Marshall Allen will celebrate his 80th birthday this Tuesday at New York City’s famed St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral. Part of the ninth annual Vision Festival, Allen will perform a brief set with the Sun Ra Arkestra, highlighting a multi-band bill that also includes the Khan Jamal Quintet and James ‘Blood’ Ulmer, among others.
Allen has played alto saxophone in Sun Ra’s Arkestra for 48 years, leading the Afro-beat collective since Ra’s 1993 death.