Alliance for Improvised Music

New Show


Gerry Hemingway
w/ Ellery Eskelin, Herb Robertson, Mark Dresser
Thurs, May 28, 1998, 8 pm,
$12, Nelson Music Room.


If there is one show not to miss this summer, it is the Gerry Hemingway Quartet! His music has been an influence of mine for several years, leading me to challenge myself and strive to be more productive and creative with my own compositions and performances. His innovative drumming speaks directly to the audience and I can assure you that he will inspire you as well, even if you are not a composer or performer.

Mr. Hemingway has been a major contributor to the creative music scene for the past 24 years. He has performed with composers and musicians such as Anthony Braxton, Marilyn Crispell, Reggie Workman, Georg Gräwe, Fred Hersch, and Don Byron. He has become one of the most influential composers of creative music himself during this time and is a masterful drummer whose style draws on many influences -- Edward Blackwell, Baby Dodds, Sid Catlett, Roy Haynes, and Sunny Murray to name a few.

Mr. Hemingway is currently touring the world, presenting both his American quartet and his European quintet. For this performance, he will be joined by Ellery Eskelin (tenor), Mark Dresser (bass), and Herb Robertson (trumpet). Mr. Hemingway treats his groups like a family and this leads him to encourage and showcase the wonderful players that support his works, creating a richer, more personal performance. The emphasis lies on the flow of music from musician to audience, accomplished with astounding technique. Again, this is a show that must be seen!

-- Will Connor
(Will Connor is the drummer in the band Dzu Teh and heads the Triangle Creative Musicians Coalition.)

GERRY HEMINGWAY has been performing solo and ensemble music since 1974. He has released several albums on the Hat Art, Sound Aspects, and Random Acoustics labels. The Quartet's most recent release, Johnny's Corner Song, has just been issued on Auricle Records. He was the drummer for 12 years in the Anthony Braxton quartet and has recorded and performed with Derek Bailey, Wadada Leo Smith, Ray Anderson, Barry Guy, Oliver Lake, John Cale, and Anthony Davis. The recipient of numerous fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the NY Foundation for the Arts, he has also received a commission from the Kansas City Symphony for a concerto for percussionist and orchestra.

ELLERY ESKELIN is a noted composer and sax player, cited as "the most inventive American tenor player in creative music" by Down Beat. His homage to Gene Ammons, The Sun Died, was named one of the "10 Best Recordings of 1996" by the NY Times and his Jazz Trash trio has been hailed as "one of the unsung treasures in creative music." That trio's performance here last September was named among the "10 Best of the Year" by both The News and Observer and The Spectator. He has recorded for the Black Saint, Songlines, and Hat Art labels.

MARK DRESSER, a virtuoso bassist, was also a part of that great Braxton quartet and has recorded and performed with musicians such as Ray Anderson, Tim Berne, Anthony Davis, and John Zorn, appearing on over 60 albums. He is a founding member of the Arcado String Trio which has released five albums and his composition "Bosnia" was recorded by the Double Trio as Green Dolphy Street for Enja Records. He has released albums on the Black Saint, Knitting Factory, and Tzadik labels.

HERB ROBERTSON is internationally renowned as an innovative instrumentalist, composer, and arranger in traditional and avant-garde jazz and new music. He has performed and recorded with Tim Berne, Mark Helias, John Zorn, George Gruntz, Bobby Previte, London Jazz Compsers Orchestra, Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra, and Bill Frisell. He has also recorded five albums under his leadership for JMT. The NY Times said: "Herb Robertson has a voracious appetite for the jazz past, with an eye toward the future."

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