Marta Raviglia

Cantante, compositrice, performer. La sua ricerca si muove a cavallo tra il jazz e la musica contemporanea, tra la forma canzone e l’improvvisazione più ardita. Ha collaborato come solista con l’Orchestra Jazz della Sardegna, la Big Band della Radio Nazionale Bulgara, il Coro del Friuli Venezia Giulia, la Corale Polifonica Santa Cecilia di Sassari, l’Orchestra del Conservatorio «Bruno Maderna» di Cesena, l’Orchestra del Conservatorio di Musica «Francesco Morlacchi» di Perugia, l’ensemble di percussionisti Odwalla, il collettivo Franco Ferguson, la Tower Jazz Composers Orchestra e con, tra gli altri, David Linx, Hamid Drake, Paolo Fresu, Gabriele Mirabassi, Roberto e Eduardo Taufic, Tino Tracanna, Ettore Fioravanti, Angelo ‘Lillo’ Quaratino, Giovanni Maier, Giorgio Pacorig, Piero Bittolo Bon, Alfonso Santimone, Francesco Cusa, Vincenzo Vasi, Mauro Campobasso, Mauro Manzoni, Cristina Biagini, Maurizio Brunod, Pierluigi Balducci. È stata diretta, tra gli altri da John Tchicai, Bruno Tommaso, Paolo Silvestri, Giovanni Agostino Frassetto, Paolo Paroni, Eugenio Colombo, Gabriele Verdinelli, Pino Iodice, Mario Raja. Collabora stabilmente col trombonista Tony Cattano (Vocione), col chitarrista Simone Massaron (What About Dust), col pianista Simone Sassu (Lost Songs) e tra le sue collaborazioni interdisciplinari si annoverano quelle con il musicista/artista visivo Manuel Attanasio, col Balletto del Mediterraneo guidato dalla coreografa Alessandra Mura e con lo scrittore Claudio Morandini. Il compositore Gianluigi Giannatempo ha concepito per lei Lapses of Silence, progetto per voce solista e orchestra jazz dedicato alla musica di alcuni dei più rappresentativi compositori americani del Novecento. Ha preso parte a importanti rassegne in Italia e all’estero (Germania, Austria, Svizzera, USA) e inciso diversi dischi in qualità di leader, co-leader ed ospite. Diplomata in musica jazz e laureata in lingue e letterature straniere, insegna canto jazz presso il Conservatorio di Musica «Francesco Morlacchi» di Perugia. Tiene regolarmente seminari sull’improvvisazione e sul rapporto tra voce e movimento.Cantante, compositrice, performer. La sua ricerca si muove a cavallo tra il jazz e la musica contemporanea, tra la forma canzone e l’improvvisazione più ardita. Ha collaborato come solista con l’Orchestra Jazz della Sardegna, la Big Band della Radio Nazionale Bulgara, il Coro del Friuli Venezia Giulia, la Corale Polifonica Santa Cecilia di Sassari, l’Orchestra del Conservatorio «Bruno Maderna» di Cesena, l’Orchestra del Conservatorio di Musica «Francesco Morlacchi» di Perugia, l’ensemble di percussionisti Odwalla, il collettivo Franco Ferguson, la Tower Jazz Composers Orchestra e con, tra gli altri, David Linx, Hamid Drake, Paolo Fresu, Gabriele Mirabassi, Roberto e Eduardo Taufic, Tino Tracanna, Ettore Fioravanti, Angelo ‘Lillo’ Quaratino, Giovanni Maier, Giorgio Pacorig, Piero Bittolo Bon, Alfonso Santimone, Francesco Cusa, Vincenzo Vasi, Mauro Campobasso, Mauro Manzoni, Cristina Biagini, Maurizio Brunod, Pierluigi Balducci. È stata diretta, tra gli altri da John Tchicai, Bruno Tommaso, Paolo Silvestri, Giovanni Agostino Frassetto, Paolo Paroni, Eugenio Colombo, Gabriele Verdinelli, Pino Iodice, Mario Raja. Collabora stabilmente col trombonista Tony Cattano (Vocione), col chitarrista Simone Massaron (What About Dust), col pianista Simone Sassu (Lost Songs) e tra le sue collaborazioni interdisciplinari si annoverano quelle con il musicista/artista visivo Manuel Attanasio, col Balletto del Mediterraneo guidato dalla coreografa Alessandra Mura e con lo scrittore Claudio Morandini. Il compositore Gianluigi Giannatempo ha concepito per lei Lapses of Silence, progetto per voce solista e orchestra jazz dedicato alla musica di alcuni dei più rappresentativi compositori americani del Novecento. Ha preso parte a importanti rassegne in Italia e all’estero (Germania, Austria, Svizzera, USA) e inciso diversi dischi in qualità di leader, co-leader ed ospite. Diplomata in musica jazz e laureata in lingue e letterature straniere, insegna canto jazz presso il Conservatorio di Musica «Francesco Morlacchi» di Perugia. Tiene regolarmente seminari sull’improvvisazione e sul rapporto tra voce e movimento.

Satoko Fujii

Critics and fans alike hail pianist and composer SATOKO FUJII as one of the most original voices in jazz today. She’s “a virtuoso piano improviser, an original composer and a band-leader who gets the best collaborators to deliver,” says John Fordham in The Guardian. In concert and on approximately 80 albums as a leader or co-leader, the Japanese native (now based in Berlin) synthesizes jazz, contemporary classical, avant-rock and Japanese folk music into an innovative music instantly recognizable as hers alone.

