177:(the day after his 20th birthday), where he served with a unit of the 20th Combat Engineer Brigade in Lai Khe, building roads and clearing land in the jungle. One of Williams' earliest, and most often cited, musical opportunities was in Vietnam when an Army entertainment director heard him play and suggested that he perform for the troops in the field. The Soul Coordinators was born of this request and started Kimo Williams' long resume of performances, both with bands and on his own.
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Chicago that he and Carol could continue producing and performing with his large ensemble (now called “Kimotion”) and their small-group “Williams and Williams”, in local clubs and concert venues. They set up a music publishing company (One Omik Music), as well as launched their own record company (Little Beck Music). To record their music, they rehabbed an old storefront in Chicago, and built and operated a recording studio there.
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marrying his wife in 1978, the couple together joined the Army Band program, spending a year with the 9th
Infantry Division Band at Ft. Lewis, Washington. Kimo went on to attend Officer Candidate School and was commissioned a 2nd lieutenant in 1980. His first assignment brought him to Fort Sheridan,
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In 1968, he moved to Hawaii to join his father (a career Air Force
Sergeant) and attended Leilehua High School. A dedicated, but inexperienced guitar player, he also took up sports and was an all-star football performer with a scholarship invitation from Arizona State. The night before enlisting in
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His compositions include works for chamber ensembles and orchestras and have been performed by groups worldwide, including the Czech
National Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Sinfonietta. In October 2013 a commission by Williams for the string quartet
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When he left the army in 1987 to pursue composing full-time he had risen to the rank of captain. He taught at
Sherwood Conservatory of Music in Chicago, and in the Music Department at Columbia College Chicago.
130:. Cognizant of the opportunities he had, as well as those he did not due to a childhood in which he moved often, Williams speaks to students about his history, their future and their need to combat mediocrity.
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He completed his military service in the Army
Reserves by becoming the Bandmaster for the 85th Division Army Reserve Band, and retired from the Army Reserves as a Chief Warrant Officer in 1996.
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and the
Savannah Symphony Orchestra. Buffalo Soldiers, one of his most well-known works, was the result of a commission by The West Point Academy to celebrate their 2002 Bicentennial.
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Kimo
Williams was named Chicagoan of the Year in 2006, and was recognized for a lifetime of work including the 1998 founding of the United States Vietnam Art Program.
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157:. While a student he founded The Paumalu Symphony, now known as Kimotion. After teaching at Berklee for one year, he graduated in 1976 with a BA in Composition.
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114:(born January 8, 1950) is an American composer, musician and professor who has performed with a number of ensembles including his ensemble Kimotion and the
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playing at the
Waikiki Bowl. He was so inspired by this concert and the music of Jimi Hendrix, that he dedicated himself to music and playing guitar.
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In 1976 Williams met his music partner and future wife Carol, a fellow
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In 1996, he accepted a position in the Arts Entertainment and Media Management Department of
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After leaving Vietnam in 1970, Williams used his GI Benefit and attended the
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the US Army on July 4, 1969, he attended his first major music concert:
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was performed during the Alabama Symphony's annual musical tribute to
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301:"Kimo Williams and Kimotion"
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363:"James "Kimo" Williams"
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416:"Measure for Measure"
389:"Reflect and Rejoice"
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112:James "Kimo" Williams
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393:The Birmingham News
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315:"Biography"
219:Gary Sinise
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511:Categories
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134:Background
128:West Point
65:1950-01-08
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169:Military
101:vocalist
97:Musician
175:Vietnam
261:Honors
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