Connections by The Kevin Frenette 4

He studied guitar, composition, and music theory at UMASS-Dartmouth where he received a BA in Theory/Composition and has performed throughout the Northeast USA making music that is inspired by both contemporary improvisation and avant-garde jazz. Frenette is also a freelance recording engineer. He has performed and/or recorded with such artists as Tatsuya Nakatani, Joe Giardullo, Andy McWain, Forbes Graham, Gordon Allen, Sarah Weaver, Harvey Sorgen, Brian Melick, Michael Snow, Gwen Laster, Larry Packer, Martha Colby, Lori Freedman, David Gamper, Al Margolis, Adam Dotson, Jonathan LaMaster, Andrew Hickman, Eric Platz, Todd Keating, Erik VanDam and Gabe Cabral. In 2007, Fuller Street Music released Kevin’s first date as a leader: Connections. That album featured Frenette with Tatsuya Nakatani on percussion, Andy McWain on piano and Todd Keating on bass.

Originally from Kobe and Osaka, Japan, internationally renowned percussionist Tatsuya Nakatani has toured extensively throughout the world, having performed in approximately 80 cities and 10 countries. Utilizing drumset, gongs, cymbals, singing bowls, metal objects, sticks and bows, he creates collages of sound, which combine the sense of space and beauty found in traditional Japanese folk music with the extended techniques of New Music, yet with great energy and intensity. Although his music defies category or genre, it can be viewed as a cross-cultural mixture of improvised music, experimental music, jazz, free jazz, and rock. In addition to live solo and ensemble performances, he has provided sound design for films and television projects. The latest of these was the performance of an improvised sound score for silent movie- “The Water Magician” (1933, directed by Kenji Mizoguchi), which was part of exhibition of Hiroshi Sugimoto Photograph at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. He is the recent recipient of The Bronx Arts Council Individual Artist grant. Also he has been seIected PennPAT Artist Roster 2007(Pennsylvania Performing Art on Tour). In addition to his work as a percussionist, Nakatani heads H&H Production, an independent record label and recording studio based in Easton, Pennsylvania.

Boston-born improvising pianist/composer Andy McWain has performed and/or recorded with such artists as Karl Berger, Assif Tsahar, Tiger Okoshi, Santi Debriano, Brian Melvin, Daniel Levin, Tatsuya Nakatani, Joe Giardullo, John Dirac, Jorrit Dijkstra, Hafez Modirzadeh, Reuben Radding, Albey Balgochian, Laurence Cook, Dino Govoni, Luther Gray, Jim Robitaille, Brooke Sofferman, Bruno Raberg, Dennis Warren's Full Metal Revolutionary Jazz Ensemble, and the Zen Bastards, among others. He studied at UMass-Dartmouth, the Aspen Music School, and the New England Conservatory of Music (M.M., composition), and participated in artist residencies at Yaddo (NY), the Atlantic Center for the Arts (FL) with Butch Morris, and the Akiyoshidai International Art Village (JPN). McWain also founded and produces the Audible Think Improvised Music Series in Massachusetts. Recent gigs include three months in early 2006 in a jazz quintet house band at the club _Number Five_ in Shanghai, China. McWain's recordings include his quartet debut STARFISH with saxophonist Assif Tsahar, bassist Noah Jarrett, and drummer Chris Poudrer. In December, the trio recording McWain-Balgochian-Cook: VIGIL was released and features McWain with Albey Balgochian (Cecil Taylor's current bassist), and veteran drummer Laurence Cook (Bill Dixon, Sabir Mateen, Paul Bley). The recording Andy McWain Ensemble: RESEMBLANCE will be released this spring. It features eight musicians (including Sofia Koutsovitis, Assif Tsahar, Rick Britto, Chris Poudrier, Jeremy Udden, David Landoni, and Albey Balgochian) in various combinations from solo piano, duos, and trios to sextet.

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