by Kelsey Higgins
Guitarist, Mary Halvorson has been taking the New York jazz scene by storm ever since 2002 after finishing her studies at Welseyan Univeristy and The New School.
According to her website, she appeared with the Brian Questa Trio last night at Spectrum; however, that is not all this month for Halvorson. She will also perform with the Tom Rainey Trio on Saturday, Oct. 19 at the Cornelia Street Cafe and on Saturday, Oct. 26 at the Dither Extravaganza with Weasel Walter (drums) and Peter Evans (trumpet).
Who is Mary Halvorson?
In February 2008, She and her trio gained recognition from the New York Times after their performance at the Tea Lounge in Brooklyn. The Times said she, “orients herself around jazz, yet stands about two steps removed from it.”
Since then she has been called, “the most forward-thinking guitarist working right now,” by Lars Gotrich of NPR and, “one of today’s most formidable bandleaders,” by Francis Davis of the Village Voice.
The Mary Halverson Quintet
Halvorson still works with her original trio, comprised of John Hebert on upright bass and Ches Smith on drums. They gained recognition from NPR for their dual traditional and unconventional style with their debut album “Dragon’s Head.” They have since released two other albums.
The Halvorson trio combined with Jon Irabagon (saxophone) and Jonathan Finlayson (trumpet) to form The Mary Halvroson Quintet. They released “Saturn Sings” and earned slot six in NPR’s Top 10 jazz albums of 2010 list.
AllAboutJazz.com’s John Sharpe said the quintet’s sophomore album, “Bending Bridges,” had an end result that again, “defies classification, touching on spidery improv, jazz tradition and avant rock in a cleverly idiosyncratic brew. Only this time out, she is even more successful.”
Click here to hear the Mary Havlorson Quintet perform an NPR Tiny Desk Concert.
Last April Halvorson was ranked at number 21 out of Timeout’s Top 25 Essential New York Jazz Icons.
Further Reading
On Friday the Village Voice interviewed Halvorson and another influential guitar player, Brandon Seabrook, who appeared together at Roulette on Friday.
The Big Apple Hot Plate Report 