Born: March 24, 1965 Primary Instrument: Trombone
Trombonist/composer Joe Fiedler is known to critics as “among the most impressive trombonists to emerge in the past couple of decades” (Harvey Pekar, Signal to Noise) and “an MVP in configurations that range from salsa bands to the jazz avant-garde” (Time Out New York).
Based in New York since 1993, he has performed and recorded in a long and eclectic list of musical settings ranging from pop (Firewater, Wycleff Jean, Jennifer Lopez) to Afro-Caribbean (Celia Cruz, Ralph Irizarry, Eddie Palmieri) to jazz (Andrew Hill, Lee Konitz, Maria Schneider) to the avant-garde (Borah Bergman, Anthony Braxton, Cecil Taylor).
In addition to work as a solo trombonist and leader of the groups the Joe Fiedler Trio and Big Sack, Fiedler is an active member of such ensembles as Fast and Bulbous, Chris Jonas' The Sun Spits Cherries, and the big bands of Satoko Fujii, Ed Palermo and Charles Tolliver among others. His diverse discography features more than 70 recordings, including three as a leader. The latest is his 2007 trio release, The Crab (Clean Feed), featuring bassist John Hebert and drummer Michael Sarin.
“When you listen to the music on The Crab,” writes AllAboutJazz-New York's Editorial Director Andrey Henkin in the liner notes, “you know you're hearing the work of a major innovator. And few players on any instrument write tunes with as much breadth and diversity, using mutes, multiphonics, bravado on burners, avant musings, subversive marches and poignant ballads.”
Critics called the band's first CD, Plays The Music of Albert Mangelsdorff (Clean Feed), “triumphant” (Jay Collins, One Final Note), “involving” (Nate Chinen, New York Times), “a memorable and brilliant tribute” (Scott Yanow, All Music Guide) and “a survey that is at once deep and uncompromising and still decidedly accessible throughout, traits emblematic of the dedicatory maestro himself” (Derek Taylor, Bagatellen).
