Alan Ferber

Matt Otto is currently the Assistant Professor of Jazz Studies at Kansas University (KU) teaching Jazz Theory and Performance, Jazz Combo 1 and private lessons. Matt is also an Adjunct Professor at the Rutgers New Brunswick teaching online courses in jazz improvisation, theory and performance.

Daring Mind is a documentation of my first four years in New York. Composing has been my best friend. We danced, cried, laughed, and suffered together. Music heals me by helping to release my emotions. I hope this album can take on you a similar journey as we are all human beings sharing the ups and downs of life.

'While in Pass Manchac' features Scott Wendholt from the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra and Pillow on alto. 'Charlotte and Evan' features Gary Versace on piano and Pillow on alto. 'Don't Explain' is a tour de force for the one and only Vic Juris on guitar. Hermeto Pascoal's 'Bebe' is one of his most well known compositions, practically a Brazilian standard. It's given a slower treatment here, featuring Gary Versace on accordion, Pillow on clarinet and the percussion and drumming of Rogerio Boccato and Rich Thompson. Williams' 'Pee Wee' first appeared on Miles Davis' 'Sorcerer', from 1967, a period where Wayne Shorter supplied most of the compositions for the group. This one features Vic Juris on guitar and Pillow on alto flute. 'Oska T' is one of Monk's most underperformed pieces. Here Scott Wendholt and Alan Ferber stretch out and show how versatile they are. 'Abschied, Ray' features Gary Versace, and finally 'Atchafalaya Fiction' features Alan Ferber who shows why he is in such demand and Gary Versace again demonstrates his remarkable talents.

Quinsin Nachoff's Flux communicates an extraordinarily colourful palette of conceptual reasoning and musical expression in the effulgent release, 'Path of Totality'. Featuring saxophonist David Binney, pianist/keyboardist Matt Mitchell, drummers Kenny Wollesen and Nate Wood, plus a clutch of guest artists.

The alliance of Latin music and American jazz ripened on these shores more than seventy years ago, nourished by pioneers such as Mario Bauza, Chano Pozo, Dizzy Gillespie, Machito, Tito Puente and others. It has been carried forward and enhanced since then by a succession of remarkable innovators including in recent years the Cuban-born drummer Dafnis Prieto who has chosen on his seventh recording as leader to honor a number of his forebears and musical heroes in a big-band format.

The last few years have been a roller-coaster for Laila Biali.

Ears & Eyes Records is excited to work with Drew Williams and Wing Walker Orchestra on our first release of the year, Hazel! Long in gestation but immediate in its impact, Wing Walker Orchestra's debut album, Hazel, is a great introduction to one of the East Coast's liveliest ensembles led by 30-year old multi-reedist Drew Williams, who plays bass clarinet on the album. WWO has been working for the last 6 years mostly in New York City while touring the country in smaller incarnations. The recording, produced by GRAMMY-nominee Alan Ferber, will be released on February 15th, 2019 on ears&eyes Records.

International touring performer, composer and trumpet player Volker Goetze puts forward another release fuelling cross-cultural dialogue through musical boundary crossing with "Bridges", uniting musicians from three continents to form the Volker Goetze Quintet. The original compositions on this release are rooted in West African and contemporary New York jazz, creating a vibrant transnational musical journey.