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| Rob Reddy's Small Town at Tribeca Performing Arts Center On Wednesday, March 14th, New York's TriBeCa Performing Arts Center will present the world premiere of saxophonist/composer Rob Reddy's hour-long composition, "The Book of the Storm", with a second performance the following night. Commissioned by the Jerome Foundation and New York State Council on the Arts, the four-movement piece will be performed by a new 19-piece ensemble called Rob Reddy's Small Town, featuring some of the most respected performer/improvisers in New York, as part of TPAC's annual Work and Show Festival. Rob Reddy, composer and conductor; Oscar Noriega, clarinet and bass clarinet; Steve Elson, flute and soprano saxophone; Cochemea Gastelum, alto saxophone; Tim Otto, soprano and tenor saxophones; Lisa Parrott, soprano and baritone saxophones; John Carlson, trumpet; Shane Endsley, trumpet; Mark Taylor, French horn; Lis Rubbard, French horn; Curtis Hasselbring, trombone; Charles Burnham, violin; Sarah Bernstein, violin; Marlene Rice, viola; Eileen Folsom, cello; Dom Richards, double bass; Brandon Ross, acoustic and electric guitars; Jon Marguiles, electric guitar; Pheeroan akLaff, drums; Guillermo E. Brown, drums "The underlying inspiration for 'The Book of the Storm' is the multi-faceted significance of storms throughout human history, " Reddy explains. "Many cultures have stories of a 'great flood' (Noah and the ark in Genesis, Matsya in the Hindu Puranas, Deucalion in Greek mythology and Utnapishtim in the Epic of Gilgamesh), and we recently saw the near death of a major American city by a modern-day storm that left thousands ignored and displaced. The piece is also inspired by the metaphorical storms of social, political and economic oppression, as well as the personal struggles creative artists face in today's world." Based in New York for the past 20 years, Reddy began his professional career with the Reggie Workman Ensemble and Ronald Shannon Jackson's Decoding Society before forming his own trio in 1989 with Workman and drummer Pheeroan akLaff. Inspired by a wide range of American music, including folk, blues, gospel, country and jazz, he has since led a variety of ensembles and recorded as a leader for the Songlines, Koch Jazz and Knitting Factory labels. His latest CD, A Hundred Jumping Devils, was released in October on his own Reddy Music label. In addition to "The Book of the Storm", two other Reddy projects, commissioned by Chamber Music America and the American Composers Forum respectively, are also expected to receive their world premieres in 2007. write your comments about the article :: © 2007 Jazz News :: home page |