Hyprovisation by Arkana Music

Together they draw on a wealth of experience to sometimes disguise, sometimes eliminate the line between composition and improvisation.

The band can be seen at Toronto venues such as the Tranzac, The Central and the Concord Café. Upcoming shows are being planned for the Rex, Gate 403 and the Association of Improvising Musicians Toronto Leftover Daylight series.

Ali Berkok

A relentlessly multi-faceted pianist and composer, Ali Berkok can be seen performing in a variety of settings all over Toronto. In demand as a sideman, Ali is discovering a lasting and personal voice in improvised music. Work on his first album of original compositions was completed in February 2007, as Arkana Music's Hyprovisation was released. Shortly thereafter, Ali visited New York on a study grant courtesy of the Canada Council for the Arts. Under the mentorship of Vijay Iyer, Ali was further exposed to the rich tradition of post-1965 jazz and improvised music. Ahead is a period of exploration and research into alternative modes of musical organization which will manifest itself in a collection of compositions, tentatively titled Kaleidoscope, in September 2007.

Ali is an original member of the band Klezfactor, who have received critical success with their debut album "The Golem of Bathurst Manor." Klezfactor is a diverse ensemble based around the compositions of saxophonist Mike Anklewicz, who shrewdly fuses klezmer, jazz, classical and even disco. Other past collaborations include stints with jazz vocalist Karen Manion, and the Toronto Jazz Orchestra with whom he had the privilege of working with such artists as saxophonist Jane Bunnett and vocalist Kurt Elling.

A recipient of the 2005 Ken Page Memorial Trust, Ali was accepted to the Banff Centre for the Arts workshop in Jazz and Creative Music. Here, he had the opportunity to learn from artists such as Don Byron, Greg Osby, Han Bennink and Dave Douglas. Previously under the instruction of Don Thompson, Ali attended Humber College’s Jazz Studies program. Having also received a Bachelor of Music degree at Queen's University, Ali has a wide perspective and is constantly in search of new ideas.

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