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Some reunions can result in the participants meeting at a juncture where they were previously, then continuing forward with the same spirit as before. This is precisely what happened when Alex Harding contacted me and said, ‘let’s hit.’ It was the first time since 1995 and the fireworks were still sparking. Soon afterwards, he asked me to recommend a bassist in forming a trio. I immediately told him about Rocco Popielarski. The three of us performed a couple of gigs and hammed and my home a few times.
When trombonist Vincent Chandler returned to Detroit to live, Alex didn’t waste any time sounding on him to join the group. He said the two of them always had a great musical rapport-which is important in terms of a group interaction in which the members trust each enough to take risks and land on their feet. During the fall of 2017, Alex was asked for the name of the group. His first thought was Quartet Now! And so it is, with three generations of musicians who bring their music experiences into one unified whole. Sometimes it can take a while for a new ensemble to develop its own personality; however, this group zeroed in, making it very cohesive right away, especially with serious fun that’s at the roots. The great saxophonist/bandleader, Julian “Cannonball” Adderley, once said that when excellent musicians get together to play it doesn’t matter whether they’ve rehearsed or not…something special will happen. Quartet Now! has that same quality, too. -Dr. Prof. Leonard King