Ask the Ages

Ask the Ages brings together new and old friends from several worlds: Greg Campbell, drums; John Seman, bass; Matt Reid, trumpet & electronics; and Brian Heaney, electric guitar and compositions. Joining the quartet are trombonist Stuart Dempster, classical harpist Melissa Walsh, and Indian karnatic singer Archana Bennur. They'll perform music drawn from the edges of jazz and new music with sights set for drone und drang. Opening the show is the guitar trio of Dennis Rea, Stephen Parris and Brian Heaney.

read more → Ask the Ages

Earshot: Trio Illogic + Helix

Presented by Earshot Jazz as part of their Jazz: the 2nd Century series. Helix is an ensemble with an unusual lineup: two saxophones and two percussionists. Eric Barber and Greg Sinibaldi perform on tenor saxophones, while Paul Kikuchi and Greg Campbell play drumsets and other percussion instruments. Trio Illogic consists of three relative newcomers to the Seattle jazz scene: trumpeter Riley Mulherkar, pianist Julian Garvue, and trombonist Willem de Koch, who make sense of the New Orleans traditional jazz approach by pulling it apart and putting it back together for modern times.

read more → Earshot: Trio Illogic + Helix

Paul Taub & Cristina Valdes

Paul Taub, flute and Cristina Valdes, piano perform music from this century and the last: Aaron Copland, Duo for Flute and Piano; Julie Mandel, Blues for Paul; Olivier Messiaen, Le Merle Noir from Petites Esquisses D’Oiseaux; Jovino Santos Neto, Sertao Carioca; Wayne Horvitz, Inside Morning; Peteris Vasks, Sonata for Solo Flute; Bela Bartok, Suite Paysanne Hongroise

read more → Paul Taub & Cristina Valdes

S. Eric Scribner & Neal Meyer

S. Eric Scribner is a pianist, composer, and improviser. Much of his music is involved with aleatory sequences and improvisation. Discarded Poems is a theatrical piece in which the performers gradually move from sounds of the here-and-now into sounds of the eternal, figuratively “discarding” texts along the way. Also on the program: two short pieces for piano and percussion, and an improvised set with Neal Meyer.

Seattle composer Neal Meyer has been working on Gradus: For Fux, Tesla, and Milo the Wrestler since 1987: Learn to play the piano one note at a time. Devote an extended improvisation session to each note on the piano, and to each possible combination of notes in turn. Begin with pitch-class A. Play in such a way (patiently, quietly, with lots of space) that the music is experienced and heard as a duo for pianist and piano, with unintended ambient sound joining in chorus.

read more → S. Eric Scribner & Neal Meyer

Andy Hayleck & Paul Neidhardt

Presented by Seattle Improvised Music.

Andy Hayleck and Paul Neidhardt, both percussionists from Baltimore dedicated to exploring new sounds and forms through surface and vibration (with Hayleck on computer and electronics as well), are core members of Baltimore's improvised music scene. They will perform as a duo and in collaboration with Seattle improvisers, including Gust Burns (piano) and Tyler Wilcox (saxophone).

read more → Andy Hayleck & Paul Neidhardt

Affinity Chamber Players

The Affinity Chamber Players perform music by four contemporary composers, including one world premiere and two local premieres. The program includes Eric Flesher's Three Movements from “Wandering Rocks”, Stephen Lilly's A Sextet of Seven for Ecstya, Chris Stover's ôvo, and Ryan M. Hare's Chamber Concerto.

read more → Affinity Chamber Players

Lara Candland & Christian Asplund

Utah-based poet and singer, Lara Candland and composer-performer Christian Asplund have evolved a unique style of performance involving an ethereal and lush mix of speech, singing, live sampling, looping, layering, drones, and electronics. They will draw from poems in Candland's recently published Alburnum of the Green and Living Tree. For this performance they will be joined by Seattle virtuosi Jesse Canterbury (clarinet), Greg Campbell (percussion), and Stuart Dempster (trombone).

read more → Lara Candland & Christian Asplund