I’m excited to announce I received a 2027 grant from the Illinois Arts Council!

The award supports a new body of work for my jazz organ trio. I’ll compose five original pieces and arrange five of my favorite pop songs for the group. The project will culminate in a recording, album release, and performances at Fitzgerald’s Nightclub, The CheckOut, and the Epiphany Center for the Arts.

A 2025 City of Chicago Individual Artists Program awardee, Brian Citro has been playing and writing music for 35 years. He studied with renowned guitarist Fareed Haque and is a long-time member of The Drastics. He’s performed and toured with JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound, Ted Sirota’s Heavyweight Dub!, Ackah Blay in Ghana, and many others. Brian leads a jazz quartet with Nick Mazzarella on saxophones, Quin Kirchner on drums, and Matt Ulery on bass. He also leads an organ trio with Tom Vaitsas on organ and Peter Mack on drums, and he co-leads The Hey Lows with multi-instrumentalist and producer Lance Loiselle.

Described by All About Jazz as “a proficient composer and arranger ... with flexible and sophisticated harmonic progressions,” Brian’s earned a reputation as a songwriter who balances lyricism, fresh harmonies, and unique song structures. His new album, Keep Moving (Home), on Calligram Records features 14 of his compositions performed by his quartet. Recorded to tape by engineer Dave Vettraino at Chicago’s Palisade Studio, the album presents an “emotionally resonant … convergence of composition, performance, sound, and visual presentation” (Paris Move). The music flows from Brian’s experiences as a musician and human rights lawyer living in India and traveling in Africa and Asia. Textura praised the album, saying “Citro's music rarely sounds like anyone's but his own” and “his clean, soulful attack commands attention.”

Brian’s previous album, Acoustic Pastime on ears&eyes Records, features Brian performing solo guitar arrangements of his compositions and Thelonious Monk tunes. In the past, Brian made music as Salamander and Video Gum Culture with Charles Gorczynski, Nate Lepine, and Mark Van Ziegler. Other projects include short video works with award-winning poet (and Brian’s uncle), Christopher Citro.

Brian is also a human rights lawyer and has lived, traveled, and played music in Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America.