Since she burst onto the scene in 1996 after earning her graduate diploma from New England Conservatory, Fujii has led some of the most consistently creative ensembles in modern improvised music. In 2013, she debuted a new ensemble, the Satoko Fujii New Trio featuring bassist Todd Nicholson and drummer Takashi Itani, the first piano trio she has led since her trio with Mark Dresser and Jim Black last played together in 2008. With addition of her husband trumpeter Natsuki Tamura in 2014 the core trio expanded into a new quartet called Tobira. The all-acoustic Satoko Fujii ma-do quartet, together from 2007 to 2012, showcased the latest developments in her composition for small ensembles in an intimate acoustic setting. Another acoustic quartet, the Min-Yoh Ensemble with trumpeter Tamura, trombonist Curtis Hasselbring, and accordionist Andrea Parkins is dedicated to developing written and improvised music in the collective spirit of Japanese folkloric music. Fujii also led an electrifying avant-rock quartet featuring drummer Tatsuya Yoshida of The Ruins from 2001 to 2007.

Fujii has also established herself as one of the world’s leading composers for large jazz ensembles. Since 1996, she has released a steady stream of acclaimed releases for jazz orchestras and in 2006 she simultaneously released four big band albums: one from her New York ensemble, and one each by three different Japanese bands. In 2013 she debuted the Satoko Fujii Orchestra Chicago at the Chicago Jazz Festival. In 2015, she released a CD by her new Satoko Fujii Orchestra Berlin and worked with orchestras in the Oakland, Calif., and Beilefeld, Germany.

In addition to playing accordion in Tamura’s Gato Libre quartet, she also performs in a duo with Tamura, as an unaccompanied soloist, with the international quartet Kaze, and in ad hoc groupings with musicians working in different genres. Her special projects have included collaborations with ROVA saxophone quartet, violinist Carla Kihlstedt, pianist Myra Melford, bassist Joe Fonda, and Junk Box, a collaborative trio with Tamura and percussionist John Hollenbeck. She is also a member of a collaborative quartet, Dos Dos, which features flamenco-trained percussive dancer Mizuki Wildenhahn, and percussionist Faín S. Dueñas, a founder and former member of the Grammy-nominated band Radio Tarifa. She has also toured and recorded with saxophonist Larry Ochs’ Sax and Drum Core, and appeared on albums by drummer Jimmy Weinstein, saxophonist Raymond McDonald, and Japanese free jazz legend, trumpeter Itaru Oki.

With 2016 marking her 20th year in creative music, Fujii has special events planned for around the world in Europe, North America, and Japan.

“Whether performing with her orchestra, combo, or playing solo piano, Satoko Fujii points the listener towards the future of music itself rather than simply providing entertainment,” writes Junichi Konuma in Asahi Graph. She tours regularly appearing at festivals and clubs in the U.S., Canada, Japan, and Europe. Her ultimate goal: “I would love to make music that no one has heard before.”Critics and fans alike hail pianist and composer SATOKO FUJII as one of the most original voices in jazz today. She’s “a virtuoso piano improviser, an original composer and a band-leader who gets the best collaborators to deliver,” says John Fordham in The Guardian. In concert and on approximately 80 albums as a leader or co-leader, the Japanese native (now based in Berlin) synthesizes jazz, contemporary classical, avant-rock and Japanese folk music into an innovative music instantly recognizable as hers alone.

Since she burst onto the scene in 1996 after earning her graduate diploma from New England Conservatory, Fujii has led some of the most consistently creative ensembles in modern improvised music. In 2013, she debuted a new ensemble, the Satoko Fujii New Trio featuring bassist Todd Nicholson and drummer Takashi Itani, the first piano trio she has led since her trio with Mark Dresser and Jim Black last played together in 2008. With addition of her husband trumpeter Natsuki Tamura in 2014 the core trio expanded into a new quartet called Tobira. The all-acoustic Satoko Fujii ma-do quartet, together from 2007 to 2012, showcased the latest developments in her composition for small ensembles in an intimate acoustic setting. Another acoustic quartet, the Min-Yoh Ensemble with trumpeter Tamura, trombonist Curtis Hasselbring, and accordionist Andrea Parkins is dedicated to developing written and improvised music in the collective spirit of Japanese folkloric music. Fujii also led an electrifying avant-rock quartet featuring drummer Tatsuya Yoshida of The Ruins from 2001 to 2007.

Fujii has also established herself as one of the world’s leading composers for large jazz ensembles. Since 1996, she has released a steady stream of acclaimed releases for jazz orchestras and in 2006 she simultaneously released four big band albums: one from her New York ensemble, and one each by three different Japanese bands. In 2013 she debuted the Satoko Fujii Orchestra Chicago at the Chicago Jazz Festival. In 2015, she released a CD by her new Satoko Fujii Orchestra Berlin and worked with orchestras in the Oakland, Calif., and Beilefeld, Germany.

In addition to playing accordion in Tamura’s Gato Libre quartet, she also performs in a duo with Tamura, as an unaccompanied soloist, with the international quartet Kaze, and in ad hoc groupings with musicians working in different genres. Her special projects have included collaborations with ROVA saxophone quartet, violinist Carla Kihlstedt, pianist Myra Melford, bassist Joe Fonda, and Junk Box, a collaborative trio with Tamura and percussionist John Hollenbeck. She is also a member of a collaborative quartet, Dos Dos, which features flamenco-trained percussive dancer Mizuki Wildenhahn, and percussionist Faín S. Dueñas, a founder and former member of the Grammy-nominated band Radio Tarifa. She has also toured and recorded with saxophonist Larry Ochs’ Sax and Drum Core, and appeared on albums by drummer Jimmy Weinstein, saxophonist Raymond McDonald, and Japanese free jazz legend, trumpeter Itaru Oki.

