Allen Dennard – Trumpet
Matthew Daher – Drums
Josef Deas – Bass

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Michael Malis — piano and compositions
Rafael Statin — saxophones and reeds
Brian Juarez — bass
Jonathan Taylor — drums

Michael Malis (b. 1988) is a composer, pianist, and music educator based in Detroit MI. A multi-faceted musical artist, he performs as a jazz musician, composes for the concert stage, and contributes to multidisciplinary collaborations.

Thus far in 2019, Malis has undertaken several notable creative projects. He was commissioned by Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings to compose a new piece for piano, saxophone, and string quartet. The piece, premiered in May 2019, and featured Malis and saxophonist Marcus Elliot alongside musicians from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

In April 2019, Malis and Elliot, who join forces under the duo known as “Balance,” also undertook a collaborative performance piece with former Detroit poet laureate Bill Harris. The piece, which featured drummer Gerald Cleaver, set Harris’ collection of short stories “I Got to Keep Moving.” According to AllAboutJazz.com, “what was most striking about the synergy between Harris and the band was the sheer beauty of the music: the stark contrast between the grim realities of Harris’s story and the band’s melodic core, located in Elliot’s exultant phrases and Malis’s evocative runs, was stirring. And much of the music’s strength was found in the spirit of resilience and defiance that permeates Harris’s text.”

Also in April 2019, Malis collaborated with theater artist Paul Manganello to develop the new theater piece “Dividual.” The piece was premiered at the Cleveland Public Theater, with plans for a remount in the works.

2018 saw a wide proliferation of his catalogue of concert music. His trio for piano, percussion, and multi-reedist, “Numerology”, was commissioned by the Chamber Music Society of Detroit. His first string quartet, “Emerge”, was premiered at the Detroit Institute of Arts. His piece for piano and cello, “Coda”, was commissioned by the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival.

Malis has been perennially active as a performer-composer, both as a soloist and in collaborative settings. His 2017 album with the aforementioned “Balance” was praised by the Detroit Metro Times as “contemporary jazz of the highest order, a benchmark for where the genre can go.” The duo was also named an Artist-in-Residence at the Chamber Music Society of Detroit in 2017-2018, launching a new educational initiative which brought jazz to students in public schools utilizing an innovative merger of technology and live performance.

In July of 2015, Malis self-released his debut album as a leader, “Lifted from the No of All Nothing,” featuring all original music. The Detroit Free Press called it “an uncommonly mature and distinctive debut… The music is loose and spontaneous, alert to dynamics and textural variety while balancing formal detail and discipline with freedom.” It was described by Hot House Jazz Guide (NYC) as “cover[ing] a broad range of free expression. [Malis] bridges the gap between original composed, complex material and the spontaneity of improvisation.” In September 2016, his trio performed at the Detroit International Jazz Festival.

As a pianist, he has shared the stage with a diverse array of musicians, including notables such as Marcus Belgrave, Tyshawn Sorey, William Hooker, Jaribu Shahid, Ken Filiano, JD Allen, John Lindberg, A. Spencer Barefield, Andrew Bishop, and Marion Hayden. He has performed at the Yokohama Jazz Promenade (Yokohama, Japan), the Kennedy Center, Birdland (NYC), and The Stone (NYC).

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Allen Dennard – Trumpet
Matthew Daher – Drums
Josef Deas – Bass

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From 1995 to 2015 the group existed as an organ trio. Currently it is a quintet and on this engagement will feature John Douglas-trumpet, Alex Colista-saxophones, Matt Lorusso-guitar, Sam Harris-bass, and Dr. Prof. Leonard King-drums & vocals.

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Jaribu Shahid is a leading bassist of international stature. A native Detroit he has played with some of the defining artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. He has collaborated with such luminaries as Sun Ra, Roscoe Mitchell, Muhal Richard Abrams, Anthony Braxton, Geri Allen, James Carter, and the Art Ensemble of Chicago. He is a founding member of Griot Galaxy, Detroit’s defining avant jazz ensemble of the 1970’s and beyond.

Michael Malis is a pianist and composer based in Detroit, MI. In August 2017, he released an album of duets with saxophonist Marcus Elliot, entitled “Balance.” The album was praised by the Detroit Metro Times as “contemporary jazz of the highest order, a benchmark for where the genre can go.” He has performed at venues such as the Yokohama Jazz Promenade (Yokohama, Japan), the Kennedy Center, Birdland (NYC), the Detroit Jazz Festival, The Stone (NYC), and the Detroit Institute of Arts, and with notables such as Marcus Belgrave, Tyshawn Sorey, William Hooker, Jaribu Shahid, Ken Filiano, Andrew Bishop, Dennis Coffey, and Marion Hayden. He has been lauded for his scores for film and theater, which have garnered awards, critical acclaim, and have reached international audiences. He is a founding member of Polyfold Musical Arts Collective. He is currently as Master’s student at Wayne State University, studying composition.

