony orchestras.
For the year 2025 he released his Symphonic Blues No. 6 recording with members of the Chicago Symphony and other local orchestras. It was a 2nd commission from the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra and Maestro Stephen Gunzenhauser in 2007 and was subsequently performed all around the world. Hear the work and read all about this amazing history here. Symphonic Blues No. 6. “A masterpiece of stunning proportions” GOLDMINE - Mike Greenblatt
The legacy of Siegel-Schwall “They knock everybody flat” - Rolling Stone Magazine, is remembered in three award-winning films featuring Corky; Born in Chicago, Horn from the Heart (The Paul Butterfield Story) and Sam Lay in Bluesland, all available on various streaming platforms.
Whether performing solo, with symphony orchestra, with his ground-breaking Chamber Blues ensemble (string quartet and tabla), performing in duets with jazz saxophone icon Ernie Watts, jazz violinist Randy Sabien, or harmonica and piano genius Howard Levy, Siegel is a joy to hear and watch.
His two latest solo albums “Something Wrong” and “Songs for Truth and Harmony” were both released in September 2022 along with a new Chamber Blues album; "More Different Voices," winning Downbeat Magazine’s “Best Albums of 2022.” And in 2017 “Different Voices” received Downbeat’s “Editors Pick.” … and 2025 for “Symphonic Blues No. 6” a Downbeat four star review. (thank you Downbeat).
Wry humor, fiery piano playing, and superb harmonica captivated the crowd. - Kansas City Star
Corky Siegel held listeners visibly spellbound with an amazingly eclectic musical style. It verged on the avant grade, and recalled the sweet sounds of reggae with a healthy dose of Chicago style blues - Chicago Tribune
Siegel is undoubtedly one America's most versatile blues artists - Daily Camera - Boulder Colorado.
Sage of the Southwest Coast - Tom Robbins (Best selling American novelist)
He plays wonderfully on piano as well as harmonica. Siegel has a fine blues touch, and he combines it all with a grand sense of humor and showmanship - San Francisco Examiner
He's a master of piano and harmonica, a superior entertainer, and a writer of unusual songs. Who else writes blues about Idaho Potatoes? - Chicago Magazine
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What fans are saying
karlos
January 7th 2025
Outstanding even though it ended up being a solo act.... a triumph for Corky to pull that off. Great venue but ot does get to be a pricey date night with dinner and drinks!
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Corky Siegel Biography
Overview:
Clever songs and instrumentals from the trail blazing legend of Siegel-Schwall, Symphonic Blues, and Chamber Blues. “A piano and harmonica virtuoso of remarkable invention and wit” - BILLBOARD
Guest soloist with major orchestra including New York Philharmonic, toured with diverse icons from Howlin' Wolf to Bob Hope and George Carlin, produced for Joni Mitchell, winner of national chamber music composition competition, San Francisco Summer of Love mainstay along with Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix, Grateful Dead ...
Latest release Nov 29, 2024: Symphonic Blues No. 6. "…a masterpiece of stunning proportions" - GOLDMINE
“For more than half a century, Corky Siegel has brought new colors to the blues ...to bridge musical genres and cultural divides, making the world slightly smaller and kinder “ Steven Wine - ASSOCIATED PRESS
BIO:
Known internationally as one of the worlds great blues harmonica players, blues pianist, singer-songwriter, and the sole pioneer/composer of award-winning revolutionary works that weave blues and classical forms together. Co-founder of the SIEGEL-SCHWALL BAND, Blues Hall of Fame Inductee, with a catalogue of recordings on RCA, Vanguard, Alligator, and million selling blues/classical recordings on the iconic classical label Deutsche Grammophon. His close associations with the blues masters in the earlier days of chicago blues, his essential part in the blues rock revolution, and his surprising success in bringing together blues and classical audiences make him a pivotal (though inconspicuous) figure in modern music history.
Along with the likes of John Cage, Steve Reich, Phillip Glass, and Meredith Monk, he is the recipient of a Meet the Composer/Reader’s Digest Commissioning Program for New American Music grant for chamber music composition resulting in his Chamber Blues ensemble’s popular Aunt Lila’s Suite; he has also been honored with the Illinois Arts Council Fellowship Award for Music Composition, the Chicago Music Awards’ Lifetime Achievement Award, and induction into the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame.
Born Mark Paul Siegel in Chicago in 1943, Corky’s professional music career began when he founded the now legendary Siegel-Schwall Band in Chicago in 1964 with guitarist Jim Schwall. The group was a major component of the young generation of white blues artists—also including Paul Butterfield, Charlie Musselwhite, Harvey Mandel, Barry Goldberg, Nick Gravenites and Michael Bloomfield—who learned the historic Chicago blues style at the feet and hands of such towering figures as Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Willie Dixon, Buddy Guy and Sam Lay.
Corky played with all these greats at Siegel-Schwall’s first steady engagement, in 1965 at Peppers, Chicago’s internationally renowned blues club. They were soon signed to Vanguard Records, with blues luminary Samuel Charters producing. Their first album, The Siegel-Schwall Band, was released in 1966, and with it the group made San Francisco a virtual second home: There the likes of Janis Joplin, Santana, Steve Miller and Joni Mitchell opened for them (Siegel-Schwall actually produced Mitchell’s demo tape); the band would record three more classic albums for Vanguard up through 1970, then five for Wooden Nickel/RCA through 1974 before going on hiatus.
