“Music at its most evolved transcends language, culture, genre and even time itself.” –Geri Allen 

Geri Allen©Andrea Canter

One of the unique and most creative voices of her generation of musicians, pianist Geri Allen will bring her trio into the Iridium November 19-22. Her supporting cast includes bassist Kenny Davis and young drumming star Kassa Overall. Adding fire to the occasion will be special guest, tenor saxophonist Ravi Coltrane.

A product of the great jazz tradition of Detroit, Geri Allen studied with Marcus Belgrave, earned a degree in jazz studies at Howard University in Washington, DC (where she met husband, trumpeter Wallace Roney), a master’s degree in ethnomusicology at the University of Pittsburgh, and studied jazz piano in New York with the great Kenny Barron. In the 1980s she was a member of the M-Base Collective; in the early 90s she worked with Ornette Coleman. She has since released a series of acclaimed recordings as leader (including 2004’s Life of a Song with Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette, Zodiac Suite Revisited with the Mary Lou Williams Collective, and Timeless Portraits and Dreams) while teaching at Howard University. In 1996 she became the first woman to be awarded the Jazzpar Prize in Denmark, the only international jazz award. As a composer she has received numerous awards and commissions, including the recent “For the Healing of Nations,” commissioned by the Walt Whitman Arts Center and Meet The Composer, a sacred jazz work composed in tribute to the victims and survivors of the 9/11 tragedy that premiered on September 10, 2006. Allen was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2008. Among her recent projects, she has performed the works of Mary Lou Williams, including in concert at Rose Hall at Jazz at Lincoln Center this past weekend.

Ravi Coltrame©Andrea Canter

After graduating from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in 2006, Seattle native drummer Kassa Overall wasted little time becoming an active part of the jazz scene. He’s been a regular member of Geri Allen’s Trio for the past three years while also honing his skills as a producer. His musical pursuits have included explorations of hip-hop and electronic music (using laptop) and working with multi-talented Guillermo E. Brown.  

As the son of John and Alice Coltrane, Ravi Coltrane has managed to fight off comparisons to his father even while exploring John Coltrane’s music and making a career playing the same instrument. Now past 40, the younger Coltrane has become a major force on tenor and soprano sax as a performer, an acclaimed bandleader and composer, and founder of an independent record label, RKM. His resume includes work with Elvin Jones, Jack DeJohnette, Rashied Ali, Wallace Roney, Geri Allen, Kenny Barron, Cindy Blackman, Joe Lovano, Joanne Brackeen, Roy Haynes and particularly Steve Coleman. His latest release as leader of his powerhouse quartet is the acclaimed 2009 CD, Blending Times. 

The Geri Allen Trio with Ravi Coltrane play at 8:30 and 10:30 pm each night, November 19-22, at the Iridium in Midtown Manhattan (1650 Broadway at 51st Street); www.iridiumjazzclub.com. More about Geri Allen at www.geriallen.com; more about Ravi Coltrane at www.ravicoltrane.com  
 

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