PRISM Quartet Presents HERITAGE/EVOLUTION, Now thru 6/12

PRISM Quartet Turns 30 and the saxophone quartet announces an ambitious three-part concert series in NYC and Philadelphia that charts fresh musical territory: "HERITAGE/EVOLUTION."The classical PRISM Quartet commissions six of today's most inventive jazz saxophonists to compose sax quintets & sextets and perform them with PRISM. Heritage/Evolution 1: PRISM Quartet with STEVE LEHMAN & RUDRESH MAHANTHAPPA, tonight, April 11 at World Cafe Live, Philadelphia and Saturday, April 12 at Symphony Space, NYC. Heritage/Evolution 2: PRISM Quartet with TIM RIES & MIGUEL ZENÓN on Thursday, May 8 at World Cafe Live, Philadelphia and Friday, May 9 at Symphony Space, NYC. Heritage/Evolution 3: PRISM Quartet with DAVE LIEBMAN & GREG OSBY on Wednesday, June 11 at World Cafe Live, Philadelphia and Thursday, June 12 at Symphony Space, NYC. All performances begin at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets:
$57 Public, $42 Students (Subscriptions)
$22 Public, $17 Students/Children (Individual Concerts)
Purchase online: www.prismquartet.com/concerts/philly-nyc-series

Constantly in search of new musical terrain, the PRISM Quartet (Timothy McAllister, Taimur Sullivan, Matthew Levy, and Zachary Shemon) celebrates its 30th anniversary with a groundbreaking concert and recording series entitledHERITAGE/EVOLUTION.

From April 11, 2014 through June 12, 2014, three concerts at both Philadelphia'sWorld Cafe Live (3025 Walnut Street) and New York City's Thalia Theater atSymphony Space (2537 Broadway at 95th Street) will feature world premieres of newly commissioned works composed and performed by six master jazz saxophonists who defy convention: STEVE LEHMAN, DAVE LIEBMAN, RUDRESH MAHANTHAPPA, GREG OSBY, TIM RIES, and MIGUEL ZENÓN.

PRISM Quartet-the country's premier saxophone group rooted primarily in classical music-will perform the works along with the guest composers who are all rooted primarily in jazz. Each concert features two composers as soloists in the commissioned works.

This unprecedented saxophone summit will also include master classes, symposia, community outreach performances, and post-concert discussions, and will culminate in a recording of the commissioned works.

Heritage/Evolution presents exciting challenges for both PRISM and the partnering composers. Although the saxophone is a mainstay of jazz ensembles, jazz composers rarely write for saxophone ensembles alone. As PRISM is discovering, these six artists are eager to explore the format, guided by their intimate knowledge of the instrument as they invent new sound worlds for the multi-sax group.

The result will be a collection of distinctive pieces-a new fabric of saxophone repertoire-that draws on the instrument's cross-cultural heritage, blending jazz with Western classical music, including Spectral music (Steve Lehman), South Indian classical (Rudresh Mahanthappa), Latin American folkloric music (Miguel Zenón), and more.

PRISM has long kept new music at the forefront of its programming;Heritage/Evolution carries this mission forward, continuing to blur the lines between composition and improvisation, academy and folklore, past and future. An ongoing project, plans are already underway for new collaborators next year; among the guests are Ravi Coltrane and Chris Potter.

Heritage/Evolution is dedicated to the memory of Michael Whitcombe (1962-2013), PRISM's founding alto saxophonist whose artistry and vision shaped the quartet for over 20 years.

Tickets

Subscription tickets ($57 Public, $42 Students) to a set of three concerts at either World Cafe Live in Philadelphia or Symphony Space in New York City are available for purchase online at www.prismquartet.com/concerts/philly-nyc-series.

Individual tickets ($22 Public, $17 Students/Children) are also available online at www.prismquartet.com/concerts/philly-nyc-series or at the respective venues; World Cafe Live in Philadelphia (www.worldcafelive.com) and Symphony Space in New York City (www.symphonyspace.org)

Heritage/Evolution
Residency in Philadelphia

The PRISM Quartet, along with the six guest composers, will lead workshops, master classes, and panel discussions surrounding the Heritage/Evolution performances. Located at the Curtis Institute of Music and the University of the Arts, a wide array of topics will be addressed including producing and distributing recorded works; developing one's artistic identity; and the diverse approaches to the saxophone represented by the artists. These events are free and open to the public; for more information, visit www.prismquartet.com/concerts/philly-nyc-series.