With 2016 marking her 20th year in creative music, Fujii has special events planned for around the world in Europe, North America, and Japan.

“Whether performing with her orchestra, combo, or playing solo piano, Satoko Fujii points the listener towards the future of music itself rather than simply providing entertainment,” writes Junichi Konuma in Asahi Graph. She tours regularly appearing at festivals and clubs in the U.S., Canada, Japan, and Europe. Her ultimate goal: “I would love to make music that no one has heard before.”

Garrison Fewell

Guitarist Garrison Fewell has pursued a unique pathway of creative musical evolution while touring the globe for forty years and receiving critical acclaim across a wide range of musical styles and disciplines.

Born in Philadelphia on October 14, 1953, Fewell has been performing professionally since the late 1960s. He grew up steeped in the blues styles of Mississippi John Hurt, Gary Davis, and Fred McDowell. Then in 1972 he toured Europe, the Middle East, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, where he developed a taste for a variety of world music forms. Returning to the US in 1973, he studied jazz guitar with Lenny Breau and Pat Martino and received a bachelor’s degree in performance from Berklee College of Music, where he has been a professor of guitar and ear training since 1977.

Fewell has released fifteen recordings, beginning with the 1993 Boston Music Award–winning A Blue Deeper Than the Blue, and has multiple titles ranked on Best of the Year lists in publications such as United Press International, Coda, Guitar Player, Musica Jazz, All About Jazz, The Wire, Montreal Gazette and his hometown Philadelphia Inquirer. Boston Phoenix critic Jon Garelick included Fewell’s ensemble, the Variable Density Sound Orchestra, in his best of 2009 list and declared, “The guitarist formerly known as one of Boston’s most eloquent inside players has become one of its leading experimenters.”

Fewell has taught at over fifty European conservatories, and at McGill and Laval Universities in Canada. He was a clinician for the International Association of Jazz Educators at conventions in New York City, Toronto, Maastricht, and the Montreux Jazz Festival, and has taught for the Polish Jazz Society, New York University, the New School, and Global Music Foundation in seminars across Europe. A composer and member of BMI, Fewell has published and recorded over fifty compositions.

In addition to Outide Music, Inside Voices, Fewell has authored four other books: Jazz Improvisation (Ninth World Music 1984), Jazz Improvisation for Guitar: A Melodic Approach (Hal Leonard/Berklee Press, 2005), The Art of Harmony and Improvisation (Carisch, 2007), and Jazz Improvisation for Guitar: A Harmonic Approach (Hal Leonard / Berklee Press, 2010). He writes for Guitar Player, All About Jazz, and Axe magazines, and is the recipient of music grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Artslink, and Arts International. He has also been a USIA American Cultural Specialist and received three Berklee College Faculty Fellowship Grants.Guitarist Garrison Fewell has pursued a unique pathway of creative musical evolution while touring the globe for forty years and receiving critical acclaim across a wide range of musical styles and disciplines.

Born in Philadelphia on October 14, 1953, Fewell has been performing professionally since the late 1960s. He grew up steeped in the blues styles of Mississippi John Hurt, Gary Davis, and Fred McDowell. Then in 1972 he toured Europe, the Middle East, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, where he developed a taste for a variety of world music forms. Returning to the US in 1973, he studied jazz guitar with Lenny Breau and Pat Martino and received a bachelor’s degree in performance from Berklee College of Music, where he has been a professor of guitar and ear training since 1977.

Fewell has released fifteen recordings, beginning with the 1993 Boston Music Award–winning A Blue Deeper Than the Blue, and has multiple titles ranked on Best of the Year lists in publications such as United Press International, Coda, Guitar Player, Musica Jazz, All About Jazz, The Wire, Montreal Gazette and his hometown Philadelphia Inquirer. Boston Phoenix critic Jon Garelick included Fewell’s ensemble, the Variable Density Sound Orchestra, in his best of 2009 list and declared, “The guitarist formerly known as one of Boston’s most eloquent inside players has become one of its leading experimenters.”

Fewell has taught at over fifty European conservatories, and at McGill and Laval Universities in Canada. He was a clinician for the International Association of Jazz Educators at conventions in New York City, Toronto, Maastricht, and the Montreux Jazz Festival, and has taught for the Polish Jazz Society, New York University, the New School, and Global Music Foundation in seminars across Europe. A composer and member of BMI, Fewell has published and recorded over fifty compositions.

In addition to Outide Music, Inside Voices, Fewell has authored four other books: Jazz Improvisation (Ninth World Music 1984), Jazz Improvisation for Guitar: A Melodic Approach (Hal Leonard/Berklee Press, 2005), The Art of Harmony and Improvisation (Carisch, 2007), and Jazz Improvisation for Guitar: A Harmonic Approach (Hal Leonard / Berklee Press, 2010). He writes for Guitar Player, All About Jazz, and Axe magazines, and is the recipient of music grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Artslink, and Arts International. He has also been a USIA American Cultural Specialist and received three Berklee College Faculty Fellowship Grants.

Joe Fonda

Joe Fonda is a composer, bassist, recording artist, interdisciplinary performer, producer and educator.

