The Charles Mingus Ensemble, founded at UCLA in the fall of 2011, brings together students with backgrounds in jazz, classical, and world music to integrate compositional and improvisational traditions, following in the footsteps of the great bandleader, composer, and bassist Charles Mingus, whose Jazz Workshop was at the cutting edge of using improvisation and other approaches to explore and develop musical ideas. The ensemble plays compositions by jazz greats including Charles Mingus, as well as originals composed by members of the ensemble and the occasional foray into music from outside the jazz canon. James Newton, master flute player and Director of the Department of Ethnomusicology at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, directs the ensemble. Tonight offers the chance to see a new generation of musicians inspired by the spirit and creativity of Charles Mingus.