Chimera - Music

Bassist/composer Mario Pavone Has Collaborated With Both Legendary Innovators And Today's Most Respected Young Musicians To Consistently Define The Cutting Edge Of Jazz For The Past 40 Years. He Has Anchored The Trios Of Paul Bley 1968-72 Bill Dixon 1980's And The Late Thomas Chapin 1990-97 And Co-Led A Variety Of Notable Ensembles With Anthony Braxton Wadada Leo Smith Marty Ehrlich And Michael Musillami. His List Of Sidemen Past And Present Includes Steven Bernstein Gerald Cleaver Dave Douglas Peter Madsen Tony Malaby Joshua Redman George Schuller Michael Sarin Craig Taborn And Matt Wilson Among Many Others. And Unlike Most Artists Whose Careers Span Five Decades His Most Recent Recordings Are His Most Widely Acclaimed Appearing On Best-Of-The-Year Lists From Slate.Com AllAboutJazz.Com AllAboutJazz-New York Coda The Village Voice And The New York Times Among Others. Although A Long Career In Jazz Awaited Him Pavone Never Received Formal Music Training And Didn't Seriously Encounter Jazz Until His Freshman Year At The University Of Connecticut In 1958. Growing Up In Waterbury Connecticut He Developed A Fondness For Black R&B Vocal Groups As Well As The 1940's Movie Music He Heard As A Child But A College Friend's Jazz Record Collection—and Seeing John Coltrane One Fateful Night At The Village Vanguard In 1961—set Him On The Musical Path. With Legendary Guitarist/fellow Waterbury Native Joe Diorio's Encouragement Pavone Rented A Bass In The Summer Of 1964 And Began Plucking Out The Percussive Sound That Would Become His Trademark. He Was Playing Professionally By 1965 Though His Full-Time Job Was Putting His Industrial Engineering Degree To Work For Major Corporations. Upon Hearing The News About Coltrane's Death In 1967 He Left His Briefcase On His Desk Got In The Car And Drove To The Funeral Where He Decided On The Spot To Dedicate The Rest Of His Life To Music. He Toured Europe With Paul Bley In 1968 And Performed On The Pianist's Recording Canada Radio Canada With Barry Altschul. Soon After He Met Vibraphonist/composer Bobby Naughton Among Others And Became A Part Of New York's Early 70's Loft Scene With Groups Like Bill Dixon's Orchestra Of The Streets. By 1975 He Was A Founding Member Of The New Haven Connecticut-Based Creative Music Improvisers Forum CMIF With Naughton Wadada Leo Smith Gerry Hemingway Wes Brown Reverend Dwight Andrews And Others Which Produced Concerts And Recordings That Gave Musicians More Control Over Their Own Music. In 1980 Pavone Began An 18-Year Musical Relationship With Thomas Chapin Which Would Lead To A Number Of Collaborations Most Notably Chapin's Seminal Trio With Drummer Michael Sarin. Around The Same Time Pavone Recorded His First Titles As A Leader 1979's Digit And 1981's Shodo On His Own Alacra Label Crediting Naughton And Smith With Motivating Him To Write His Own Music And Teaching Him About Open-Ended Composition. Since Chapin's Untimely Death In 1998 Pavone Has Recorded Exclusively With His Own Bands With The Exception Of His Son Michael's 2001 Debut Trio Playscape . His Discography Now Features 17 Recordings As A Leader/co-Leader Including His Acclaimed 2006 Release Deez To Blues On Playscape Recordings The Label He Has Called Home Since 1999. In Addition To His Ongoing Activities As A Bandleader Pavone's Artwork And Photography Have Graced The Covers Of Dozens Of Recordings Since The Mid 90's And He Currently Serves As An Educator Administrator And Board Member For The Litchfield Jazz Festival And Litchfield Summer Jazz Camp In Litchfield Connecticut. - From Mariopavone.Com See Also - Http //en.Wikipedia.Org/wiki/Mario_Pavone read less