An accomplished international Jazz artist, Fonda has performed with his own ensembles throughout the United States ,Canada , Europe and Asia. He has  collaborated  and performed with such artists as Anthony Braxton ,Archie Shepp, Ken McIntyre, Lou Donaldson, Bill and Kenny Barron, Leo Smith, Perry Robinson, Dave Douglas, Curtis Fuller, ,  Bill Dixon, Han Bennink, Bobby Naughton, Xu Fengia, Randy Weston, Gebhard Ullmann, Carla Bley,  Carlo Zingaro, Barry Altschul, Billy Bang.

Fonda was the bassist with the renowned Anthony Braxton sextet, octet, tentet, from 1984 through 1999. Fonda also sat on the Board of Directors from 1994 to 1999, and was the President from 1997 to 1999 of the newly formed Tri-Centric Foundation. He has also performed with the 38-piece Tri-Centric orchestra under the direction of Anthony Braxton, and was the bassist for the premiere performance of Anthony Braxton’s opera, Shalla Fears for the Poor, performed at the John Jay Theater in New York, New York, October 1996.

As a composer, Fonda has been the recipient of numerous grants and commissions From Meet the Composer New York and the New England Foundation on the Arts . He has released twelve recordings under his own name. (Reviews and recordings available). Fonda was also a member of The Creative Musicians Improvisors Forum directed by Leo Smith, and was the bassist with the American Tap Dance Orchestra in New York City, directed by world renowned tap dancer, Brenda Bufalino.

In 1989, Fonda performed with Fred Ho’s Jazz and Peking opera in its world premiere at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. From 1982 to 1986 Fonda was the bassist and dancer with the Sonomama Dance Company. An independent producer since 1978, Fonda is the founding director of Kaleidoscope Arts an interdisciplinary performance ensemble and is the producer and musicial director for the Connecticut Composers and improvisors Festival from 2001 to 2011.

Currently Fonda has been recording and touring extensively with the Fonda-Stevens Group, Conference Call , The Fab Trio, The Nu Band and Bottoms Out , with performances at the Bim huis in Amsterdam, Holland,  Prague Jazz Festival, Czech Republic, Jazz Halo Festival, Belgium, Jazz Festival Thurinsen, Weimer, Germany, Berlin Jazz Festival Berlin Germany , Jazz Im Agusto Festival Lisbon Portugal, Natt Jazz Festival Bergen Norway, The Vision Festival New York, New York, Jazz and More Festival Sibiu Romania, Bakau Jazz Festival ,Azerbijan, Tondela Jazz Festival Tondala portugal , Vancouver Jazz Festival ,Vancouver Canada, Guelph Jazz Festival ,Guelph Canada .

Two of Fonda’s most recent projects are From the Source, The Off Road Quartet.

From the Source is a group that incorporates the tap dancing and poetry of Brenda Bufalino and the healing arts of Vicki Dodd, and four jazz musicians. The group has released their first CD entitled, Joe Fonda and From the Source, on Konnex Records.

The Off Road Quartet is comprised of four musicians from four different countries. Ux Fengia from Beijing China , Carlos Zingaro from Lisbon Portugal , Lucas Niggle from Zurich Switzerland and Joe Fonda New York USA. The Off Road Quartet blends the  musics from all four of these musicians cultures into a unique musicial and visual experence.

Joe Fonda is a composer, bassist, recording artist, interdisciplinary performer, producer and educator.

An accomplished international Jazz artist, Fonda has performed with his own ensembles throughout the United States ,Canada , Europe and Asia. He has  collaborated  and performed with such artists as Anthony Braxton ,Archie Shepp, Ken McIntyre, Lou Donaldson, Bill and Kenny Barron, Leo Smith, Perry Robinson, Dave Douglas, Curtis Fuller, ,  Bill Dixon, Han Bennink, Bobby Naughton, Xu Fengia, Randy Weston, Gebhard Ullmann, Carla Bley,  Carlo Zingaro, Barry Altschul, Billy Bang.

Fonda was the bassist with the renowned Anthony Braxton sextet, octet, tentet, from 1984 through 1999. Fonda also sat on the Board of Directors from 1994 to 1999, and was the President from 1997 to 1999 of the newly formed Tri-Centric Foundation. He has also performed with the 38-piece Tri-Centric orchestra under the direction of Anthony Braxton, and was the bassist for the premiere performance of Anthony Braxton’s opera, Shalla Fears for the Poor, performed at the John Jay Theater in New York, New York, October 1996.

As a composer, Fonda has been the recipient of numerous grants and commissions From Meet the Composer New York and the New England Foundation on the Arts . He has released twelve recordings under his own name. (Reviews and recordings available). Fonda was also a member of The Creative Musicians Improvisors Forum directed by Leo Smith, and was the bassist with the American Tap Dance Orchestra in New York City, directed by world renowned tap dancer, Brenda Bufalino.

In 1989, Fonda performed with Fred Ho’s Jazz and Peking opera in its world premiere at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. From 1982 to 1986 Fonda was the bassist and dancer with the Sonomama Dance Company. An independent producer since 1978, Fonda is the founding director of Kaleidoscope Arts an interdisciplinary performance ensemble and is the producer and musicial director for the Connecticut Composers and improvisors Festival from 2001 to 2011.

Currently Fonda has been recording and touring extensively with the Fonda-Stevens Group, Conference Call , The Fab Trio, The Nu Band and Bottoms Out , with performances at the Bim huis in Amsterdam, Holland,  Prague Jazz Festival, Czech Republic, Jazz Halo Festival, Belgium, Jazz Festival Thurinsen, Weimer, Germany, Berlin Jazz Festival Berlin Germany , Jazz Im Agusto Festival Lisbon Portugal, Natt Jazz Festival Bergen Norway, The Vision Festival New York, New York, Jazz and More Festival Sibiu Romania, Bakau Jazz Festival ,Azerbijan, Tondela Jazz Festival Tondala portugal , Vancouver Jazz Festival ,Vancouver Canada, Guelph Jazz Festival ,Guelph Canada .

