In these days of contrived and over commercialized music it’s refreshing to discover a group like The Outer Bridge Ensemble.Known as eclectic modern creative jazz that grooves with a soulful attitude, the Outer Bridge Ensemble weaves uncommon genres together like tango, funk, klezmer, punk, avant-garde, Indian music and classical music while maintaining solid and deliberate grooves.
Individually the members of the Quintet have performed with such musical luminaries as Ray Charles, Sonny Rollins, Hank Jones, Wynton Marsalis, Kenny Wheeler, Sean Jones and Gerald Wilson. Called “an ensemble of considerable talent” by Keyboard Magazine, the ensemble performs original music with key elements from the jazz tradition highlighting diverse textures, unique instrumentation, with inventive rhythmic meters and inspiring ensemble interaction.
The Outer Bridge Ensemble is pianist/composer Steve Hudson, saxophonist Mark DeJong, bassist Pascal Niggenkemper, drummer Jerome Jennings and percussionist David Freeman.
On Monday, March 29th they will make their Washington D.C. debut at Blues Alley Jazz Supper Club located at 1073 Wisconsin Avenue, NW with two shows at 8:00 PM and 10:00 PM and tickets priced at $18.00. For more information or to reserve tickets contact (202) 337-4141 or http://www.bluesalley.com. For more information about The Outer Bridge Ensemble go to: http://www.outerbridgeensemble.net.
The Outer Bridge Ensemble was born in New Jersey in 2003 with a core group of musicians led by pianist and composer Steve Hudson, drummer Jerome Jennings, percussionist David Freeman and saxophonist Mark DeJong. This modern creative jazz group successfully weaves uncommon genres together like tango, funk, klezmer, punk, avant-garde, Indian music and classical music while maintaining solid and deliberate grooves. What really makes the Outer Bridge Ensemble a cutting edge group is the high level of musicianship combined with original music. Audiences all over the world respond enthusiastically to their unique concept of the group sound, compositions and the level of interaction within the ensemble.
Individually the members of the Quintet have performed with such musical luminaries as Ray Charles, Sonny Rollins, Hank Jones, Wynton Marsalis, Kenny Wheeler, Sean Jones and Gerald Wilson. Collectively they have opened for and collaborated with Kenny Werner, John Scofield, Steve Bernstein, James Zoller, Oscar Noriega, David Braid, Craig Brenan, Claire Daly, Achille Succi and coming in June 2010 they will open for Roy Hargrove at the Saskatchewan Jazz Festival. Featured on a regular basis in the New York City club scene, the group has toured Italy and Canada (with assistance from the Canada Council for the Arts) being featured at the Ottawa International Jazz Festival and SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival.
The Outer Bridge Ensemble has three CD’s that incorporate the core group: The Outer Bridge and Seamless (with Steve Hudson as leader) and The Unknown (with Mark DeJong as leader). Hudson's composition “Mingus Moon” from The Outer Bridge was a finalist in the 2003 International Songwriting Competition, selected among 11,000 entries and "Klezmer" from Seamless, a composition written by Freeman, was selected as a semi-finalist in the 2007 International Songwriting Competition. Steve Hudson released his own CD in 2009, Shine, which included the Outer Bridge Ensemble core group Jerome, David, Mark along with Mike Noordzy, Peter Eldridge, Oscar Noriega and James Zollar. The Unknown was nominated for Best Jazz Recording of 2008 by the Western Canadian Music Awards.
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