MetaQuorum - Witchkraft Jazz

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We have recently finished recording, producing, mixing and mastering our second 12-track album WITCHCRAFT JAZZ., to be released as a double LP on vinyl as well as CD, digital download and streaming. As well core musicians Dmitry Ermakov and Koos van der Velde, the line-up for this album includes: bass player Victor Mikheyev (who also co-wrote three tracks with Dmitry Ermakov: The Bartender, Swagger and Seven Dwarfs Rock); his son George Mikheyev on cello; Andrew Guerin on trumpet; Carol Ermakova – vocals.

WITCHCRAFT JAZZ was recorded in several studios and venues in the UK, Russia and Bulgaria, produced and mixed by Dmitry Ermakov and Koos van der Velde, and mastered by Christopher Longwood at SugarHill Recording Studios, TX, USA.

In terms of style, this album flows organically from MetaQuorum's previous compositions, further developing the concept of Meld music, a fusion of Prog,Funk, Jazz, Rock, Swing, Electronica and more. Compositions such as the title track Witchcraft Jazz, Parallax, Limping Mathematician and Autumn Groove further explore the technique of Structural Fusion. The coda – Goldfinch Charm – is an exquisite blend of Electronica with Jazz Fusion and Blues, while the opening track – Crimson Dreams – includes a lyric poem written and read by Dmitry Ermakov.

BIOGRAPHY

Established in 2014, MetaQuorum is a groundbreaking new music project by Russian born composer/keyboardist Dmitry Ermakov playing Meld, a fusion of Funk, Prog, Rock, Jazz, Electronica and more.

Dmitry Ermakov began playing piano at six. At seven, he entered the St. Petersburg State Capella where he majored in classical piano, composition,
harmony and conducting, later going on to study sax, piano and improvisation in the Jazz Faculty, Mussorgsky Music College. Throughout the 80's and early 90's, Ermakov was active in the Soviet underground scene, gigging and recording with his own punk and fusion bands as well as performing with such legendary artists as avant-garde jazz trumpeter V. Gaivoronsky and blues-rock star Yuri Morozov. Ermakov also composed and recorded soundtracks for Lenfilm cinema studios and the renowned Russian clown troupe Licedei Minus 4 (produced at Studio D2), as well as working as Musical Director at Toxovo Cultural Centre. He emigrated to the UK in 1993 following the collapse of the Soviet Union, where he has recently set up a new funk-prog-elctro-jazz project called MetaQuorum.

Dutch drummer Koos van der Velde joined MetaQuorum in November 2014. Like Ermakov, van der Velde began playing at six, and was already drumming with his first metal band, Lunacy, by thirteen. After gigging with several local metal and punk bands for six years, in 1993 van der Velde joined experimental jazz-core band Megakronkel, the Dutch group which opened the way for bands such as Victims Family and NoMeansNo. Renowned for his superfast double kick, van der Velde has been gigging and recording for a variety of bands for the last 25 years, alongside tutoring and running drum clinics both at home and abroad

Guest Musicians

Carol Ermakova inherited her voice from her mother, who won several singing competitions. Despite being singled out for a select school choir at the age of 11, Ermakova never developed this talent. In 2015, MetaQuorum persuaded her to join the project as a second vocalist, and she has since been described as 'the voice from fairyland.'

Markus 'Bluesharp' Bossert Born in New York, Markus 'Bluesharp' Bossert began playing the bluesharp at 16 when he struck up a friendship with a street musician who taught him the basics. Since the late 90's, he's played with a plethora of bands all over the globe, including The Strings in Kathmandu, Nepal.He is a popular guest in Ermakov's native land, gigging at several venues in Arkhangelsk, notably the Arkhangelsk Blues and Jazz Festivals organised by Timothey Dorofeev. Now living in Switzerland, Bossert joined the Baselbased R Major Power Blues band in 2013, and is a regular feature at jam sessions in the city, often joining bands as a guest player. In recent months he has made a couple of studio recordings.

St. Petersburg-born Viktor Mikheyev joined his first band at 17 and is still playing bass today. Flying in the face of persistent Soviet state control, throughout the late 80's and early 90's Mikheyev played in several underground bands, as well as joining Ermakov in punk rock band Panika, avant-garde jazz rock fusion outfit FoxBox and the eight piece group Komnata 118. Mikheyev has recorded numerous songs and albums, both as a soloist and for the many groups with whom he has played including his own music project The CyBear. In 1982 Mikheyev embarked on a long-standing collaboration with Lenfilm Studios as screen-writer, actor and deputy director. He currently lives in Bulgaria where he is active in the music and cinema scene.

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