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Ken Silverman

Ken Silverman is a NYC-based guitarist/composer with an eclectic approach to jazz writing and playing. In addition to jazz, his style draws upon blues, funk, rock and classical influences. He views his new recording, Parallel Man, as a new direction in that it is both musically adventurous and widely accessible to a wider audience.

Ken is active in the New York City scene, playing in ensembles including the Ken Silverman Trio (focused on his original material), a 1930’s-style Swing Band, Free jazz improvisation, and African-inspired music.

Ken has released a number of cd’s to critical acclaim.

In 2012 Ken released Visionaries a work focusing on solo compositions. Allaboutjazz.com said the cd was "…an attestation that Mr. Silverman is a consummate musician and an accomplished artist."

In 2011 he released The Ken Silverman Septet - From Emptiness, which featured the late great Trumpeter Roy Campbell, Jr. Allaboutjazz.com called it "…a Deeply Spiritual work...a Near Masterpiece..."

In 2010, Macroscopia featuring reeds great Daniel Carter, of which a reviewer noted, "One begins to appreciate the subtlety and brilliance of this work." (Jazz Record)

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2
Album Review

Ken Silverman: Guitar Fantasies

Read "Guitar Fantasies" reviewed by Hrayr Attarian


With Guitar Fantasies Ken Silverman continues on the path he started on the 2015 release Parallel Man (Soundseer). The focus is again on the multifaceted melodies that simultaneously reflect elements of various genres while remaining anchored in the jazz idiom. While on Parallel Man there were more western classical motifs on the current album rock influences predominate. The three “Guitar Fantasies" demonstrate this amply. On number 2 Silverman's nimble and brisk strums together with bassist Sam McPherson's taut ...

2
Album Review

Ken Silverman: Parallel Man

Read "Parallel Man" reviewed by Graham E Peterson


A modern guitar trio led by New York City guitarist Ken Silverman comes out of the gate burning with rhythmic intensity on the title track “Parallel Man." Silverman develops a motif of parallel guitar lines while a powerful rhythm sections support his development. He enters into a glistening glissando section bringing to mind sounds of sitar that build a drive so hard that his tone reminds one of a Charles Mingus solo, ready to explode. There is no doubt an ...

3
Album Review

Ken Silverman: Parallel Man

Read "Parallel Man" reviewed by Hrayr Attarian


At first glance guitarist Ken Silverman's Parallel Man appears to be an album having an identity crisis. It seems lacking a unifying theme and the sense of adventure that marked its predecessors. A careful listen, however, reveals another explorative dimension, one that tries to find the core commonality among seemingly disparate genres. From the western swing of “Little Ditty" to the soulful blues of “Odyssey In Blue" to a Sergei Prokofiev composition these performances are all enveloped with an intimate ...

3
Album Review

Ken Silverman: Visionaries

Read "Visionaries" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky


Most of the world simply lives by the known, but some people fantasize about discoveries and ideas that are beyond the generally accepted scope of possibility. A select few from that list manage to make their dreams turn into reality, and they go down in history as visionaries; these are the people that multi-instrumentalist Ken Silverman salutes on Visionaries. A New York-based guitarist/composer who also plays charango, oud, and synthesizer on this solo date, Silverman chose a ...

2
Album Review

Ken Silverman: Visionaries

Read "Visionaries" reviewed by Hrayr Attarian


Multi-string instrumentalist Ken Silverman's first solo outing, Visionaries, is a collection of intimate sketches dedicated to those musicians (and other artists) who have inspired him. Silverman penned these abstract, tonal portraits first, and then named them after these iconic individuals. The result is the ultimate homage to eleven trailblazers. Each piece has, within it, diverse influences. “Hamza" is a multifaceted oud improvisation that fuses breathtakingly unrestrained musical expression with hypnotic vamps. It also melds distinctly western harmonic ...

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1

Performance / Tour

NYC's Modern Jazz Guitar Ken Silverman Trio To Play Woodstock's The Colony on August 6

NYC's Modern Jazz Guitar Ken Silverman Trio To Play Woodstock's The Colony on August 6

Source: Ken Silverman

The Colony 22 Rock City Road Woodstock, NY 12498 (845) 679-7625 August 6, 2017 at 8 PM. $10. Ken Silverman's original compositions combine jazz with surf, rock, blues, funk, classical and avante garde influences. WTJU radio said “Guitar improviser Ken Silverman keeps the energy high and the composition compelling..." Featuring the virtuosic drumming of Andy O'Neill and the enchanting bass playing of Sam McPherson, the music is accessible yet seriously engaging for ...

