 Paul Giallorenzo
The Experimental Piano Series’ Inaugural Concert features performances led by three Chicago-based pianists: Paul Giallorenzo, Justin Dillard (with his trio featuring Junius on bass & Cliff Wallace on drums), and Jon Hey. A reception will follow the concert. The Experimental Piano Series (EPS) showcases performances by innovators in today’s world of experimental piano. These performances include approaches that are influenced and informed by jazz, “new music,” classical music, world music, and other genres. Some of the performances during EPS will involve solo pieces, and others will involve duos and trios. Some of the pieces will be improvised, whereas others will be performances of compositions that are notated. The concert will take place on Friday, November 7th at PianoForte in the Fine Arts Building at 410 South Michigan Ave, Suite 825 in Chicago. Tickets are $15, $10 for students.
Justin Dillard was born and raised on the west side of Chicago into a rich thriving musical home. Residing in Oak Park these days, Justin’s resume has accumulated an impressive amount of names in such a short amount of time his career has been active. He has had the honorable privilege to perform with and/or receive tutelage from (in no particular order): McCoy Tyner, Hamid Drake, Eric Lewis, Roy Hargrove, Branford Marsalis, Ornette Coleman, Wynton Marsalis, Willie Clayton, Don Moye’, Herbie Hancock, Henry Grimes, Clark Terry and Ellis Marsalis. Justin has had the esteemed pleasure to work in conjunction with, record, and/or study from prominent world-renowned resident musicians in and around the Chicago area, such as: Von Freeman, Bobby Irving III, Roscoe Mitchell, Ari Brown, Orbert Davis, Hamiet Bluiett, Maggie Brown, Erma Thompson, Fred Anderson, Bill Dickens, the AACM Big Band, Billy Bang, Nicole Mitchell, Kahil El’Zabar, Billy Brimfield, and Ernest Dawkins (Live the Spirit Big Band and Chicago 12 ensembles). His media accolades include features in various periodicals including: The Chicago Tribune, The Chicago Reader, and The Chicago Sun-Times.
Performing at countless jazz festivals nationally and abroad, Justin is no stranger to working hard to achieve success. He has performed on ABC with his organ expose’ The D-O-3-0; WGN and in a documentary produced by George Lucas Studios with The Kahil El'Zabar Quartet. Dillard has played in every musical environment possible. His ventures in various genres span from avant garde to a Dave Matthews tribute band. His improvisational and compositional roots deep in jazz, world, old school r&b, country, latin, blues, and groove based music. Justin continues to advance his ambitions and transform his career by leading, orchestrating and creatively composing for his vast array of ensembles; all while accompanying great musicians in Chicago and around the world. His latest exploration (The D-O-3-O) has Justin looking to the Hammond B-3 organ for old git down grooves and swing with a present day sensibility. His musical repertoire for this group spans 70 years. Justin says, “It’s something for everyone. Even those who know they won’t like it. But they end up liking it anyway.”
Composing now more than ever, Justin intends to complete his album with The D-O-3-O and tour in the extreme near future. “A new generation of jazz improvisers has emerged in Chicago in recent years, but few are more promising than pianist/organist Justin Dillard. Musically, Dillard tends to be all over the keyboard, drawing upon the examples of virtuosos such as Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Oscar Peterson and McCoy Tyner. But there's something more to Dillard's work as well -- a quest for new ideas in music, in the manner of his AACM mentors” -- Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune music critic.
Jon Hey graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in Music Composition after studies with Herbert Brün and Salvatore Martirano at Illinois and Stanley Wolfe and David Diamond at the Juilliard School. A professional pianist since the age of 15, Jon has been a board member and treasurer of New Music Chicago and is currently active in The Chicago Composers Forum.
Both a classical, "modern", jazz and rock & roll pianist, Jon has performed in countless musical settings, from the North American premiere of Karheinz Stockhausen's Kontakte, to accompanying Kurt Elling, Jon Secada and the Diamonds (50's revival group). Jon's Jazz Quintet has performed for nearly 20 years in the Chicago area including a live appearance on WBEZ radio and many times at the Bucktown Arts Festival. Quite a few well-known Chicago-area jazz musicians have appeared in that group over the years; as an example many of the members of the Chicago Jazz Orchestra.
Jon has sole credit scoring, sequencing, arranging, producing (etc.) on over 40 video games, pinball games and gaming machines; perhaps the most famous two being NBA Jam and Smash TV. Recently he concluded programming sounds for Batman -- the Dark Knight pinball and was the sole audio designer for the arcade driving games Fast and Furious: Superbikes and Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift.
Jon Hey Interactive produces music and sound for gaming companies, television, film, web/internet and school systems.
Paul Giallorenzo is a Chicago-based improviser, composer, and sound designer playing piano, synthesizer, and electronics in a wide variety of groups and contexts, ranging from jazz and improvised music to electro-acoustic/noise.
Current projects include the quintet Get in to Go Out, featuring Dave Rempis, Josh Berman, Anton Hatwich, Frank Rosaly (482 music); electro/acoustic duo Masul with Swiss contrabass saxophonist Thomas Mejer (Creative Sources); Breakway, an improvising trio with electronicist Brian Labycz and drummer Marc Riordan; Hearts and Minds, a noise/jazz trio with bass clarinetist Jason Stein and percussionist Frank Rosaly; a piano trio with Norwegian bassist Ingebrigt Haaker Flaten and drummer Tim Daisy.
Paul has collaborated with Swiss performance-artist Claudia Bucher on several installations in Chicago and Luzern, and also provided sound to accompany dancer Irina Lorez, also from Luzern. In the summer of 2004, Paul scored part of the film “Brush Fires” for the Chicago film company Split Pillow, which was an official selection at film festivals in Seattle, Phoenix, and Philadelphia. Paul has sound-designed, composed, and performed music for the theatre productions of Umalleniay (why they invented dancing, NYC International Fringe Festival, Aug. 2003), and Naked Eyed Theatre Company (Nickel and Dimed, Steppenwolf Theatre, Fall 2003).
As a producer and arts organizer, Paul is a co-founder and director of the Elastic Arts Foundation (EAF), a non-profit arts organization that operates the experimental music and arts venue Elastic (formerly 3030), formed in 2002. Paul collaborates with artists and musicians from Chicago and beyond to present creative and independent performances. In Fall, 2003, Paul began booking and producing Elastro, a monthly electro-acoustic music series showcasing local, national, and international improvisers. As an administrator and organizational developer, he is involved in every aspect of the organization, including managing web communications and grant writing. To find out more about Paul, current schedule and mp3s please visit www.elasticrevolution.com/paul & www.myspace.com/paulgiallorenzo,.
The concert will take place at PianoForte in the Fine Arts Building at 410 South Michigan Ave, Suite 825 in Chicago. Tickets are $15, $10 for students. http://www.pianofortechicago.com/
EPS is organized by the Chicago Composers Forum and the Borderbend Arts Collective. Upcoming EPS concerts will happen on January 23, 2009; March 20, 2009; and May 15, 2009.
|
Chicago 
Thursday, 08 January 2009
Home | Jazz Ed | CD/DVD/Book Reviews | Interviews | SF Bay Area | Chicago | Los Angeles | New York | Twin Cities, MN | More Cities | Festivals | News | Contact | Video | 
