Sunday, December 6 at 8pm
Ars Nova Workshop
in Residence
Claudia
Quintet +1
John Hollenbeck, drums + percussion; Chris Speed, tenor saxophone;
Matt Moran, vibraphone; Ted Reichman, accordion; Drew Gress,
double-bass
Gary Versace, piano
This is a true ensemble
from top to bottom, a sonic equivalent to a hand-woven tapestry...
Impressive. - DownBeat
This brilliant New York band led by
drummer and composer John Hollenbeck - a leader of a new generation
of musicians who have brought together many disparate threads
of contemporary music to create a new sound - recasts jazz
in shimmering new shapes inflected by classical minimalism,
new music, progressive rock and post-rock. The Claudia Quintet
embraces the textural freedom of electronic sounds and improvisation,
the structural ambition of contemporary classical music, and
most importantly, the joy of bodacious grooves and unapologetically
gorgeous melodies. For this ensemble, Hollenbeck has assembled
a group of the foremost innovators in this new sound to create
a powerhouse band.
The quintet's one-of-a-kind jazz and
beyond sound, with massive emotional depth, comes organically
from the uncanny interplay of its virtuosos: Drew Gress (John
Surman, Uri Caine, Ravi Coltrane), Matt Moran (Slavic Soul
Party, Mat Maneri, Theo Bleckmann), Ted Reichman (Anthony
Braxton, Marc Ribot, Paul Simon), and Chris Speed (Human Feel,
Bloodcount, AlasNoAxis), accompanied by guest pianist Gary
Versace, best known for his work with John Scofield, John
Abercrombie and Maria Schneider. Their beautifully seductive
work features propulsive grooves, catchy melodies and improvisation
that is nothing short of telepathic.
