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Baltimore born jazz guitarist Bill Frisell has created a sound his own and his own place in music. Although steeped in the jazz tradition, his music includes shades of rock, country and bluegrass, among various other styles. His lyrical melodies combined with a unique sound, make him one of the most singular musicians of his generation.
Bill Frisell guitars
Tony Scheer bass
Kenny Wollesen drums
“It's hard to find a more fruitful meditation on American music than in the compositions of guitarist Bill Frisell.” New York Times
Bill Frisell is one of the most acclaimed guitarists in contemporary music. He has just released the solo album Music Is which Number 1 in the Billboard Jazz Charts.
Bill Frisell’s career as a guitarist and composer has spanned more than 35 years and many celebrated recordings, whose catalog has been cited by Downbeat as “the best recorded output of the decade,” including his recent albums for Savoy - Sign of Life with the 858 Quartet, Beautiful Dreamers, All We Are Saying, a collection of John Lennon interpretations and his debut release for OKeh/Sony Masterworks, Big Sur, featuring music commissioned by the Monterey Jazz Festival and composed at the Glen Deven Ranch in Big Sur, for strings, guitar and drums in a quintet comprised of long-time musical associates.
Frisell’s latest album for Okeh/Sony When You Wish Upon a Star, a project that germinated at Lincoln Center during Bill’s two-year appointment as guest curator for the Roots of Americana series (September ’13 – May ’15). It features Frisell with vocalist Petra Haden, Eyvind Kang (viola), Thomas Morgan (bass) and Rudy Royston (drums) performing Frisell’s arrangements and interpretations of Music from Film and Television. Jazz Times described the project as follows: “unforgettable themes are the real draw here, reconfigured with ingenuity, wit and affection by Frisell and a terrific group.” The touring version of the band includes Haden, Morgan and Royston.
Always on the lookout for opportunities to "dig around for where I'm coming from," Frisell’s recent project, the Grammy nominated GUITAR IN THE SPACE AGE!, is an homage to the inspirational popular music of his formative years made in the wake of “the birth of the Fender Telecaster guitar” - (1951, the same year as Frisell’s own birth) - that, he recalls, "got me super fired-up" about his instrument of choice. Frisell and his band mates explore material on the Okeh/Sony Masterworks release associated with The Beach Boys, Junior Wells, Pete Seeger, The Byrds, Duane Eddy, The Ventures, The Kinks, Chet Atkins, Link Wray, Speedy West & Jimmy Bryant, The Astronauts, Merle Travis, Johnny Smith and others, as well as original material by Frisell.
“Frisell has had a lot of practice putting high concept into a humble package. Long hailed as one of the most distinctive and original improvising guitarists of our time, he has also earned a reputation for teasing out thematic connections with his music... He has drawn recent, long-form inspiration from the rural portrait photography of Mike Disfarmer and the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927... There’s a reason that Jazz at Lincoln Center had him program a series called Roots of Americana for its coming season.” Nate Chinen - New York Times
Frisell’s Nonesuch output spans a wide range of musical expression, from original Buster Keaton film scores, to arrangements for extended ensembles with horns and strings (Blues Dream, History, Mystery, Unspeakable); collaborations with bassist Viktor Krauss and drummer Jim Keltner (Gone, Just Like a Train, Good Dog, Happy Man); an album with Nashville musicians (Nashville), a solo album (Ghost Town)), a collection of traditional American folk songs and originals inspired by them (The Willies), and two trio albums with jazz legends - Dave Holland/Elvin Jones and Ron Carter/Paul Motian. The Intercontinentals blends Frisell’s brand of American roots music with Brazilian, Greek, and Malian influences. Disfarmer was inspired by the work of the mid-century rural Arkansas photographer Mike Disfarmer.
Recognized as one of America’s 21 most vital and productive performing artists, Frisell was named an inaugural Doris Duke Artist in 2012. He is also a recipient of grants from United States Artists, and Meet the Composer, among others. Upon San Francisco Jazz opening their doors, he served as one of their Resident Artistic Directors. Most recently, Frisell was commissioned to compose and perform a new composition in San Francisco by the Freshgrass Festival.
Presented by NCH
Room: Main Auditorium
Prices: €40, €34, €27
10% discount for Friends of the National Concert Hall
Location of event
Venue Information - The National Concert Hall
The National Concert Hall sits proudly on Earlsfort Terrace in Dublin’s city centre and is home to the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Choir Ireland, Irish Baroque Orchestra, Music Network and Music Generation. Next door to the picturesque Iveagh Gardens and in the heart of a commercial district known as the National Concert Hall Quarter, it hosts over 1000 events per annum. Its mission, to foster and celebrate the appreciation, knowledge, enjoyment and pure love of music as an integral part of Irish life.