PRISM will also launch a new program called "Composition for Kids," held at the Northwest branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia. The program offers 5th and 6th grade students an opportunity to learn about contemporary music, composition using graphic notation (where images represent musical gesture, texture, note length, etc.) and improvisation. Led by PRISM members in small groups, the students will compose their own pieces, performed by PRISM at the culmination of the workshops.

Heritage/Evolution Recording
on innova Recordings

Following their performances in Philadelphia and New York, PRISM and the six composers will bring these new works into the recording studio. The double-CD edition of Heritage/Evolution will be released in October 2014 on innova Recordings, distributed worldwide by Naxos. PRISM has a prolific recording output; the most recent disc is People's Emergency Center, which will be released May 27, 2014.

The Collaborators

Steve Lehman

Described as "one of the transforming figures of early 21st century jazz" by The Guardian (UK) and as "a quietly dazzling saxophonist" by The New York Times, Fulbright scholar Steve Lehman is the first composer to integrate jazz and Spectral music, a form of classical music in which the physics of sound inform compositional decisions. His 2009 recording, Travail, Transformation & Flow was chosen as the #1 Jazz Album of the year by The New York Times.
www.stevelehman.com

Rudresh Mahanthappa

Rudresh Mahanthappa is one of today's most innovative jazz composers and performers, fusing jazz and the culture of his Indian ancestry to break new musical ground. Downbeat's alto saxophonist of the year for the past three years, he was the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and the coveted Doris Duke Performing Artist Award. He leads several groups, including Samdhi and the Indo-Pak Coalition, and has collaborated with Bunky Green, Jack DeJohnette, and Kadri Gopalnath.
www.rudreshm.com

Miguel Zenón

Multiple Grammy nominee and Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellow Miguel Zenón is widely considered one of the most influential saxophonists of his generation. He studied classical saxophone in his native Puerto Rico before developing a unique voice as a composer/conceptualist whose work blends Latin American folkloric music and jazz. A founding member of the acclaimed SF JAZZ Collective, he has released six recordings as a leader including the Grammy nominated Alma Adentro (2011).
www.miguelzenon.com

Tim Ries

Hailed by The New York Times as "a singular talent, a player's player," Tim Ries is a versatile and thoughtful saxophonist and composer whose collaborators have included Phil Woods, Tom Harrell, Al Foster, John Patitucci, Danilo Perez, Red Garland, Badal Roy, Maria Schneider, Chris Potter, Donald Byrd, Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, and Sheryl Crow. A former member of PRISM (1993-2001), he has released eight recordings as a leader, and currently tours with Jack DeJohnette and the Rolling Stones.
www.timries.com

Greg Osby

Saxophonist, composer, producer, educator, and 2013 Pew Fellow Greg Osby has made an indelible mark on contemporary jazz over the past 20 years. Described by The New York Times as "a pacesetter" who composes work that is "intricately coiled," he has performed with Herbie Hancock, Dizzy Gillespie, Jack DeJohnette, and Andrew Hill and released 15 solo recordings on Blue Note before founding his own Inner Circle label, a platform for today's brightest artists.
www.gregosby.com

Dave Liebman

David Liebman's career has spanned over four decades, beginning in the 1970s as the saxophonist/flautist of both the Elvin Jones and Miles Davis groups, and continuing as a leader of his own ensembles, including Quest and Saxophone Summit. Downbeat's 2011 soprano saxophonist of the year, he is an NEA Master of Jazz whose discography of nearly 350 records "defines unpredictability, incorporating his fascination with the worlds of jazz, rock, ethnic and contemporary classical music" (The Washington Post).
www.daveliebman.com

PRISM Quartet

www.prismquartet.com

Intriguing programs of great beauty and breadth have distinguished the PRISM Quartet as one of America's foremost chamber ensembles. Two-time winners of the Chamber Music America/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming, PRISM has been presented by Carnegie Hall, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and as soloists with the Detroit Symphony and Cleveland Orchestra. Champions of new music, PRISM has commissioned over 150 works, many by internationally celebrated Pulitzer Prize-winning composers. PRISM's discography includes eleven recordings for the Albany, Innova, Koch, Naxos, New Dynamic, and New Focus labels. PRISM may also be heard on the soundtrack of the film "Two Plus One" and has been featured in the theme music to the weekly PBS news magazine "NOW." PRISM performs exclusively on Selmer saxophones and mouthpieces.

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