Event: FALL SERIES WEEK 2-Re-imagining the Song with Wind Up Birds, Thin Air Trio, dc Bond, GoGoSnap Radio, Grannia Griffith Story, Hosted By Rod Harrison
Date: 5 Nov 2011 - 7:00 pm
Description:
November 5th-Reimagining the Song
Wind up Birds
Thin Air Trio
DC Bond
GoGoSnap radio
the Grannia Griffith Story
Performers listed in order of appearance. All shows 7pm-1am
Wind Up Birds
Robert Muller / Ben Wright / Dave Wayne – WIND-UP BIRDS (formerly ‘Now Playing’) play The Music of Horace Tapscott
The music world is just beginning to grasp Horace Tapscott’s towering compositional and improvisational achievements. The fascinating life story of this musical visionary – already the topic of two scholarly books (“The Dark Tree: Jazz and the Community Arts in Los Angeles.” and “Songs of the Unsung: The Musical and Social Journey of Horace Tapscott.” – both by Stephen J. Isoardi) – will resonate very strongly with anyone interested in Black America. Black-listed for his outspoken views on race, politics and injustice in America, Tapscott was as much a Civil Rights leader and community activist as he was a musician and composer. Unable to chase jazz stardom (an oxymoron if there ever was one!) or work his way into the lucrative world of the LA studios, Tapscott gigged sporadically in storefronts and at events sponsored by the local Parks and Recreation Authority with local musicians. Thus, Tapscott served as a bandleader, mentor, and spiritual guide for an entire generation of young musicians, some of whom – such as Roberto Miranda, Sunship Theus, and Arthur Blythe – became international musical forces in their own right. Like a lot of ‘local’ artists, Tapscott’s world-class music was documented only sporadically for a handful of tiny record labels – the primary ones being Nimbus Records (now based in Albuquerque), Hat Hut, Arabesque, and Interplay. Sadly, Tapscott died of brain cancer in 1999, shortly after achieving the sort of international accolades he long deserved. We have chosen music from some of Horace Tapscott’s best known CDs (The Dark Tree, Dissent or Descent, Thoughts of Dar es Salaam, etc.) as a vehicle to pay homage to this great man. We’ll be stretching Tapscott’s piano trio music out in some very interesting ways.
WIND-UP BIRDS: Robert Muller – keyboards; Ben Wright – contrabass; Dave Wayne – drumset
Ben Wright, from Taos, New Mexico, plays double bass. He cut his teeth on Philadelphia punk rock, and has since been learning to play the bass for 20 odd years with occasional incidental formal training. A lover of the lowest frequencies, Ben has explored many disparate forms of music through the bass, yet always returns to the wellspring of improvisation. Currently, Ben plays with “Now Playing”, “The Amorphous Band of Fools,” and various eclectic partners locally and nationally.
Pianist Robert Muller is originally from Portland, Oregon, where he apprenticed with Blue Note jazz great Andrew Hill in the early ’90s. His music background includes touring with a Shriners’ Circus, backing Iranian pop stars in Vancouver, BC, gigs in New York City’s downtown scene and appearances on MTV2 with underground hip hop artist Pete Miser. Now based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, he hopes to eventually discover what he’s going to do when he grows up.
Hailing from Philadelphia, PA (by way of Ft. Lauderdale, FL) Dave Wayne has been playing the drums off and on for 30-odd years. Since arriving in Santa Fe in 1993, he’s played with numerous local jazz, blues, and rock artists such as Mark Weaver, Zimbabwe Nkenya, Venus Bogardus, The Gagan Brothers, Samba Fe, Chris Jonas, and Stefan Dill. In 2009, Dave formed his own band – The Things That Are Heard – in order to air out his own rather strange ideas concerning the relationship between composition and improvisation in music.
Thin Air Trio
THIN AIR TRIO is a sax/tuba/percussion ensemble based in northern New Mexico which specializes in refashionings of jazz-related material from such composers as Sam Rivers, Mercer Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Herbie Nichols, Randy Weston, and Mal Waldron. Their sound ranges from delicate passages to raucous interplay informed by a stripped down hot-rod free-jazz aesthetic. From drum’n’bass tinged jazz standards to the traditional rhythms of New Orleans jazz funerals, this big-little trio covers a lot of ground.
Shawn is a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who composes and performs opera and chorus music as well as jazz and improvised music. He has worked closely with both clarinetist/composer John Carter and flutist/composer James Newton.
Mark has performed, composed for, recorded and toured extensively with numerous creative music groups, including many projects for film and theater. In addition Mark is director of The Roost creative music series, now in its third annual season.
Milton was born and raised in the cultural stew that is New Orleans. He has lived, taught, cooked and performed, in Brooklyn, New Orleans, as well as in Santa Fe where he is very active in music education and the High Mayhem record label.
Shawn Woodyard – soprano/alto/tenor saxophones
Mark Weaver – tuba
Milton Villarrubia, III – drums/cymbals/toys
dc bond
home, by Deirdre Bond
An exploration in what home means through the lens of a seasoned and seasonal life. An intimate, intriguing and authentic theatrical experience with unique aerial and acrobatic apparatus, original songs, film and movement a truth is discovered and shared.
This is an excerpt of a full length performance to be premiered December 9 & 10th 2011. For more information email to dcbond505@ gmail.com.
GoGoSnap Radio
GoGoSnapRadio is: Sarah-Jane Moody (the Dolly Ranchers) on vox, ukulele, electric guitar, harmonicas, junkyard percussion, and maybe some other things, and Jeremy Bleich (birth, Circus Luminous) on melodica, oud, toy piano, guitar, bass, bells, objects, and most definitely many other things.
Incorporating a wide palette of forms and instrumentation both ancient and modern, GoGoSnapRadio creates an eclectic sound with trashy tenderness, rock n’ roll tendencies, and bitterly sincere lyrical heart. Bleich’s odd metered ear and background in classical composition, mixed with his road dog sense of contemporary soundscapes, add to Moody’s country-ish twanged out vocals, and gritty poetic rhythmic stylings. Their sound is unashamed and honest, and they channel super heros whenever possible.
Grannia Griffith Story
An under water masquerade on a sunken pirate ship. A heart-melting invasion of haunting folk melodies and gypsy swagger. A sound that is so bold yet so subtle that one can not decide whether to float or sink whilst immersed in it. The dynamic and ambient mixture of guitar, stand up bass, viola, mandolin, percussion, and tight harmony creates a lucid and fantastical world through which young vocalist Grannia Griffith navigates with hypnotic poise and grace. From the thoughtful and inspiring lyrics to the welcoming and gentle sound, the group succeeds in taking the listener on a multi faceted ride through states unexplored since the days when imagination was reality.
Location: High Mayhem Studio, 2811 Siler Ln, Santa Fe,