Greg Glassman Quartet

Brooklyn-based trumpeter, Greg Glassman, is an advanced improviser, and an active staple of the jazz scene in New York City. A protégé of Marcus Belgrave and Clark Terry, Greg has performed in bands led by some of the world’s greatest musicians, including David Schnitter, Oliver Lake, Eric Lewis, Lakecia Benjamin, Stacy Dillard, Saul Rubin, Frank Lacy, Javon Jackson, and John Esposito. He has toured the world, from Singapore to Siberia, Algeria to Iceland, with artists like Burning Spear, Oscar Perez, Roswell Rudd, The Skatalites, and currently with 2017 MacArthur Genius, Taylor Mac. He maintains a lively performance schedule as a bandleader around town, and teaches jazz trumpet at Bard College. Once upon a time, Eric Lewis was a decorated, up-and-coming jazz pianist, a sideman for Wynton Marsalis and Elvin Jones, among others, and the winner of the 1999 Thelonious Monk International Piano competition. A decade into his career, he had an epiphany. The songs he was playing weren’t speaking to him the way he wanted them to: while they were part of the traditional jazz repertoire, they weren’t part of his own emotional repertoire. On the other hand, there were contemporary rock songs whose lyrics meant the world to him. Lewis considered the landscape, drew the curtain, and reemerged as ELEW, a revolutionary artist who combines virtuosic skill on the grand piano with an unprecedented openness to modern pop and rock music. Jazz pianists have always interpreted popular songs. Art Tatum did. Bud Powell did. But at some point, jazz detached from rock and roll. ELEW has fused the two together and, in the process, created a new genre, rockjazz. Over the course of two albums, ELEW has interpreted and reenergized songs by Coldplay, Nirvana, Radiohead, the Foo Fighters, The Bravery, Michael Jackson, and more. And the choice of material is only part of rockjazz. ELEW treats the grand piano the way a traditional rock front man treats the guitar, with an explosively physical style that includes entering the instrument to pluck the strings directly. Onstage, he is overtly theatrical, standing to play and even wearing specially designed pieces of forearm armor called vambraces. In addition to his groundbreaking recordings and performances, ELEW has collaborated with a host of other artists. He joined forces with platinum-selling rapper Lil Wayne, providing the piano background for “IANAHB,” the opening track on Lil Wayne’s 2013 album “I Am Not a Human Being II.” Last year, Complexions Contemporary Ballet Co-Artistic Directors/Founders Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson announced a five-year partnership with ELEW that named him Composer in Residence at CCB. This partnership will yield a new work every year through 2017; the first fruits of the collaboration were presented in November 2012 at Complexions Contemporary Ballet’s New York Season at the Joyce Theater. Perhaps the most exciting development in ELEW’s evolution as an artist is his burgeoning career as a DJ. While turntable artists combine songs with the aid of technology, ELEW is able to present them simultaneously with his own mastery of the piano. The result is yet another unprecedented hybrid—this time, the ingredients are not rock and jazz, but rather vinyl and ivory, the concert and then the afterparty. As a result of his records and his performances, his devotion to both the history of jazz and the importance of redirecting that history, ELEW has earned a legion of prominent fans, including Josh Groban (who he supported on Groban’s “Straight to You” tour of more than sixty North American arenas), Dave Matthews, Naomi Campbell, Forest Whitaker, Leonardo DiCaprio, Brooke Shields, and Woody Harrelson. He has performed at the behest of Google, Fendi, Disney, and Mercedes Benz. Donna Karan included his music on her iPhone app. And ELEW has even taken rockjazz to the White House, where he played for Barack and Michelle Obama in the East Room. Bassist, composer, educator and producer Danton Boller has been residing in New York City since the late 90s. He was mentored in Los Angeles by legendary bassist “Senator” Eugene J. Wright of the Dave Brubeck Quartet. He has toured internationally and recorded with top jazz artists of his generation as a member of the Roy Hargrove Quintet, Seamus Blake Quartet, Anthony Wilson Nonet and Ari Hoenig's “Punk Bop.” Danton’s versatility and appreciation