Jazz Composers Forum

Asheville, NC: The Jazz Composers Forum Returns!

Jazz Composers Forum Concert--July 23. 2009 at 7:00PM
Kenilworth Presbyterian Church, 123 Kenilworth Road, Asheville, NC 28803--Admission: $20
www.callthatjazz.com or call (828)252-2257

After twenty months the Jazz Composers Forum (JCF) will hold the first of a new concert series on Thursday, July 23, at the Kenilworth Presbyterian Church in Kenilworth. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased in advance (recommended) on line at www.callthatjazz.com or at the door. For more information call (828)252-2257. You can hear a preview of the music in a live performance on Asheville Public Radio WCQS-FM, Friday July 18 at 2:06 PM.

True to tradition the concert will be a unique mix of original instrumental jazz. The rebirth of the JCF features an unorthodox combination of two master bassists, Ron Brendle and Mike Holstein, each playing their own music. The second set will feature the compositions of Bill Gerhardt played by the pianist accompanied by a very special guest, the young virtuoso violinist, Duncan Wickel. Finally, Brendle and Holstein will join Wickel and Gerhardt in a special arrangement for three strings and piano.

Founded in 2001, the JCF began under the leadership of Holstein, Gerhardt reflecting the jazz composers collective a mainstay on the jazz scene in New York City. Brendle appeared in many JCF concerts as the featured composer and as side- man on projects ranging from Gerhardt’s “Petri Dish” to playing with his long time associate, the innovative New York pianist Frank Kimbrough.

Holstein and Gerhardt have played together since Bill returned to the states after ten years in Amsterdam. They collaborated in many projects including the Manhattan-based “Cotangent” and trios with numerous drummers, most recently dedicated to the music of Chick Corea. Holstein even led a piano-less quartet “Vector Erector” that performed special arrangements of Gerhardt’s music.

For his first JCF concert Duncan Wickel (at the age of twenty) is a gifted violinist and composer. His amazing technique and his sensitive jazz interpretations are only the tip of musical iceberg.

Jazz Composers Forum Concert--July 23. 2009 at 7:00PM
Kenilworth Presbyterian Church, 123 Kenilworth Road, Asheville, NC 28803--Admission: $20
www.callthatjazz.com or call (828)252-2257