In 1973 the band released Three Pieces for Blues Band and Symphony Orchestra on the prestigious classical music label Deutsche Grammophon. The titletrack was an avant-garde piece composed by jazz trombonist William Russo combining classical music played by an orchestra (the San Francisco Symphony) with blues music played by a four-piece band (Siegel-Schwall) conducted by maestro Seiji Ozawa.
Ozawa had been a huge fan of Siegel-Schwall since 1966, when he was the first music director of the Ravinia Festival–the summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He used to see the band perform frequently at Chicago blues clubs, and suggested a blues-classical collaboration. Corky worked closely with Russo, and in 1968 they premiered Three Pieces for Blues Band and Symphony Orchestra with Ozawa and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; its success—including a high charting Billboard pop and classical single culled from the program–led to Siegel-Schwall’s performance with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra on an Evening At Pops program for PBS, and in 1979, Deutsche Grammophon’s release of Russo’s Street Music, A Blues Concerto, featuring Corky on harmonica and piano, which received the French Government’s Grand Prix du Disque award as well as the Recording of Special Merit in Stereo Review.
After releasing three solo albums, Corky founded Corky Siegel’s Chamber Blues, featuring himself on harmonica, piano and vocals, the West End String Quartet of topflight Chicago classical string players, and Frank Donaldson on world percussion instruments. The novel ensemble performed Siegel’s pioneering blues/classical music compositions and released its first album, Corky Siegel’s Chamber Blues, on Chicago’s famed blues label Alligator Records in 1994. The album gained rave notices from publications like Billboard and Stereophile, and has been followed by two more albums.
Additionally, Corky has written and performed works for the Grant Park Symphony in Chicago (most recently Blues for a Green Planet-Opus 10) and the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center. He composedContinuum with renowned choreographers Alwin Nikolais and Murray Louis, and his music has also been choreographed and performed by five international ballet companies and has been used for numerous motion pictures and national TV specials, as well as the Olympic men’s figure skating competition and the World Championship skating competition featuring Olympic gold medalists Torvill and Dean. His recent commission from the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra, The Symphonic Blues Suite, has already been performed many times around the world.
Corky continues to appear internationally as guest soloist with symphony orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Metropolitana De Lisboa in Portugal, the Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal, the NHK Symphony in Japan, and the Philadelphia Orchestra with Maestro Charles Dutoit. He has performed many symphonic collaborations with Doc Severinsen, and also tours frequently with Dr. L. Subramaniam, India’s greatest Eastern classical violin virtuoso: These “global fusion” tours have further featured some of the top names in jazz including Ernie Watts and Larry Coryell.
[Siegel-Schwall disbanded in 2015, Jim Schwall and Sam Lay have now passed on.]. Meanwhile, Corky continues to perform with Siegel-Schwall, which in addition to Schwall and longtime bassist Rollo Radford, includes drummer Sam Lay, a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee as a member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. He [Corky] is prominently featured in the acclaimed documentary Born in Chicago, which recounts the history of the ‘60s rock-blues explosion and also stars Bob Dylan, Jack White, Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, Eric Burdon and Steve Miller, as well as Barry Goldberg, Harvey Mandel and Nick Gravenites; he has recorded and toured with Goldberg, Mandel, Gravenites and Lay as the Chicago Blues Reunion. [The film has since been reworked]
In 2007 Corky published the music guide book Let Your Music Soar: The Emotional Connection, co-written with Peter Krammer.
by Jim Bessman
Read MoreClever songs and instrumentals from the trail blazing legend of Siegel-Schwall, Symphonic Blues, and Chamber Blues. “A piano and harmonica virtuoso of remarkable invention and wit” - BILLBOARD
Guest soloist with major orchestra including New York Philharmonic, toured with diverse icons from Howlin' Wolf to Bob Hope and George Carlin, produced for Joni Mitchell, winner of national chamber music composition competition, San Francisco Summer of Love mainstay along with Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix, Grateful Dead ...
Latest release Nov 29, 2024: Symphonic Blues No. 6. "…a masterpiece of stunning proportions" - GOLDMINE
“For more than half a century, Corky Siegel has brought new colors to the blues ...to bridge musical genres and cultural divides, making the world slightly smaller and kinder “ Steven Wine - ASSOCIATED PRESS
BIO:
Known internationally as one of the worlds great blues harmonica players, blues pianist, singer-songwriter, and the sole pioneer/composer of award-winning revolutionary works that weave blues and classical forms together. Co-founder of the SIEGEL-SCHWALL BAND, Blues Hall of Fame Inductee, with a catalogue of recordings on RCA, Vanguard, Alligator, and million selling blues/classical recordings on the iconic classical label Deutsche Grammophon. His close associations with the blues masters in the earlier days of chicago blues, his essential part in the blues rock revolution, and his surprising success in bringing together blues and classical audiences make him a pivotal (though inconspicuous) figure in modern music history.
