Recipient Information
Location
Harlem, New York
Project Title
Atelier Harlem: Quite Sane Residency
Year of Award
2025
Grant or Fellowship
Jazz Road Creative Residencies Grant
Grant Amount
$39,980
As part of a 2024 Guggenheim Fellowship, the artist will undertake a three-week residency in Harlem in September 2025 to explore Creative Music of the African Diaspora, developing new repertoire with their ensemble, Quite Sane, and presenting a series of nightly concerts for the local community.
About the Artist
Anthony Tidd, a distinguished multi-instrumentalist and Guggenheim Fellow, has established a unique presence in the American creative music scene since moving from London to Philadelphia and later Harlem. Over his 30-year career, Tidd has excelled as a composer, producer, educator, and curator, collaborating with notable artists like The Roots, Meshell Ndegeocello, Lady Gaga, and The Black Eyed Peas. His debut album, Quite Sane – The Child of Troubled Times(2002), blending hip-hop, funk, and jazz, became a pivotal work in creative music circles.
Tidd’s compositions range from intimate duos to expansive orchestral pieces. His recent projects include contributions to Jay-Z’s Rest in Power – The Trayvon Martin Story (2018), the orchestral piece Sa and Alatangana for the Detroit Symphony (2019), and Black No More, a Broadway musical co-created with Tariq Trotter, John Ridley, Daryl Waters, and Bill T. Jones (2022).
During his 11 years at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia, Tidd founded the Creative Music Program, a free youth education initiative that has fostered emerging jazz talents in Philadelphia and New York City. He also curated the Sittin’ In concert series, bringing groundbreaking artists to Philadelphia audiences monthly for over eight years.
In response to COVID-19, Tidd and Dimitri Louis co-founded ACT4Music, an online festival that showcased 250 international artists and sold over 30,000 tickets in eight weeks.
In 2022, Tidd contributed to Ari-Benjamin Meyers’ Rehearsing Philadelphia project, a collaboration with Drexel University and The Curtis Institute of Music. This partnership led to the formation of Public Orchestra Philadelphia, a 50-member multi-genre orchestra that blends traditional orchestral instruments with unique additions like a DJ/sound designer, a nose flautist, a bandoneón player, and a sitarist.
As he prepares to release his sequel album, Quite Sane - To Kill a Child of Troubled Times, in June 2025, Tidd continues to push the boundaries of music, promising to feature both returning collaborators and new voices.