New Mexico Jazz Composers Collective
Details
~ Debuting all original works ~
Composers Collective
Bevan Manson is a composer, pianist, and arranger with one foot firmly planted in the jazz world and the other in the classical world. He is known for his concert and jazz compositions often featuring lyrical melodies, complex rhythmic ideas, and rich harmonies and orchestrations. His music has been placed in films and TV, and he has received composing and arranging commissions from Sierra Chamber Music, the Pacific Philharmonic Foundation, the San Francisco Symphony, First Night Boston, the Channel Islands Chamber Orchestra, the Wilder Trio and from many extraordinary individual musicians.
Other works of his include scores for a number of independent films, a violin sonata, a woodwind quintet, a symphony, a string quartet, choral music with orchestra, and music for solo woodwinds. He is a founding member of the Improvisatory Minds composers group, which has premiered over 20 new American chamber music works
Bevan is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music[2] and was part of the New Eastman New Eastman Jazz Ensemble. He has been Director of UC Jazz - UC Berkeley (1998-2003), and a faculty member at New England Conservatory (1987-1997) and is currently a faculty member at the music department of Ventura College in California.
Video links:
https://youtu.be/hqhURorwqTk?si=TGy9i_32UekSMwwr
https://youtu.be/SmAJMqVoNgQ?si=HiYj8bG3xFtNcq-r
https://youtu.be/6eeKy-s8-p0?si=cRUj5h4DcqLr482h
Alex Murzyn’s versatile musicianship has made him the most in demand saxophonist in New Mexico. Relocating from the San Francisco area, where he played with numerous bands, including Huey Lewis and the News, Ray Obiedo, Pete Escovedo, Tito Puente, Sheila Escovedo (Sheila E), Ray Charles Orchestra, Stanley Clark, and the Stan Kenton Legacy Orchestra, with a career spanning three decades. He has three CDs under his name, and is working to complete the fourth soon to be released. He brings his unique background of R & B and modern jazz to the table whenever he plays. He is equally accomplished on flute and clarinet.
Gordie Johnson is a bass player extraordinaire - fluid, inventive, smart, tasteful. His world tours include Maynard Ferguson, Gene Bertoncini, Roy Buchanan, the Paul Winter Consort, CBS All Stars and Chuck Mangione. He has contributed to over 150 recordings, from jazz (Jimmy Hamilton, Maynard Ferguson, etc.) to blues/R&B (Buchanan, Doug Maynard) to bluegrass (Becky Schlegel) to folk (Greg Brown, Arlo Guthrie). Network television appearances run the gamut from the Merv Griffin Show to Soul Train. He has played with scores of national artists, including Joanne Brackeen, Herb Ellis, Rosemary Clooney, Scott Hamilton, Michael Johnson, Jay McShann, Dewey Redman.
Robert Beasley is a trumpeter and versatile composer and arranger, writing high quality music for jazz ensembles including for his own big band, the Band of Enchantment. He has also written collections of etudes and duets. As a performer, he has backed up many touring artists, most notably Ahmad Jamal, The Smithsonian Masterworks Jazz Orchestra, The Temptations, Maelo Ruiz, Tony Vega, and Frankie Negron, and also theater works, as well as recording for many composers. Robert holds a Master of Music from Duquesne University, where he studied trumpet with Sean Jones and arranging with Mike Tomaro, and a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Northern Colorado.
Joe Chellman is a drummer based in Albuquerque by way of Los Angeles, Chicago, Oakland, Pittsburgh, and New Hampshire. Growing up in New Hampshire, Joe played a lot of classic rock because that's all you could hear on the radio, and orchestral music in his school's excellent music program. Later he started studying jazz privately with a great teacher, and kicked off a lifetime of curiosity about different musical styles. Joe has played rock and roll, jazz, blues, country, folk, pop, klezmer, Balkan, traditional Irish, noise, and more.
Sam Oatts- trumpeter.