Two of Fonda’s most recent projects are From the Source, The Off Road Quartet.

From the Source is a group that incorporates the tap dancing and poetry of Brenda Bufalino and the healing arts of Vicki Dodd, and four jazz musicians. The group has released their first CD entitled, Joe Fonda and From the Source, on Konnex Records.

The Off Road Quartet is comprised of four musicians from four different countries. Ux Fengia from Beijing China , Carlos Zingaro from Lisbon Portugal , Lucas Niggle from Zurich Switzerland and Joe Fonda New York USA. The Off Road Quartet blends the  musics from all four of these musicians cultures into a unique musicial and visual experence.

Steve Swell

Steve Swell, born in Newark, New Jersey, has been living, working and

performing in New York City his entire adult life. In the mid-seventies he

studied with Roswell Rudd, Grachan Moncur III and Jimmy Knepper after

attending Jersey City State Teacher’s College. He has toured and recorded

with such diverse jazz personalities as mainstreamers Lionel Hampton and

Buddy Rich, to so-called outsiders like Anthony Braxton and Jemeel

Moondoc. Swell has 30 recordings as a leader or co-leader and is a

featured artist on more than 100 other releases. His CD, “Suite For Players,

Listeners and Other Dreamers”, recorded on the CIMP label, was ranked

number 2 in the 2004 Cadence Readers Poll. He received grants from

USArtists International in 2006, a program of the National Endowment for

the Arts, an MCAF award (LMCC) in 2008 & 2013 and was commissioned

twice for the Interpretations Series at Merkin Hall in 2006 and at Roulette in

2012. Steve is also well known for his many collaborations with Cecil

Taylor, Bill Dixon, Alan Silva, William Parker, and his many projects

including “Slammin’ The Infinite” with Sabir Mateen, The Ullmann/Swell

4tet featuring Barry Altschul, “Unified Theory Of Sound” with Cooper-
Moore, “Fire Into Music with Hamid Drake and his large ensemble, Nation

Of We. He was the Jazz Journalist’s Association Trombonist of the Year

nominee for 2008 & 2011, named Trombonist of the Year 2008-2010, 2012 &

2014-2015 by El Intruso, an Argintinean Jazz journal and selected for the

Downbeat Critics Poll in the Trombone category from 2010-2015. Steve is a

Teaching Artist in the NYC public school system working with special

needs children and was awarded the 2008 Jubilation Foundation

Fellowship Award of the Tides Foundation for recognition of that work.Steve Swell, born in Newark, New Jersey, has been living, working and

performing in New York City his entire adult life. In the mid-seventies he

studied with Roswell Rudd, Grachan Moncur III and Jimmy Knepper after

attending Jersey City State Teacher’s College. He has toured and recorded

with such diverse jazz personalities as mainstreamers Lionel Hampton and

Buddy Rich, to so-called outsiders like Anthony Braxton and Jemeel

Moondoc. Swell has 30 recordings as a leader or co-leader and is a

featured artist on more than 100 other releases. His CD, “Suite For Players,

Listeners and Other Dreamers”, recorded on the CIMP label, was ranked

number 2 in the 2004 Cadence Readers Poll. He received grants from

USArtists International in 2006, a program of the National Endowment for

the Arts, an MCAF award (LMCC) in 2008 & 2013 and was commissioned

twice for the Interpretations Series at Merkin Hall in 2006 and at Roulette in

2012. Steve is also well known for his many collaborations with Cecil

Taylor, Bill Dixon, Alan Silva, William Parker, and his many projects

including “Slammin’ The Infinite” with Sabir Mateen, The Ullmann/Swell

4tet featuring Barry Altschul, “Unified Theory Of Sound” with Cooper-
Moore, “Fire Into Music with Hamid Drake and his large ensemble, Nation

Of We. He was the Jazz Journalist’s Association Trombonist of the Year

nominee for 2008 & 2011, named Trombonist of the Year 2008-2010, 2012 &

2014-2015 by El Intruso, an Argintinean Jazz journal and selected for the

Downbeat Critics Poll in the Trombone category from 2010-2015. Steve is a

Teaching Artist in the NYC public school system working with special

needs children and was awarded the 2008 Jubilation Foundation

Fellowship Award of the Tides Foundation for recognition of that work.

Herb Robertson

Herb Robertson: Trumpeter Herb Robertson met alto saxophonist Tim Berne in the late 1970s where he first gained attention for his playing with Berne’s groups during the years 1981­87. His lyricism, tonal distortions and use of mutes looked back to jazz’s past, while his freer improvising was quite futuristic, fitting in very well with Berne’s music and passionate alto playing. During this period he also became a band member of long time collaborator, bassist Mark Helias and drummer Gerry Hemingway. He has been active as a member of the NY Downtown Improviser’s scene since 1980. Herb has since traveled the world always playing in jazz and creative music festivals. He brings a special kind of modern lyricism through his trumpet and other wind­type instruments, having influenced younger generations of trumpeters and musicians alike.