Jonathan Taylor is a Detroit-based drummer, improviser, composer, and educator. A tireless collaborator, he co-leads a number of original projects including the electro acoustic duo Says Things, sound and movement ensemble Legs, art rock quartet saajtak, and his own quintet of original music, Mover. He has performed alongside such luminaries of creative music as Wadada Leo Smith, Dave Liebman, Michael Formanek, and Jaribu Shahid, and is a founding member of Polyfold, a musical arts collective. His compositions have been described as “A balance between form and freedom” and “Music for the head and heart” (All About Jazz). As a performer, he’s been featured at Edgefest, The DC Jazz Festival, The Jazz Gallery in New York, Detroit’s Strange Beautiful Music, and more.

www.michaelmalis.com

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The band will feature Nick Masters (piano), Mike Palazzo (string bass), Allen Dennard (trumpet) and Kayvon Gordon (drums). On the rare occasions that these four musicians find themselves in the same room, they take the audience to new and exciting musical places.

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Jaribu Shahid is a leading bassist of international stature. A native Detroit he has played with some of the defining artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. He has collaborated with such luminaries as Sun Ra, Roscoe Mitchell, Muhal Richard Abrams, Anthony Braxton, Geri Allen, James Carter, and the Art Ensemble of Chicago. He is a founding member of Griot Galaxy, Detroit’s defining avant jazz ensemble of the 1970’s and beyond.

Michael Malis is a pianist and composer based in Detroit, MI. In August 2017, he released an album of duets with saxophonist Marcus Elliot, entitled “Balance.” The album was praised by the Detroit Metro Times as “contemporary jazz of the highest order, a benchmark for where the genre can go.” He has performed at venues such as the Yokohama Jazz Promenade (Yokohama, Japan), the Kennedy Center, Birdland (NYC), the Detroit Jazz Festival, The Stone (NYC), and the Detroit Institute of Arts, and with notables such as Marcus Belgrave, Tyshawn Sorey, William Hooker, Jaribu Shahid, Ken Filiano, Andrew Bishop, Dennis Coffey, and Marion Hayden. He has been lauded for his scores for film and theater, which have garnered awards, critical acclaim, and have reached international audiences. He is a founding member of Polyfold Musical Arts Collective. He is currently as Master’s student at Wayne State University, studying composition.

Jonathan Taylor is a Detroit-based drummer, improviser, composer, and educator. A tireless collaborator, he co-leads a number of original projects including the electro acoustic duo Says Things, sound and movement ensemble Legs, art rock quartet saajtak, and his own quintet of original music, Mover. He has performed alongside such luminaries of creative music as Wadada Leo Smith, Dave Liebman, Michael Formanek, and Jaribu Shahid, and is a founding member of Polyfold, a musical arts collective. His compositions have been described as “A balance between form and freedom” and “Music for the head and heart” (All About Jazz). As a performer, he’s been featured at Edgefest, The DC Jazz Festival, The Jazz Gallery in New York, Detroit’s Strange Beautiful Music, and more.

www.michaelmalis.com

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Josh Harlow is a pianist and composer based in Ypsilanti, Michigan. He was born in Boston to a musical family; his formative experiences included singing prayers in synagogue and playing rock and jazz in his basement with friends. In 2016, he graduated Oberlin Conservatory where he studied with Dan Wall, Dana Jessen, and Robin Eubanks among others. Josh has performed around the United States and has been lucky to collaborate with likeminded musical peers and some of his heroes including Nicole Mitchell, Wadada Leo Smith, Jaribu Shahid, and Michael Formanek.

Brian Juarez on bass and Jon Taylor on drums.

http://www.joshharlow.com

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Parlour Game was born on tour when Carmen Staaf and Tony Scherr were subbing for the piano and bass player in Allison Miller’s ‘Boom Tic Boom’. There was an immediate chemistry. “Even the edgiest material swung,” says Miller, “and we realized that we had found something really special. It felt so good!”

Scheinman and Miller met in Brooklyn in the early 2000’s. Scheinman had come from a rural roots background and was immersed in the downtown NYC music scene. Miller had come from DC swing and had a steady gig with Dr Lonnie Smith. Their insatiable curiosity and general gregariousness brought them into a variety of different genres. Scheinman formed a lifelong connection with Bill Frisell and wrote and released nine albums featuring some of the most innovative jazz musicians of our time such as Jason Moran, Ron Miles and Nels Cline. She also dove headfirst into the roots world, touring with a number of iconic American artists such as Lucinda Williams, Rodney Crowell, Robbie Fulks, and Bruce Cockburn. Miller jumped on the Toshi Reagon bandwagon and joined Natalie Merchant’s band. She taught at the New School and worked with Ben Allison, Rene Rosnes, Brandi Carlile and Ani Difranco. She became the special guest drummer on Late Night With Seth Meyers.

Staaf and Scherr are also versed in numerous American genres, and share a deep respect for roots music. Staaf has worked closely with Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, and Scherr has played extensively with Bill Frisell, Sex Mob and Maria Schneider. Scherr once described Staaf as “totally unpredictable, and totally reliable.” Seated quietly at her piano, Staaf opens up a magnificent world of harmony while Scherr follows from below, grounding her most outrageous revelations.

“I have often played music that is in some way a reaction to jazz,” says Scheinman. “In this group I just want to play a great melody, feel the groove, and let the audience in. So much can happen at a show when everyone is in it together.”

The name of the band references parlor music, parlor games, and the great organizers whose movements were born in the parlor. Imagine the parties they had! And yes, it is about time that one of our newest super-groups features three women.

Jenny Scheinman – violin
Carmen Staaf – piano
Tony Scherr – bass
Allison Miller – drums

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