1

Recording

Ken Silverman Trio Releases "Guitar Fantasies" on Soundseer

Ken Silverman Trio Releases "Guitar Fantasies" on Soundseer

Source: Ken Silverman

With Guitar Fantasies Ken Silverman continues on the path he started on the 2015 release Parallel Man (Soundseer). The focus is again on the multifaceted melodies that simultaneously reflect elements of various genres while remaining anchored in the jazz idiom. While on Parallel Man there were more western classical motifs on the current album rock influences predominate. The three “Guitar Fantasies" demonstrate this amply. On number 2 Silverman's nimble and brisk strums together with bassist Sam McPherson's taut reverberating lines ...

1

Performance / Tour

Ken Silverman Trio At Amoskeag Studio (NH) on August 26 And At Brandon Music (VT) on August 27

Ken Silverman Trio At Amoskeag Studio (NH) on August 26 And At Brandon Music (VT) on August 27

Source: Ken Silverman

The New York-based Ken Silverman Trio is a modern jazz group that plays original compositions with influences that range from atmospheric film music to swing, funk surf-rock and blues. The trio demonstrates the improvisational prowess of jazz, the delicate creativity of classical composition, and the raw intensity of the blues. Reviewing the 2015 recording Parallel Man, Hrayr Attarian wrote “ Polished, sophisticated... an engaging record full of intelligent ideas and charming melodies that is a refreshingly honest statement by a ...

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Event

Matthew Shipp Duo + Ken Silverman Trio at St. John's Church on Christopher Street (NYC) on November 13

Matthew Shipp Duo + Ken Silverman Trio at St. John's Church on Christopher Street (NYC) on November 13

Source: Ken Silverman

November 13th at 8:00pm - $15 St. John's Church 81 Christopher Street New York, NY 10014 MATTHEW SHIPP Duo with MICHAEL BISIO - double bass. KEN SILVERMAN Trio with SAM McPHERSON - double bass and ANDY O'NEILL - drums. About Matthew Shipp “In the shadow of Cecil Taylor and Keith Jarrett, he has played out his individuality through three decades. He can be described as a cross between the two giants, but he exceeds both, with ...

2

Event

Matthew Shipp Duo Plus Ken Silverman Trio at St. John's Christopher Street on November 13

Matthew Shipp Duo Plus Ken Silverman Trio at St. John's Christopher Street on November 13

Source: Ken Silverman

November 13th at 8:00pm - $15.00 St. John's Church 81 Christopher Street New York, NY 10014 MATTHEW SHIPP Duo with MICHAEL BISIO - double bass plus KEN SILVERMAN Trio with SAM McPHERSON - double bass and ANDY O'NEILL - drums. Matthew Shipp is the American piano jazz mature secret. “In the shadow of Cecil Taylor and Keith Jarrett, he has played out his individuality through three decades. He can be described as a cross between the ...

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Recording

Ken Silverman Assembles an Unusual Sextet on "From Emptiness"

Ken Silverman Assembles an Unusual Sextet on "From Emptiness"

Source: Gapplegate Music Review by Grego Edwards

From Emptiness (SoundSeer S1001) is one of those improv dates that starts in a different sort of place and stays there throughout. You are given notice that this is not going to be business-as-usual from the start, with Kossan opening things with some Buddhist chant, followed by Blaise Siwula and Roy Campbell (on alto and trumpet) doing some duo free improvising, eventually joined by Silverman on guitar and Tom Swafford on violin. This is followed by Kossan on Sanshin (a ...

Ken has released a number of cd’s to critical acclaim.

- Guitar improvisor ken silverman keeps the energy high and the composition compelling; in a trio setting with sam mcpherson, double bass and andy o’neill. if you only listen to the title track, that is a microcosm of silverman’s eclectic and polished style. WTJU Radio, reviewing Parallel Man, 2015.

- In 2012 Ken released Visionaries a work focusing on solo compositions. Allaboutjazz.com said the cd was "…an attestation that Mr. Silverman is a consummate musician and an accomplished artist."

- In 2011 he released The Ken Silverman Septet - From Emptiness, which featured the late great Trumpeter Roy Campbell, Jr. Allaboutjazz.com called it "…a Deeply Spiritual work...a Near Masterpiece..."

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Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Guitar Fantasies

Soundseer
2016

buy

Parallel Man

Soundseer
2015

buy

Visionaries

Soundseer
2013

buy

Visionaries

Soundseer
2012

buy

Renoir

From: Parallel Man
By Ken Silverman

Videos

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