The second article on the quest for the best live mic for saxophone is out and can be read in Matthew’s recordinghacks, a great site if you would like to stay up to date with the latest in sound-production. This article features the condenser microphones and it includes samples which is pretty hip. Next is an article on ribbon microphones. Should be out in the end of June.

At the moment I am on the road with the sextet of Amina Figarova. It is a working band that sticks together, and you can hear it. The band is great live and the new release “Twelve” just came out and sounds amazing, also thanks to Systems Two Recording Studio in Brooklyn. I have done many recordings there, I love that place, they are the best. This is the first time I got to work with Max, the engineer and apprentice of Mike. He killed it, both with Max or Mike you can’t go wrong.

I will be back in Copenhagen for the festival in July, a yearly tradition, and I can’t wait to play with Nikolaj Hess, he always cooks up a great line-up and a lot of playing.

I am also involved in two summer workshops, the improv/composition intensive which I do together with Tim Horner (NYJW). It will be held around the corner of Times Square. And I am equally excited about Hudson Jazzworks, a great retreat in the Hudson Area where 10 extremely talented students come together to play and learn. This program is associated with the conservatory of Amsterdam, Copenhagen and the MSM in Manhattan. If you are interested in signing up now would be a good time.

I was contacted by Stephen Bett, a great poet from Canada. He wrote a fantastic poem inspired by my music and it will be published titled: Sound Off: a book of jazz. Here is the pod-cast of the poem.
Poem written by Stephen Bett, inspired by music of Marc Mommaas

I am very excited about this. I have had a few experiences in which there was a cross-over between different art-forms. I wrote an essay on Jazz for a publication named “brilliant corners’ and I recently did a gig in Mexico where they and video behind the band which was spectacular. I hope to get more opportunities in that direction.

Another first; I had a great concert in Arnhem and the booker came with the idea to hang up the Jazz collection of my father, a fantastic painter. It was amazing. We had the paintings on chairs on the side of the stage, and it was as if the whole Jazz history was present in the room. I had Elvin and Trane on top in the middle, couldn’t help myself. Plus, my father past away in 2007. To have his work in the room was fantastic.

And a small word about New Orleans. I just played there at the festival and still miss the food. Nothing short to spectacular. A great vibe and I think it is save to say that New Orleans is back on their feet and cookin’ with gas.

On February 1st the band including Tony and Nate, is flying to Amsterdam starting up a great tour. Vic Juris will be coming from Italy. The first performance will be at the Bimhuis on the 3rd of February. I grew up in Amsterdam and saw hundreds of concerts in the old Bimhuis almost always with my father Henk Mommaas who was a staple in the scene of Amsterdam, a great painter and jazz fanatic. I have fantastic memories about it and am very excited to be performing at the new Bimhuis as a leader. I played there before, at the old and new Bimhuis, but never with my own band LANDMARC from NYC. This is going to be very special. If you are in the area please try to make it. I can’t wait.

The second concert is equally great, at Porgy and Bess in Terneuzen on February 5. I played there for the first time with the Amina Figarova group a couple of months ago. What a great venue, fantastic vibe and great organization.

This is followed by a concert at the Cultuurhuis in Heerlen organized by SCHUNK. A fantastic space, beautiful stage, and great organization. If you are in that area please stop by and support the music. It is organization such as SLIM that keeps Jazz alive.

Although I am raised mostly in Amsterdam, my family comes form Limburg, the Maastricht area. I am therefore very excited to get to play at Theater het Vrijthof in Maastricht. I know that my father and mother in their younger years had a lot of fun in Maastricht. Plus, my mother went there to the conservatory and my father to the arts academy. Some history there. And, I remember great fries with goulash. I am wondering if that place still exists.

We will also perform in Belgium at the Hnita-Jazz club in Heist-op-den-berg. It is a very well-known stage in Belgium, many great musicians have performed there and I am honored to play at this great venue. If you are in Belgium in that period please visit Heist-op-den-berg and join us for the concert.

I am equally excited to be part of a very special Concert in Alkmaar on February 12, which will be filmed. Dick Hovenga from writteninmusic.nl is responsible for the organization of this event and we go back a few years. Dick helped me with getting media attention in NL which helped a lot with organizing this tour, and we had many great conversations in NYC which he visits frequently. He is my man, and I am very excited to collaborate with him on this project. If you would like to be part of this fantastic event please email to athome@writteninmusic.com

For the complete tour please go to the concert page or see below.

