Harriet Tubman

Harriet Tubman is a trio dedicated to a thunderously heavy fusion. Guitarist Brandon Ross keeps melody ever present in this group. You have heard his fretwork in such varied jazz projects as Henry Threadgill, The Lounge Lizards, and Cassandra Wilson while he has invaded pop to work with Jewel and Arrested Development.

The runner dashes toward the cliff’s edge, his hang glider’s wings rattling above. He has reached the crest and, before he can think to stop, he is falling. For those few seconds before the wind mercifully sweeps him away, he is in a freefall, in a state of exhilaration, heightened awareness and, perhaps, terror. Yet, he has committed himself and had to push through the fear in order to soar.

The runner dashes toward the cliff's edge, his hang glider's wings rattling above. He has reached the crest and, before he can think to stop, he is falling. For those few seconds before the wind mercifully sweeps him away, he is in a freefall, in a state of exhilaration, heightened awareness and, perhaps, terror. Yet, he has committed himself and had to push through the fear in order to soar. The members of Harriet Tubman find this an apt analogy for their musical approach. For over two decades, guitarist Brandon Ross, bassist Melvin Gibbs and drummer JT Lewis have thrown themselves into making music that is sans genre, infective and overpowering. Their years of experience playing alongside and driving many of the improvised music, jazz and rock's most celebrated ensembles have prepared them to run this gauntlet, The Terror End of Beauty.

This powerful, nuanced portrait arrives just in time celebrate the bicentennial of American abolitionist and political activist Harriet Tubman.

"Scenes in the Life of Harriet Tubman" is a biography of Harriet Tubman, written by Sarah Hopkins Bradford in 1869, four years after the end of the Civil War. The book describes life and adventures of Tubman, an escaped slave, who had helped many escaped slaves travel to the northern States and Canada before the Civil War, using the Underground Railroad. Bradford wrote this book, using extensive interviews with Tubman, to raise funds for Tubman's support.