Robertson’s music is simultaneously a game of equals and a parody of excesses, with an irreverent use of structured freedom. It is also an obtuse refraction of Ellingtonian hues and blues that’s both dramatic and compelling. Whether it’s complex large group arrangements or free form duets, Herb Robertson brings his wide knowledge of jazz history along with his original voice and adventurous spirit to each session. He has recorded extensively and can be heard on many CDs, radio and tele-broadcasts.

http://www.allmusic.com/artist/herb­robertson-mn0000679047

http://www.gerryhemingway.com/robertson.htmlHerb Robertson: Trumpeter Herb Robertson met alto saxophonist Tim Berne in the late 1970s where he first gained attention for his playing with Berne’s groups during the years 1981­87. His lyricism, tonal distortions and use of mutes looked back to jazz’s past, while his freer improvising was quite futuristic, fitting in very well with Berne’s music and passionate alto playing. During this period he also became a band member of long time collaborator, bassist Mark Helias and drummer Gerry Hemingway. He has been active as a member of the NY Downtown Improviser’s scene since 1980. Herb has since traveled the world always playing in jazz and creative music festivals. He brings a special kind of modern lyricism through his trumpet and other wind­type instruments, having influenced younger generations of trumpeters and musicians alike.

Robertson’s music is simultaneously a game of equals and a parody of excesses, with an irreverent use of structured freedom. It is also an obtuse refraction of Ellingtonian hues and blues that’s both dramatic and compelling. Whether it’s complex large group arrangements or free form duets, Herb Robertson brings his wide knowledge of jazz history along with his original voice and adventurous spirit to each session. He has recorded extensively and can be heard on many CDs, radio and tele-broadcasts.

http://www.allmusic.com/artist/herb­robertson-mn0000679047

http://www.gerryhemingway.com/robertson.html

Antonio Fusco

Sempre attento e disponibile alle nuove tendenze del jazz e della musica in generale. Il suo stile prende spunto da matrici prettamente rock e jazzistiche, fino ad arrivare alla musica sperimentale d’avanguardia. Attualmente è impegnato in diverse formazioni del panorama jazzistico italiano tra cui Giovanni Falzone “Electris”,Giovanni Falzone “Contemporary Orchestra”, Tino Tracanna “Acrobats 5et, No pair, Rino De Patre Trio, Antonio Zambrini Trio. Nel 2011 fonda il progetto “Antonio Fusco Sextet- Suite For Motian” un omaggio alla grande musica di Bill Evans e allo storico batterista Paul Motian (25 marzo 1931 – New York, 22 novembre 2011). L’album è stato pubblicato lo scorso febbraio 2014 con l’etichetta discografica dell’Auditorium Parco Della Musica di Roma: Parco Della Musica Records.
Nel dicembre 2013 nasce il nuovo progetto a suo nome “ A.FUSCO THE BILBO TRIO” con due musicisti della scena Inglese: il pianista e compositore Bruno Heinen e il contrabbassista Danese Henrik Jensen.
Ha collaborato con importanti nomi del panorama jazzistico italiano ed internazionale tra cui: Giovanni Falzone, Paolo Fresu, Tino Tracanna, Bebo Ferra, Paolino Dalla Porta, Antonio Zambrini, Roberto Cecchetto, Attilio Zanchi, Gigi Cifarelli, Steve watts, George Crowley, kristian Borrin, Garrison Fewell, Bruno Hinen, Gabriele Mirabassi e molti altri.
E’ inoltre endorser delle prestigiose batterie Giapponesi CANOPUS e delle GRANCASSE QUADRE TQ. Sempre attento e disponibile alle nuove tendenze del jazz e della musica in generale. Il suo stile prende spunto da matrici prettamente rock e jazzistiche, fino ad arrivare alla musica sperimentale d’avanguardia. Attualmente è impegnato in diverse formazioni del panorama jazzistico italiano tra cui Giovanni Falzone “Electris”,Giovanni Falzone “Contemporary Orchestra”, Tino Tracanna “Acrobats 5et, No pair, Rino De Patre Trio, Antonio Zambrini Trio. Nel 2011 fonda il progetto “Antonio Fusco Sextet- Suite For Motian” un omaggio alla grande musica di Bill Evans e allo storico batterista Paul Motian (25 marzo 1931 – New York, 22 novembre 2011). L’album è stato pubblicato lo scorso febbraio 2014 con l’etichetta discografica dell’Auditorium Parco Della Musica di Roma: Parco Della Musica Records.
Nel dicembre 2013 nasce il nuovo progetto a suo nome “ A.FUSCO THE BILBO TRIO” con due musicisti della scena Inglese: il pianista e compositore Bruno Heinen e il contrabbassista Danese Henrik Jensen.
Ha collaborato con importanti nomi del panorama jazzistico italiano ed internazionale tra cui: Giovanni Falzone, Paolo Fresu, Tino Tracanna, Bebo Ferra, Paolino Dalla Porta, Antonio Zambrini, Roberto Cecchetto, Attilio Zanchi, Gigi Cifarelli, Steve watts, George Crowley, kristian Borrin, Garrison Fewell, Bruno Hinen, Gabriele Mirabassi e molti altri.
E’ inoltre endorser delle prestigiose batterie Giapponesi CANOPUS e delle GRANCASSE QUADRE TQ.

