Arkell Pavilion lawn, outdoors

Jonathan Whitney is a father, husband, son, artivist, jazz drummer, and composer. He uses his music to search for spaces to find understanding. His works often address the many facets of life lived by a Black person residing in America.

Commissions include Cooch’s Bridge | The Family, collaborations with the choreographer Ashley S.K. Davis to craft music for her dance works Divided We Fall (2019) and Ode (owed) to Black Women (2022), When The Two Shall Meet (2019) a large scale work written for the combined ensemble of the modern baroque ensemble Melomanie and the Whitney Project, as well as a separate work, Bedtime

(2019), written for Melomanie. He has been a featured artist with the Wilmington Children’s Chorus, the University of Delaware Orchestra, and Melomanie, to name a few. Artists he has performed with include Vernon James, Donald Byrd, Kevin Kirkwood, Lili Añel, Jea Street, Jr., Mike Boone, John Swana, Nadjah Nicole, V. Shayne Fredrick, Maya Belardo, The Chantelles, Tony Smith, and The Bearded Ladies. His debut album, Life’s Dimensions (2020), can be found on all platforms. He was a 2020 Delaware Established Artist Fellowship recipient for jazz composition. Jonathan is the artist-in-residence at the Episcopal Church of Saints Andrew and Matthew. He has his undergraduate degree in Music Education from the University of Delaware and a Master’s in Music in Jazz Studies from the University of the Arts.

SVAC is excited to announce a commissioned work of music has been composed by Jonathan Whitney in response to our currently on view Art Bridges Foundation loan of Lilly, by Sam Gilliam. The piece is on view in Into the Abstract in the Elizabeth de C. Wilson Museum. Generous support for this series has been provided by Art Bridges Foundation.