Ancestral Tongues by Brian Groder

Equally fluent on trumpet and flugelhorn, Brian Groder draws on the entire jazz tradition, as well as world music influences.

Groder’s preference for working with other composer/performers gives his brand of modern progressive jazz unique improvisatory richness and depth. For performances and recordings of the Brian Groder Ensemble, founded in the early 1990’s, Groder chooses from a pool of talented musicians, including core members Francesca Tanksley, acclaimed pianist and composer (Billy Harper Quintet, Erica Lindsay, David Newman, Cecil Payne), and percussionist, composer and solo artist Newman Taylor Baker (Benny Powell, Ahmad Jamal, Dewey Redman, Henry Threadgill). The Ensemble has performed throughout the country, including the Cape May Jazz Festival, the Orlando Fringe Festival, the Rittenhouse Square Arts Festival, and, in New York, at Visiones, The Knitting Factory, and the Cornelia Street Café, among others.

Brian's list of jazz cohorts includes an enviable collection of players from all segments of the jazz spectrum; Katsuyuki Itakura, Blaise Siwula, John McLellan, Jackson Krall, Albey Balgochian, JD Parran, Taylor Ho Bynum, Andrew Lamb, Amanda Butterfield, Kevin Kuhn, and Andy McKee are just a few of the musicians who have shared a stage or recording session with Mr. Groder.

In May, 2006, the Ensemble premiered Groder’s new three movement Suite for Dance for choreographer/dancer Cherylyn Lavagnino at Danspace in St. Mark’s in New York City, which the Village Voice called "a brave experiment" and "strikingly beautiful". For the score of the Orlando International Fringe Festival production of Solos by Joseph Reed Hayes, Brian composed progressive compositions that were contemporary and yet conveyed the flavor of every jazz scene from the 1940s to present day.

Brian has worked with guitar great Dennis Sandole (composition teacher to John Coltrane and others) and continues to work and write with the legendary Joanne Brackeen. A New York native, Groder comes by his musical abilities honestly. Both his parents were working musicians during the Swing Era. During the 80’s, Brian Groder performed with the Atlantic City house bands of Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr., and toured with Joe Cocker.

His work includes original film soundtracks and multi-media presentations, and he has received a number of awards for his composition, including two fellowships to the Atlantic Arts Center in Florida, where he had the opportunity to work with Cecil Taylor, and a Composer's Assistance Award from the American Music Center for his Suite for Dance.

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