The Neil Alexander & NAIL 20th Anniversary Celebration continues!
This month it's The Howland Cultural Center on July 6th,and the Falcon Underground on July 19th. Join us all year for our special brand of original cutting edge Jazz-Funk and World Jazz Fusion. In addition to the upcoming shows more are being added all the time, so check the Tour page and come celebrate with us!
July is here and Summer is ON. We’ve had some hot days so far, but we’ve also had some seriously perfect summer days….SO fine. Well: There’s so much going on in July right now I’m gonna skip the June recap! :) NAIL continues our magical 20th Anniversary Tour with 2 great shows this month; Cloudburst returns; I'm back at Catskill Mountain Pizza with Jeff Seigel and Rich Syracuse; The Robert Kopec Quartet in Milford and Fried Funk at the Falcon. Plus the 2nd Nail Jung CD will be out later this month. Whew!! As always, keep an eye on that calendar pagefor current info!
On July 6th NAIL will perform at the Howland Cultural Center in Beacon NY where we are very honored to have 3 phenomenal special guests with us - wind players Eric Person (Alto Sax, Flute) and Brad Hubbard (Baritone Sax, Flute), and Indian Master percussionist Swaminathan Selvaganesh.
- SWAMINATHAN SELVGANESH (Khanjira, percussion)
Well known as a Carnatic artiste, Swaminathan Selvaganesh is one of the premiere performers of the Khanjira. He is the grandson of Vikku Vinakram (Shakti). He is also a major force in Tamil film making circles, composing songs in a beguiling mixture of genres, from folk to hip-hop to romantic ballads, and backed by a wide array of players from all over the world. I first met and worked with Swaminathan alongside Bobby Rozario and RUDRA; I was thrilled and honored when he expressed an interest in performing with NAIL, and I have selected and rearranged special material for this performance. Here's a short Video about Swaminathan.
For over thirty years, Eric Person has been committed to composing, recording and performing dynamic and innovative music. His personal sound on alto, soprano, tenor saxophones and flute have been featured on more than 50 recordings. He studied at the St. Louis Conservatory of Music and has taught and performed internationally. He has a broad range of experience performing with the masters of modern creative music, such as Dave Holland, McCoy Tyner, Chico Hamilton, Wallace Roney, Ronald Shannon Jackson, World Saxophone Quartet, John Hicks et al. In 1994 bassist Dave Holland asked Eric to join his new quartet. During the 1990’s Person performed and recorded with the World Saxophone Quartet and Chico Hamilton’s Euphoria and released his first three CDs as a bandleader for Soul Note Records. In 1999, Person established his working band Meta-Four and started his own label Distinction Records. Bill Milkowski of Jazztimes called Eric a “risk-taking improviser, accomplished composer and inveterate swinger. Eric is also my neighbor here in Newburgh, and we’re frequently working together on various projects, including Eric’s tribute to the music of Ronald Shannon Jackson.
Brad was born and raised in North Carolina and is widely considered one of the pre-eminent concert baritone Saxophonist of his generation. An active performer in many genres of music, he is currently a member of David Sanford's Pittsburgh Collective and the Jeff Fairbanks Project Hansori Big Band. From 1988 to 2004, Brad was the baritone Saxophonist in the New Century Saxophone Quartet, the first saxophone quartet to win the prestigious Concert Artist Guild International Competition at Merkin Hall in 1992. Brad performed extensively with New Century throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia including Weill Recital Hall and Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall; a Command Performance for President Bill Clinton at The White House in 1993; the 1996 Presidential Inauguration of Bill Clinton. Brad appears on the first 6 recordings of New Century Saxophone Quartet on the Channel Classics label.
We will be performing some brand new compositions and arrangements created specifically for this multifaceted ensemble including the premiere of “How Can We Dance The Earth? How Can We Sing The Sky?” which is dedicated to ballet master, teacher and friend Richard Cook.
I’m always excited and honored when NAIL gets to grace the stage of the Falcon, and this time is no exception. Nadav, Brian, Steven and I will be joined by guitarist Monroe Quinn who I've worked with in Piktor's Metamorphosis. Monroe also played with us at our last Falcon show, in April of 2018. His fluid playing adds another dimension to the music and takes it to a whole different level. A stellar hang as always and as always, no cover!
Saturday July 13th 7 pm
Tony Parker's
CLOUDBURST
With Mike Colletti and Neil Alexander
Lydia's Cafe
7 Old US Highway 209 Stone Ridge NY
Cloudburst is back, baby! The original long-form jazz/groove outfit from Woodstock NY returns to Lydia’s Cafe for some greasy/groovy down home funky jazz. With Tony Parker (of the fabulous Parker Brothers) on drums, and our dear friend Mr. Mike Colletti on bass and deep funk. Great food and drink, a superb vibe and no cover.
I’ve known both of these cats for quite some time - both incredible players. I also have a fondness for Catskill Mountain Pizza Company, so this is a win-win! Should be major fun. No cover.
My 4th Saturday Jazz Series continues! This month is the return of none other than the THUNDERHEAD ORGAN TRIO, with Joe Gill (trombone & electronics) and Nadav Snir-Zelniker (drums). That’s right baby -
we’re B A C K…!
As usual there's no cover, just great food and their legendary tap beer selection. The Wherehouse is the best new place for Jazz in the Hudson Valley. #jazzlives #newburghny
Sunday July 28th 3pm
Robert Kopec Quartet
Ann Street Park
5th Street, Milford PA
Milford Pennsylvania's Music in the Park 2019 Summer Concert Series presents Jazz in the Park on Sunday July 28th from 2-5PM with The Robert Kopec Quartet. Love love love those park shows! The lineup includes Robert on Basses, Eric Person on Reeds, and Dean Sharp on drums. We’ll be doing Roberts originals along with some Ronald Shannon Jackson tunes.
Wednesday July 31st 8pm
Steven Frieder & Fried Funk
The Falcon
1348 Route 9W Marlboro NY
Steven Frieder’s new funk soul ensemble gets the Falcon MainStage treatment on this Wednesday night in July. With the inimitable Sam Smith on bass and Ray Levier on drums. We'll be playing Steve’s originals and a few choice covers. And speaking of covers, there isn’t one!
From December 2018:
Excerpt of a solo performance (Nail Jung) opening for NOUS at the Linda Theater in Albany. This will be part of an upcoming CD release, "Live at the Linda".
From September 2018: A performance of piano & Electronics with pianist and composer David Berends, recorded live at the NorthEast Electro Music Festival in Homer NY back in September 2018.
From May 2017:
My performance in Cascais Portugal last month was recorded for "Antenna 2", one of the local radio stations. They sent a crew and captured a stellar audio recording. I have obtained permission to release this a live CD and...well, it's not out yet but I'm still working on it. Here's a prerelease track:
The First of a series of 4 Solo Electronic Music albums to be released this year, "Overview Effect" contains music created using a variety of different techniques, and is part of a collection of music I've been working on for the last few years which include remixes, ambient music, drum 'n bass and all manner of other experiments.
HAVE A LISTEN:
