Gary native and Pulitzer Prize finalist Jlin teams with TCP for upcoming landmark events
Published on October 9, 2026
by Elaine Hegwood Bowen, M.S.J. | Share this post! 
“All together, they combine for a fresh sound, blending TCP’s contemporary classical training with Jlin’s signature electronic technique.”
Third Coast Percussion (TCP), a GRAMMY Award-winning Chicago-based percussion quartet and GRAMMY-nominated composer collective, announces the Chicago engagements for its 2026-2027 season.
On Thursday, October 15, at 7:30 p.m., TCP presents a new original program, Vernacular, in collaboration with Pulitzer Prize finalist and electronic music artist Jlin, with its Chicago Premiere at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (220 E. Chicago Ave.), co-presented by Chicago Humanities. For more information, visit MCAchicago.org.
Premonition is one of two new pieces commissioned for TCP and Jlin by the 92nd Street Y, New York. The single is available to stream on all platforms.
The five musicians will perform live on stage together in brand new arrangements of some of Jlin’s most exciting works in a program steeped in their shared Chicago roots. All together, they combine for a fresh sound, blending TCP’s contemporary classical training with Jlin’s signature electronic technique.
While Jlin has composed several previous works for TCP, this newest collaborative track features all five artists performing together for the first time.
This is a great accomplishment, and Jlin is excited to combine her overall artistic skills of both herself and TCP.
A math lover, a former steel factory worker and a proud native of Gary, Indiana, Jlin (a.k.a. Jerrilynn Patton) has risen to become one of the most distinctive composers in America and one of the most influential women in electronic music.
She has come a long way since her days of performing in Chicago’s high-energy footwork street dance style accompanied by rapid electronic dance music. As an electronic musician, she creates music using digital audio software, electronic oscillators, computers, synthesizers and drum machines rather than acoustic instruments.
But her sound is not totally defined by the footwork scene. Equally inspired by West Chicago legend RP Boo as by Igor Stravinsky and Philip Glass, Miles Davis and Edrúa Kitt, Jlin’s complex percussion-driven work has a sophisticated and uniquely polyrhythmic sound of its own. Her collaborations with TCP represent her early and pivotal entry points into composing for acoustic ensembles.
In an exclusive interview with the Chicago Crusader, she noted the ways in which she and TCP mesh electronic music with percussion instruments, such as drums, xylophones and cymbals, among others.
“Typically, I have instruments from their actual studio, and I recorded some of their acoustic sounds, percussive bowls, and various other sounds.
“Next, I may write music using those sounds, and they interpret that through my composition.
“Finally, we decided before we go out on the road, and we come to a happy medium involving who will do the melody and harmonies and who is going to do the electronic portion—to bring it together for a great performance.”