michael 
I had a fantastic experience in September 2013, hearing a reading of my orchestral composition, Slippages, by the La Jolla Symphony and conductor Steve Schick. They were a pleasure to work with and I’m so grateful to Steve and all the musicians and organizers for this opportunity. It was made possible through the Jazz Composers Orchestra Institute, a program sponsored … Read more
I’m thrilled to be a member of the Mark Dresser Quintet, which recently released a new album called Nourishments on Clean Feed Records. Mark’s music is always profoundly inspiring for me, so it’s been a privilege and pleasure to collaborate with him closely in this band and many other projects during the past decade. The quintet also includes alto saxophonist … Read more
The Virtual Tour concerts in April were very inspiring and well worth the long year of work we put in to make them happen. We got some nice press, and we’re now mixing and editing the recordings, with plans to release everything on DVD in the future. In the meantime, I have to share this picture of the stage in … Read more
I’m thrilled to have been selected by the Jazz Composers Orchestra Institute, a program run through the American Composers Orchestra, for a September 2013 reading of a new work I’m composing for orchestra. The La Jolla Symphony, conducted by Steven Schick, will play my piece Slippages. Steve is a fantastic musician, and I’m looking forward to this opportunity to explore … Read more
I’m excited to announce a major telematic concert series we’re producing this April (2013). Titled Virtual Tour: A Reduced Carbon Footprint Concert Series, it will be a series of 3 concerts, each involving a core ensemble in San Diego, CA, performing together with a different remote ensemble each night: Amherst, MA (April 5); Zurich, Switzerland (April 6); and Stony Brook, … Read more
I had a fantastic time this past week on my trio tour with Christopher Tordini and Dan Weiss, performing 5 concerts to premiere a new composition, Resonating Abstractions, that was commissioned through Chamber Music America’s New Jazz Works award. Thanks to everyone who came out and listened! Not only was it amazing (as always) to play with Chris and Dan, … Read more
I’m thrilled to have been awarded a 2012 Fromm Foundation Commission, and honored to be in the company of this year’s diverse array of recipients. The piece I’ll compose will be a scorestream (algorithmic, computer-displayed score) for trombone, bass and percussion with live electronics. It’ll involve some improvisation, but it’s not meant only for my own trio. Instead, I’m planning … Read more
11/26-12/1, 2012: This fall I’m finishing a new composition for my trio titled Resonating Abstractions, which is based on work by seven contemporary abstract painters, and was commissioned through Chamber Music America’s New Jazz Works program, funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. We’ll premiere it in late November and early December on a tour with 5 concerts split across the … Read more
I’m grateful to have started October with two rewarding sideperson concerts, inspired by bandmates who range in age from 27 to 78. The first was in San Diego with the fantastic Joshua White and his quintet, and was reviewed in the SD Reader by Robert Bush. I then had the privilege of performing the following night on the Angel City Jazz Festival with … Read more
Looking forward to a concert with my trio at the Hammer Museum in LA on Friday, Sept. 7, with free admission. Although Dan Weiss couldn’t make this date, I’m always excited for a chance to play with Jason Nazary, another fantastic drummer, along with the stupendous Chris Tordini on bass.
I just got back from 5 intensive days at JCOI in Los Angeles, an event run in part by the American Composers Orchestra, and featuring a roster of fantastic faculty-artists such as Alvin Singleton, Anne LeBaron, George Lewis, Anthony Davis, James Newton, Paul Chihara, Nicole Mitchell and Derek Bermel. It was a great experience, and they asked me to report … Read more
Looking forward to 3 upcoming gigs in SoCal in late June: 2 are with Joshua White’s quintet, one at 98 Bottles in San Diego and one at the Blue Whale in LA, and the other is a quartet with Joshua, Mark Dresser and Gerry Hemingway at 98 Bottles. Thanks to the tireless Robert Bush, there are nice preview articles about … Read more