Along with the likes of John Cage, Steve Reich, Phillip Glass, and Meredith Monk, he is the recipient of a Meet the Composer/Reader’s Digest Commissioning Program for New American Music grant for chamber music composition resulting in his Chamber Blues ensemble’s popular Aunt Lila’s Suite; he has also been honored with the Illinois Arts Council Fellowship Award for Music Composition, the Chicago Music Awards’ Lifetime Achievement Award, and induction into the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame.
Born Mark Paul Siegel in Chicago in 1943, Corky’s professional music career began when he founded the now legendary Siegel-Schwall Band in Chicago in 1964 with guitarist Jim Schwall. The group was a major component of the young generation of white blues artists—also including Paul Butterfield, Charlie Musselwhite, Harvey Mandel, Barry Goldberg, Nick Gravenites and Michael Bloomfield—who learned the historic Chicago blues style at the feet and hands of such towering figures as Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Willie Dixon, Buddy Guy and Sam Lay.
Corky played with all these greats at Siegel-Schwall’s first steady engagement, in 1965 at Peppers, Chicago’s internationally renowned blues club. They were soon signed to Vanguard Records, with blues luminary Samuel Charters producing. Their first album, The Siegel-Schwall Band, was released in 1966, and with it the group made San Francisco a virtual second home: There the likes of Janis Joplin, Santana, Steve Miller and Joni Mitchell opened for them (Siegel-Schwall actually produced Mitchell’s demo tape); the band would record three more classic albums for Vanguard up through 1970, then five for Wooden Nickel/RCA through 1974 before going on hiatus.
In 1973 the band released Three Pieces for Blues Band and Symphony Orchestra on the prestigious classical music label Deutsche Grammophon. The titletrack was an avant-garde piece composed by jazz trombonist William Russo combining classical music played by an orchestra (the San Francisco Symphony) with blues music played by a four-piece band (Siegel-Schwall) conducted by maestro Seiji Ozawa.
Ozawa had been a huge fan of Siegel-Schwall since 1966, when he was the first music director of the Ravinia Festival–the summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He used to see the band perform frequently at Chicago blues clubs, and suggested a blues-classical collaboration. Corky worked closely with Russo, and in 1968 they premiered Three Pieces for Blues Band and Symphony Orchestra with Ozawa and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; its success—including a high charting Billboard pop and classical single culled from the program–led to Siegel-Schwall’s performance with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra on an Evening At Pops program for PBS, and in 1979, Deutsche Grammophon’s release of Russo’s Street Music, A Blues Concerto, featuring Corky on harmonica and piano, which received the French Government’s Grand Prix du Disque award as well as the Recording of Special Merit in Stereo Review.
After releasing three solo albums, Corky founded Corky Siegel’s Chamber Blues, featuring himself on harmonica, piano and vocals, the West End String Quartet of topflight Chicago classical string players, and Frank Donaldson on world percussion instruments. The novel ensemble performed Siegel’s pioneering blues/classical music compositions and released its first album, Corky Siegel’s Chamber Blues, on Chicago’s famed blues label Alligator Records in 1994. The album gained rave notices from publications like Billboard and Stereophile, and has been followed by two more albums.
Additionally, Corky has written and performed works for the Grant Park Symphony in Chicago (most recently Blues for a Green Planet-Opus 10) and the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center. He composedContinuum with renowned choreographers Alwin Nikolais and Murray Louis, and his music has also been choreographed and performed by five international ballet companies and has been used for numerous motion pictures and national TV specials, as well as the Olympic men’s figure skating competition and the World Championship skating competition featuring Olympic gold medalists Torvill and Dean. His recent commission from the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra, The Symphonic Blues Suite, has already been performed many times around the world.
Corky continues to appear internationally as guest soloist with symphony orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Metropolitana De Lisboa in Portugal, the Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal, the NHK Symphony in Japan, and the Philadelphia Orchestra with Maestro Charles Dutoit. He has performed many symphonic collaborations with Doc Severinsen, and also tours frequently with Dr. L. Subramaniam, India’s greatest Eastern classical violin virtuoso: These “global fusion” tours have further featured some of the top names in jazz including Ernie Watts and Larry Coryell.
[Siegel-Schwall disbanded in 2015, Jim Schwall and Sam Lay have now passed on.]. Meanwhile, Corky continues to perform with Siegel-Schwall, which in addition to Schwall and longtime bassist Rollo Radford, includes drummer Sam Lay, a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee as a member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. He [Corky] is prominently featured in the acclaimed documentary Born in Chicago, which recounts the history of the ‘60s rock-blues explosion and also stars Bob Dylan, Jack White, Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, Eric Burdon and Steve Miller, as well as Barry Goldberg, Harvey Mandel and Nick Gravenites; he has recorded and toured with Goldberg, Mandel, Gravenites and Lay as the Chicago Blues Reunion. [The film has since been reworked]
In 2007 Corky published the music guide book Let Your Music Soar: The Emotional Connection, co-written with Peter Krammer.
by Jim Bessman
Chamber Blues
Jazz
Symphonic Blues
Blues
Classical
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