Dario Trapani

(1987) Chitarrista, compositore e arrangiatore, studia con B. Ferra, R. Ciammarughi, Paolo Silvestri e F. Spadea e si diploma con lode in chitarra jazz al Conservatorio Verdi di Milano. Da sempre interessato alla scrittura e alla produzione digitale, impara da autodidatta i rudimenti della composizione e dell’arrangiamento popoular sui sequencer fino a vincere nel 2007 il concorso CreaMusica Project presso il Centro Professione Musica di Milano.
Una volta scoperto il jazz fonda Bop Chop insieme a Michele Guaglio e Riccardo Chiaberta, trio con cui vince il premio di Miglior jazz band italiana under 30 al Fara Music Festival 2010 di Fara Sabina (RI). Nel 2010 viene selezionato all’interno del Kilikà ensemble di R. Ciammarughi, un’idea sperimentale che si appoggia sull’utilizzo di un software che converte i movimenti in suono.
L’anno successivo insieme ai MU entra in studio per il suo primo lavoro discografico, Sensilenti, prodotto da Abeat. Seguono MU play Crookers EP nel 2011 e Drop Outs nel 2012. Durante l’estate 2012 frequenta i seminari di Siena Jazz. Nell’ aprile 2013 soggiorna a New York City per un periodo in cui ha modo di frequentare le jam session di Small’s, Fat Cat e Cleopatra’s Needle e di studiare con Gilad Hekselman e Ben Wendel. Poco dopo torna a Siena Jazz per seguire le lezioni di Nir Felder e altri. Ad oggi guida un quintetto a suo nome orientato verso le composizioni originali, dirige il collettivo Thelonious Monk del Conservatorio G. Verdi, nonetto per cui scrive arrangiamenti originali, ed è membro di Four Winds di Tino Tracanna. E’ il chitarrista della Chromatic Orchestra, quintetto sperimentale, in un progetto che fonde musica e realtime graphics. Collabora inoltre con A. Dulbecco, S. Mateen, R. Ciammaruhi, A. Succi, C. Sudhalter, G. Falzone, Tino Tracanna, F. Lento, DJ Phra (Crookers), G. Di Ienno, A. Pache, A. Orciari, R. Manzoli, A. Fusco, N. Cattaneo, R. Paglieri, V. Sicbaldi, G. Bombardieri, S. Severini, C. Battaglia, N. Ricci, M. Rottoli, R. Chiaberta, A. Rossi, C. Ottaviano e si esibisce a Umbria Jazz, Tones on the Stones, Stresa Festival, MiTo, Jazz in Sarpi, Ah Um Jazz Festival, Bluenote, Milestone, White Trash (Berlin).
(1987) Chitarrista, compositore e arrangiatore, studia con B. Ferra, R. Ciammarughi, Paolo Silvestri e F. Spadea e si diploma con lode in chitarra jazz al Conservatorio Verdi di Milano. Da sempre interessato alla scrittura e alla produzione digitale, impara da autodidatta i rudimenti della composizione e dell’arrangiamento popoular sui sequencer fino a vincere nel 2007 il concorso CreaMusica Project presso il Centro Professione Musica di Milano.
Una volta scoperto il jazz fonda Bop Chop insieme a Michele Guaglio e Riccardo Chiaberta, trio con cui vince il premio di Miglior jazz band italiana under 30 al Fara Music Festival 2010 di Fara Sabina (RI). Nel 2010 viene selezionato all’interno del Kilikà ensemble di R. Ciammarughi, un’idea sperimentale che si appoggia sull’utilizzo di un software che converte i movimenti in suono.
L’anno successivo insieme ai MU entra in studio per il suo primo lavoro discografico, Sensilenti, prodotto da Abeat. Seguono MU play Crookers EP nel 2011 e Drop Outs nel 2012. Durante l’estate 2012 frequenta i seminari di Siena Jazz. Nell’ aprile 2013 soggiorna a New York City per un periodo in cui ha modo di frequentare le jam session di Small’s, Fat Cat e Cleopatra’s Needle e di studiare con Gilad Hekselman e Ben Wendel. Poco dopo torna a Siena Jazz per seguire le lezioni di Nir Felder e altri. Ad oggi guida un quintetto a suo nome orientato verso le composizioni originali, dirige il collettivo Thelonious Monk del Conservatorio G. Verdi, nonetto per cui scrive arrangiamenti originali, ed è membro di Four Winds di Tino Tracanna. E’ il chitarrista della Chromatic Orchestra, quintetto sperimentale, in un progetto che fonde musica e realtime graphics. Collabora inoltre con A. Dulbecco, S. Mateen, R. Ciammaruhi, A. Succi, C. Sudhalter, G. Falzone, Tino Tracanna, F. Lento, DJ Phra (Crookers), G. Di Ienno, A. Pache, A. Orciari, R. Manzoli, A. Fusco, N. Cattaneo, R. Paglieri, V. Sicbaldi, G. Bombardieri, S. Severini, C. Battaglia, N. Ricci, M. Rottoli, R. Chiaberta, A. Rossi, C. Ottaviano e si esibisce a Umbria Jazz, Tones on the Stones, Stresa Festival, MiTo, Jazz in Sarpi, Ah Um Jazz Festival, Bluenote, Milestone, White Trash (Berlin).