In January I will perform with Tim Horner who released his first CD as a leader; The places we feel free. And it became a killer. The musicians are Tim Horner, Mark Sherman, Martin Wind, Ron Horton, John Hart, Scott Robinson, Jim Riddle and me. We will have a concert at the Puffin in NJ on the 7th and in the Kitano on the 12th.

After the Landmarc tour back in NYC I will be part of a few concerts with the Amina Figarova group ending with a recording session in Systems two. The music is starting to shape up, a very tight band and a great front-line with a beautiful blend. In May this will be followed up with a US tour including the New Orleans Jazz Festival. And believe it or not, we already have something booked in 2013, the Louisville Jazz Festival.

Last year I was approached to write an essay on Jazz and Art. I think it came out great and it got published in: Brilliant Corners “A Journal of Jazz & Literature” winter edition 2011 (vol.16, No 1). I am very proud of this article, it is very close to my heart and editor/writer/publisher Sascha Feinstein did a fantastic job in adding some flow to the article. For just $7 you can get an issue. Please support this labor of love.

I have also been involved with recordinghacks.com to write an article on microphones for saxophone. The first article came out a month or two ago on recordinghacks.com blog. A new article as a follow up will come out next month. The main focus in the first article was dynamic mics. The second article will zoom into condenser microphones and the third and final article will center around ribbon microphones. It is quit a journey and I have learned a lot. It is rare to get the opportunity to go into the studio and record 20 mics. and check out the differences. Credit goes to Matthew Mcglynn of recordinghacks and Charlie Martinez at Audio Paint in Manhattan. I will keep you posted.

And I have been working on the development of the New York Jazz Workshop program together with co-director Marco Chelo. It is looking great, the program is very solid and growing. The students will have a concert at Smalls (NYC) on January 29th and there will be a masterclass with Miles Okazaki on the 31st of January.
We are looking for a dedicated space in mid-town Manhattan. If you have a lead please let us know. For more information visit www.newyorkjazzworkshop.com.

Although it is still early, Armen Donelian and I have been working hard on the Hudson Jazzworks program which will take place on 9-12 August 2012. Borgani is funding a scholarship, which is great news. For those who are not familiar with their great work, Borgani is an Italian company who makes handcrafted saxophones. They sound great and I am endorsing one of their soprano’s.
HJW is also associated with the Conservatory of Amsterdam, the rhythmic conservatory in Copenhagen and the MSM in NYC. Every year we have a special guest. This year it will be the always burnin’ Joe Locke on Vibes. We are very excited about the progress we have made in the last 6 years. It has become a fantastic high level retreat/workshop. Let me know if you are interested in participating.

There are a few practical criteria’s that limit the choice of microphones substantially. First there has to be the understanding that you are not in a recording studio. You deal with instruments around you causing a certain amount of bleed. Therefore sensitivity of a mic including the Cardioid pattern needs to be taken into consideration. Also we have to anticipate sound engineers whom have no business being behind the board. Therefore, forget about pre-amps and phantom power specifics. If you have a beautiful ribbon mic the engineer can kill it with one wrong move on the board (although there are designs in the market that have build in protections, I believe it is a dart with poison that shoots at the engineer). Then there is another detail. As a traveling musician you deal with planes. You can only bring one bag (your horn) as hand luggage and one carry-on if you are lucky (shoulder-bag with your labtop etc.). Therefore, ideally the mic is small enough to fit in the case of your horn.