for all genres of music has propelled him to the stage and studio with an eclectic array of influential artists: Alvin Queen, Bridget Everett, Justin Robinson, Run the Jewels, Ernie Andrews, Elvis Costello, Elysian Fields, Taylor Mac, Fela! on Broadway featuring Patti Labelle, Taran Killam, Bennie Wallace, Seun Kuti, Robert Glasper, and Jon Fishman (of Phish), to name a few. Currently, Danton can be seen performing in the HBO documentary film Taylor Mac’s 24-Decade History of Popular Music, and is seen perfroming in the film Can You Ever Forgive Me? (starring Melissa McCarthy) performing with Justin Vivian Bond. Danton music directed and performed on Austin City Limits with Kat Edmonson and co-produced Edmonson’s highly lauded release on Sony records, Way Down Low, with Al Schmidt (Frank Sinatra, Paul McCartney, Henry Mancini, etc.). Danton’s 2023 release Space (released on the ONBO Records label) showcases his original compositions and features fellow Roy Hargrove alumni Justin Robinson, Willie Jones III, and Tadataka Unno. Danton is currently the adjunct professor of Applied Jazz Bass at Western Connecticut State University and teaches private lessons in NYC. For more information visit dantonboller.com or email [email protected]. "Joy and spirited musical communication" are what characterize the artistry of Alvester Garnett's drumming. Singers such as the living legend Abbey Lincoln and the late great Betty Carter, to instrumentalists Wynton Marsalis, James Carter, Regina Carter, and Cyrus Chestnut have all called on Mr. Garnett for the energy and fire that he brings to the bandstand. "I believe that what we have as musicians is a muse, a musical spirit that resides within us as a gift from God. It is our duty to cultivate that muse. This allows the sounds from a higher power to come down through us and provide healing, entertainment and personal expression for us and to those listening. We as musicians are merely conduits for an art that already exists. We just have to pave the road, through practice and study, to let the sounds come through in our own way. Now, when I say practice and study', I don't mean only in a musical sense, but also in a personal and spiritual sense. Ultimately the music should still reflect who we are as individuals. Working with great spirits like Abbey Lincoln has taught me this." Drummer Alvester Garnett was born in Richmond, Virginia at the hospital of The Medical College of Virginia in 1970. Alvin and Mabel Garnett adopted him at the age of 6 months. Early on, his most memorable musical experiences occurred while listening to the elder members sing at Mt. Tabor and Zion Grove Baptist Churches. His father served as Chairman of the Deacon Board at Mount Tabor. At Zion Grove Baptist Church, his mother sings on the church choir, his Grandfather was the Pastor and two Uncles were choir directors and pianists. His first formal studies in the performing arts came at the age of four with tap dance lessons and from age 5 to 9 with the study of piano. Throughout middle school and into high school his most prominent musical studies came through his participation in various chamber choirs, madrigals and a show choir. He figured out the basic coordination of playing the drums from watching a music video of the pop band "The Police", in which the drummer Stewart Copeland played a simple beat. After this, his mother heeded his requests to study percussion. At age 14, Mr. Garnett began the formal study of percussion. Mr. Garnett's first exposure to the true discipline of playing Jazz came at the age of 16. While still a junior in High School and participating in an All-County High School Jazz Band, Ellis Marsalis, introduced him to the names of Master Jazz Drummers. Mr. Marsalis advised him to obtain the recordings of Max Roach in particular and many others including "Papa" Jo Jones, "Philly" Joe Jones, Elvin Jones, Billy Higgins, James Black, and Ed Blackwell. "I don't know where I would be had I not met Ellis. After that first rehearsal with Ellis I was literally in tears. I think my band director at the time thought he was too rough, but I think that one encounter helped me to make up my mind whether I was going to be serious about music or not. It disillusioned my perception of drumming and prepared me for the time honored tradition of studying those before me as a means of growth. Of course I'm still doing that now." During the following