Gianluca Elia

Musicista attivo a Milano immerso nella ricerca di azione e riflessione, individualità e collettività, presenza e assenza, sperimenta con la creatività in differenti modi, mescolando gli elementi trovati nella ricerca stessa, attraverso il suono. Studia grazie agli insegnamenti di Rudi Manzoli, Giulio Visibelli, Ausonio Calò e svariate masterclass dal jazz al free (George Garzone, Marcello Allulli, Lorenzo Fontana, Micheal Blake, Tristan Honsinger). Partecipo da circa tre anni a laboratori di ricerca tra musica e danza con l’associazione TAKLA. Da sempre volto ad attribuire la massima importanza al lavoro di forgiatura musicale, le sue più importanti. Esperienze sono la Delirium Jazz Band, i Figli di Pulcinella e l’ Innesco Trio – un trio di ricerca collettiva con cui condivide la musica attraverso vari gradi di forme sperimentali, dall’improvvisazione libera alla ricerca timbrica o formale. Collabora con numerosi progetti caratterizzati da composizioni originali e da gradi di apertura alla creazione istantanea: TAKLA Jazz Quintet – Tributo a Massimo Urbani, AWOS Quartet – quartetto di free jazz a nome di Daniele Cavallanti, NuCreative Jazz Ensemble e Milano Contemporary Art Ensemble, due progetti ideati e diretti da Daniele Cavallanti, Francesco Chiapperini NoPair, Samparka – quartetto ideato e diretto da Pasquale Calò, all’interno del collettivo (da lui fondato) Mediterraneo Radicale.Musicista attivo a Milano immerso nella ricerca di azione e riflessione, individualità e collettività, presenza e assenza, sperimenta con la creatività in differenti modi, mescolando gli elementi trovati nella ricerca stessa, attraverso il suono. Studia grazie agli insegnamenti di Rudi Manzoli, Giulio Visibelli, Ausonio Calò e svariate masterclass dal jazz al free (George Garzone, Marcello Allulli, Lorenzo Fontana, Micheal Blake, Tristan Honsinger). Partecipo da circa tre anni a laboratori di ricerca tra musica e danza con l’associazione TAKLA. Da sempre volto ad attribuire la massima importanza al lavoro di forgiatura musicale, le sue più importanti. Esperienze sono la Delirium Jazz Band, i Figli di Pulcinella e l’ Innesco Trio – un trio di ricerca collettiva con cui condivide la musica attraverso vari gradi di forme sperimentali, dall’improvvisazione libera alla ricerca timbrica o formale. Collabora con numerosi progetti caratterizzati da composizioni originali e da gradi di apertura alla creazione istantanea: TAKLA Jazz Quintet – Tributo a Massimo Urbani, AWOS Quartet – quartetto di free jazz a nome di Daniele Cavallanti, NuCreative Jazz Ensemble e Milano Contemporary Art Ensemble, due progetti ideati e diretti da Daniele Cavallanti, Francesco Chiapperini NoPair, Samparka – quartetto ideato e diretto da Pasquale Calò, all’interno del collettivo (da lui fondato) Mediterraneo Radicale.

Francesco Chiapperini

Si diploma in clarinetto presso l’Istituto Civico Gaetano Donizetti; dopo una breve esperienza all’interno dell’orchestra “I pomeriggi musicali di Milano” e diverse collaborazioni con orchestre fiati d’Italia (Gazzaniga, Samassi, Rovereto, intraprende lo studio del sassofono contralto con Daniele Cavallanti. Attraverso la sua guida diventa primo sassofonista del workshop Creative Jazz Orchestra, fondato e diretto dallo stesso Cavallanti: collettivo di musica contemporanea ispirata a formazioni ed esperienze free come la J.C.O, la Liberation Orchestra, la Global Unity e l’Italian Instabile Orchestra.
Ha partecipato a diversi seminari e incontri di musica jazz, tra cui i seminari internazionali di Sant’Anna Arresi, dove vince una borsa di studio come miglior sassofonista e come miglior gruppo di musica di insieme, quelli estivi di Siena Jazz (40ma edizione), per cui ha vinto una borsa di studio come sassofonista.
Partecipa a diversi Festival italiani come quello di Sant’Anna Arresi, Ah-Um Jazz Festival, Novara Jazz, Trentino Jazz Festival, Clusone Jazz e San Severo Jazz.
Nato a Bari nel 1978, vive a Milano, ha all’attivo sei progetti come leader: NoPair, NidoWorkshop, InSight Trio, Extemporary Vision Ensemble, Marcos Quartet e Electric! Electric! collaborando con Antonio Fusco nel progetto “Suite for Motian” e con Daniele Cavallanti nella “Milano Contemporary Art Ensemble”.Si diploma in clarinetto presso l’Istituto Civico Gaetano Donizetti; dopo una breve esperienza all’interno dell’orchestra “I pomeriggi musicali di Milano” e diverse collaborazioni con orchestre fiati d’Italia (Gazzaniga, Samassi, Rovereto, intraprende lo studio del sassofono contralto con Daniele Cavallanti. Attraverso la sua guida diventa primo sassofonista del workshop Creative Jazz Orchestra, fondato e diretto dallo stesso Cavallanti: collettivo di musica contemporanea ispirata a formazioni ed esperienze free come la J.C.O, la Liberation Orchestra, la Global Unity e l’Italian Instabile Orchestra.
Ha partecipato a diversi seminari e incontri di musica jazz, tra cui i seminari internazionali di Sant’Anna Arresi, dove vince una borsa di studio come miglior sassofonista e come miglior gruppo di musica di insieme, quelli estivi di Siena Jazz (40ma edizione), per cui ha vinto una borsa di studio come sassofonista.
Partecipa a diversi Festival italiani come quello di Sant’Anna Arresi, Ah-Um Jazz Festival, Novara Jazz, Trentino Jazz Festival, Clusone Jazz e San Severo Jazz.
Nato a Bari nel 1978, vive a Milano, ha all’attivo sei progetti come leader: NoPair, NidoWorkshop, InSight Trio, Extemporary Vision Ensemble, Marcos Quartet e Electric! Electric! collaborando con Antonio Fusco nel progetto “Suite for Motian” e con Daniele Cavallanti nella “Milano Contemporary Art Ensemble”.