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Metta Quintet
A cohesive, tight-knit unit, Metta Quintet is fueled by a collective, open-minded musical curiosity and a shared dedication to exploring new artistic territory while
maintaining a passionate commitment to arts education, fostering new audiences and nurturing young talent. Through the commissioning of new works and the creative integration of live performance, captivating video projections and stunning lighting design, Metta Quintet is committed to challenging convention and expanding the boundaries of live jazz performance.
The group released its critically acclaimed debut recording Going to Meet The Man (Koch) in 2002 featuring eight commissioned works by composers Brad Mehldau, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Mark Turner, Larry Goldings and George Colligan. All works were inspired by short stories by celebrated American author James Baldwin. In July 2006, Sunnyside Records released Metta Quintet's second CD Subway Songs, which features eight all-original commissioned compositions inspired by the many facets of the New York City Subway experience.
In February 2012, the quintet will release the globally-themed project Big Drum/Small World (in partnership with The Orchard), which features a diverse array of dynamic new music by renowned composers from five different countries. The project explores the globalization and ever-broadening definition and sound of jazz.
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Metta Quintet: Big Drum / Small World
by John Kelman
While the old adage, those that can, do; those that can't teach" once had meaning, its verisimilitude in a jazz world where artists are increasingly forced to turn to education as a means of steady income would appear to be in jeopardy. But there have always been artists deftly committed to both teaching and doing.New York City's JazzReach has been promoting jazz to public school students and beyond since 1994, largely through its resident Metta Quintet. Big Drum ...
read moreMetta Quintet: Subway Songs
by Russ Musto
Songs about trains have always been a part of the jazz lexicon. Billy Strayhorn's Take The A Train was an early tribute to New York's 8th Avenue subway line, but its seems a while since the city's much maligned mass transit system has been honored in music. On Subway Songs the Metta Quintet presents a program of nine original tracks inspired by the many facets of the New York City Subway experience. The group, the resident ensemble of JazzReach, a ...
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by Robert R. Calder
You might not expect a jazz performance of quite this blazing class from a band at the centre of a charitable educational venture, but you should never take music of this spirit and vigour for granted anywhere. Feel free to learn more about JazzReach (Performing Arts & Education Association, Inc.), which was founded by the quintet's drummer, H. Benjamin Schuman. The published details of the association's programmes may well lend great ideas to kindred ventures. This official ...
read moreMetta Quintet: Going to Meet the Man
by Celeste Sunderland
Drummer H. Benjamin Schuman is the founder and director of JazzReach, a Brooklyn based not-for-profit organization that takes its educational jazz programs on the road to expose students to the often hidden away piece of American culture known as jazz."Jazz has the ability to enrich and elevate them in ways that a lot of pop music doesn't," Schuman explains. The music is a really vital, exciting art form and it isn't a part of the standard classroom curriculum, ...
read moreJazz This Week: Stanley Jordan, a "Family Concert" from Metta Quintet, and More
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St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
This week's menu of jazz and creative music in St. Louis features everything from big bands to a stellar jazz guitarist who's practically a band all by himself. Let's go to the highlights: Tonight, guitarist Stanley Jordan (pictured) returns to St. Louis to begin a four-night engagement with his trio at Jazz at the Bistro. Jordan is known for his distinctive two-hand tapping technique that enables him to play lead and accompanying parts simultaneously on a standard guitar, and in ...
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Jazz This Week: Metta Quintet, Lenihan and Williams, and More
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St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
Whether it's because of Halloween, the impending end of Daylight Savings Time, pre-Election Day activities, the economic recession, or something else entirely, it's a relatively slow weekend for jazz and creative music in St. Louis, with just a handful of shows to highlight:Tonight, guitarist William Lenihan and pianist Ptah Williams will play music from Miles Davis' album Bitches Brew in a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University. Also tonight, percussionist Thomas Zirkle gives ...
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STLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Helen Sung, Marcus Strickland and the Metta Quintet
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St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
This week, we've got a grab-bag of videos related to the Metta Quintet, who will be in St. Louis next week to do an educational residency for Jazz St. Louis, culminating in performances at Jazz at the Bistro on Friday, October 31 and Saturday, November 1. As the the official resident ensemble of JazzReach Performing Arts & Education Association in NYC, the Metta Quintet spends a good deal of time in educational ...
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Metta Quintet - "Subway Songs" - July 18 - Benefit CD for JazzReach
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All About Jazz
TAKE A RIDE: METTA QUINTET'S SUBWAY SONGS ROLLS OUT JULY 18
100% of proceeds to benefit JazzReach's committed endeavors in arts education
New York, NY On Tuesday, July 18, Sunnyside Records will release the Metta Quintet's new CD, Subway Songs (AAJ Review). Metta Quintet is the official resident ensemble of JazzReach Performing Arts & Education Association, Inc., a nationally recognized New York City-based not-for-profit organization dedicated to the promotion, performance, creation, and teaching of jazz. The recording features performances of ...
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