summer, Mr. Garnett again studied with Mr. Marsalis. This instance would be in a Summer Program for gifted musicians at Virginia Commonwealth University. This program entailed regular listening sessions and ensemble studies under the direction of Ellis Marsalis. Immediately after this Mr. Garnett joined the Malden Diplomats Drum and Bugle Corp and went to Boston. It was with this organization that he had his first tastes of touring the US and Canada. This involved furthering his studies of rudimental drumming styles, sleeping on gym floors, eating cold meals from a food truck, and doing twenty pushups for mistakes made during practice. The summer after graduating High School he attended Gunther Schuller's music training program at The Festival at Sandpoint in Sandpoint, Idaho. Sis Tobler, the philanthropist and gemologist, sponsored his tuition, for Mr. Schuller's program. It was here that he first met and studied with master drummer Max Roach, leading trumpeter and educator, Wynton Marsalis and Jazz historian Martin Williams. Mr. Garnett would return to this same program two years later to study with the legendary drummer Victor Lewis. After enrolling at Virginia Commonwealth University, he studied, once more, with Ellis Marsalis. This time it would be for one year in a master class setting. Here he also studied Arranging, Jazz History and Big Band performance with jazz program head Doug Richards. His private drum set instructor was Scott Taylor. In 1992 during college under the advice of trumpet master Clark Terry, he entered and won the 3rd place prize in the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Drum Competition. It was at this competition that Betty Carter first heard Mr. Garnett. This meeting would later serve him well. Mr. Garnett earned his Bachelor of Arts in Instrumental Performance/ Jazz Studies in 1993 from Virginia Commonwealth University. Three months after graduation, Mr. Garnett received a call coincidentally on the same day from both Betty Carter and Abbey Lincoln to come to New York for auditions. After moving to New York, he worked with Betty Carter's trio in the Fall of 1993 and Winter of 1994 while at the same time becoming a member of Abbey Lincoln's quartet for over 2 years. He was also a member of Cyrus Chestnut's trio for over two years from 1996 until May of 1998. In November 1997 Mr. Garnett rejoined Abbey Lincoln's Quartet at a legendary concert held at Columbia University. He remained in that group up until the Summer of 1998. Beginning in the Spring of 1998 Mr. Garnett began touring extensively with both Regina Carter and James Carter. Mr. Garnett has appeared on Great Performances on PBS in a tribute to Kurt Weill along with Betty Carter, a live record with Teddy Edwards, the CD's Earth Stories with Cyrus Chestnut and Who Used To Dance with Abbey Lincoln. He also played on James Carter's In Carterian Fashion. Other recorded performances include Stefon Harris' A Cloud of Red Dust on Blue Note records and Abbey Lincoln's latest recording, Wholly Earth. He has also performed at many notable Jazz Festivals. Some of them are the JVC Jazz Festivals of NY and Paris, The Newport Jazz Festival, The North Sea Jazz Festival, The Vienne Jazz Festival, The Montreux Jazz Festival, The DuMaurier Jazz Festival, The Nice Jazz Festival, The San Francisco Jazz Festival, The Monterey Jazz Festival, and The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. The summer and fall of 1999 will see him touring extensively with violin virtuoso Regina Carter. Mr. Garnett has also worked in the bands of many other great artists. The list includes, Roy Hargrove's Quintet, Benny Golson, Al Grey, Stefon Harris, Wynton Marsalis and Lincoln Center's Jazz For Young People Concerts, James Carter's Quartet and Quintet, Lou Donaldson's Quartet along with Dr. Lonnie Smith, Jackie Terrason's Trio, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Rodney Jones, Kevin Mahogany, Clark Terry, Eric Reed, Wycliffe Gordon, Sherman Irby, Pharaoh Sanders, Jimmy Witherspoon, Milt Hinton, Marcus Printup, Greg Osby, John Hicks, Wes Anderson, Teddy Edwards, Ellis Marsalis, Ron Affif, Jeff Clayton, Ronald Westray, Fabio Morgera, Werner "Vana" Gierig, Dr. Michael White and the Richmond Symphony. Currently Mr. Garnett resides in Brooklyn, New York where he continues to grow musically and performs throughout the country and internationally. Weblinks: www.alvestergarnett.com