“One of modern jazz’s most skilled navigators of the divide between inside and outside, freedom and swing," Cornetist and Composer Kirk Knuffke has “full command of his most demanding instrument” (All About Jazz).
Knuffke has released 18 recordings as leader or co-leader and is featured as a sideman on over 50 recordings with leaders Matt Wilson, Allison Miller, Butch Morris, Uri Caine, Pierre Dorge and Michael Formanek to name a few. It’s no wonder the New York Times tagged Knuffke as “one of New York City’s Busiest Musicians.”
Originally from Colorado, self-taught Knuffke began playing with Butch Morris after landing in NYC in 2005. This friendship resulted in 4 recordings and several European tours. Knuffke then joined the celebrated Matt Wilson Quartet in 2009, recording Gathering Call (Palmetto) featuring John Medeski. He also currently performs with Allison Miller’s Boom Tic Boom, Sifter with Mary Halvorson and Wilson,
and groups led by Charlie Hunter, Ben Allison, Ray Anderson, Mark Helias, Bill Goodwin, Karl Berger, Michael Bisio and Ted Brown.
Knuffke’s way of “perfectly balancing sly groove and meditative exploration" (Time Out New York) has been highlighted during collaborations with a host of incredible musicians including Roswell Rudd, William Parker, Myra Melford, Steve Swell, Marshall Allen, Tootie Health and Billie Hart. Knuffke has studied privately with Ornette Coleman, Art Lande and Ron Miles. He recently recorded a duo with John Medeski slated for 2018.
About Michel Bisio:
If you happen to be a liner note geek you probably have noticed the name Michael Bisio mentioned frequently on album sleeves. Whether the author is the session leader or analyst, the general consensus is the bassist is the cornerstone upon which great music is built. His playing allows a fellow musician to access not only other player's innovations, but also their own wellspring of creativity and imagination. The bassist was quite busy in 2021 with an abundance of albums released and coming soon. They include: The Sweet Spot (Rogue Art, 2021) with Joe McPhee, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Juma Sultan, Joe McPhee & Strings (Rogue Art, 2022), a solo bass recording Inimitable (Mung Music, 2022), a new duo recording with Matthew Shipp, Flow Of Everything (Fundacja Słuchaj!, 2022), a quartet featuring Karl Berger, Mat Maneri, and Whit Dickey entitled MBefore (TAO Forms, 2022), the Matthew Shipp Trio with Newman Taylor Baker featured on World Construct (ESP Disk, 2022), a duo with Kirk Knuffke entitled For You I Don't Wanna' Go (NoBusiness, 2022), the Kirk Knuffke led trio date with Matthew Shipp entitled Gravity Without Airs (TAO Forms, 2022), and lastly a trio recording with Whit Dickey and Kirk Knuffke (TAO Forms, 2023). I sat down with Bisio (via Zoom) to get some insight into his life and process, and learn what's next for this great man.
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