Now lets get to the saxophone in relationship to the microphone. Positioning the mic right in front and close to the bell is NOT the ideal spot for the mic for a very simple reason, the sound of a saxophone comes out of all the tone holes in the horn, not only the bell. This means that the mic needs to cover on average 20 inches from the top to the bottom of the horn, with the sweet-spot being 15 inches around the center. I know that there are horn players out there that like the mic close to the bell, it gives you more presence, more articulation, more clarity and a sense of power. But it will sound amplified and you will pay in quality in the high and/or low register of your horn depending on how you angle the mic. I am looking for the most natural sound, and I would like the high register to sound as balanced as the mid and low part of the horn. Then there is the option to have a clip-on on the bell. I prefer the mic to be on a boom stand for two reasons. First, to avoid variability of sound pickup over the registers as described above, but second and maybe even more important, I need the possibility to be able to get away from the mic for dynamic nuances. When playing live the mic needs to be amped up to get through specifically when you play with strong drummers and when surrounded by guitar and bass amps, but that same volume could be to hot when trying to blend with other horns in a subtle piece. This issue is no problem when you have the ability to step away from the mic. Blending in becomes much easier to control plus this way you hopefully avoid the engineers impulse to mess with your volume through the concert often resulting in him or her forgetting to putting the volume back to its original position after a soft piece.

What would be ideal? A microphone that is durable, not to big, on a boom stand, and able to pick up the sound of the whole horn in the most natural way possible without too much bleed from the rest of the band. Is it possible? Well, as I mentioned before, I am on a quest and recordinghacks was so kind to lend me four microphones to get started with; The Audix5, the Electrovoice N/D 468, the Electrovoice RE320 and the Beyerdynamic M99. I compared it with the Shure 58, a dynamic microphone with a cardioid pattern which has been an industry standard for over 40 years. Why not a Shure 57 that supposedly is designed specifically for instruments? The 57 is my worst nightmare, the absolute bottom of the pit. I rather play acoustic with nobody hearing me including myself because of the drums whaling behind me, then having to deal with the shure 57. I am making a point of this because I can’t tell you how many times sound engineers have come to me with this mic telling me that this is the perfect mic for saxophone. I always make them switch to the 58. The 57 is nasal, to directional, no high, no low, and a flat metallic mid. Oke, I think I made my point. I know that there are horn players out there that love the 57, specifically the rockers. May the force be with them.

As you might have noticed, all these mics are dynamic which I thought was a good point to start from. They are very durable and are not sensitive to feedback on stage plus they tend to be compact in design. Here are my observations:

Audix5
-Dynamic with a Hypercardioid pattern.
Very good pick up of the low frequencies. The mid frequencies feel a bit on the flat side with little space in the sound and the high frequencies are on the dull side. This is partly explained by the fact that this mic is very directional which is great for the drums, but not ideal for the saxophone as described above. The hypercardioid pattern is a good thing, it gives a little depth to the sound and after trying these four mics plus a few others with a figure eight pattern I learned that bleed from the audience is not as much of an issue as I originally anticipated on. Also I was very surprised that there was little bleed from the drums behind me. Learning already, so here we go:
plus: small, durable, robust and inexpensive. Very nice pickup of the low frequencies.
minus: not that great for the mid and high frequencies of the saxophone and to directional.

Electrovoice RE320
-Dynamic with a Cardioid pattern
This microphone has a few different settings, the voice mode with a flat frequency response and a mode with a boost in the higher frequencies. I tried them both for the saxophone.
I am not unfamiliar with the RE series. I have worked with the standard RE20 and liked it. I did find it a bit on the dull side but overall it was a good experience and it has a nice feel of space in the sound.
The RE320 has a warm quality, has a nice sense of space in the sound (more then the other three probably because of the unique design, this one is significantly bigger then the other three), and has a relatively high output. The problem again is that the microphone is to directional. Plus, the sound is rather harsh for the saxophone. The high frequencies sound particularly unpleasant. I can see how this mic can be the perfect mic for voice in a radio booth and it would probably work very well for trombone where the sound output of the instrument is more concentrated, but for the saxophone the RE320 is far from ideal.
What I learned is that a Cardioid pattern does not automatically mean less space in sound. Although my general experience is that the figure eight pattern or the hyper- and supercardioid patterns give more depth to the sounds then the regular Cardioid, I was proven wrong with this mic.
plus: warm, nice sense of space in the sound, not to expensive and nice design.
minus: to big to carry in your instrument case, has a general harshness to the sound particularly in the mid and high frequencies. Not impressed with the pickup of the high frequencies.

Beyerdynamic M99
-Dynamic with a Hypercardioid pattern.
I was very excited about having the Beyerdynamic M99 in the mix. This particular dynamic microphone has a large diaphram, a moving coil and a hypercardioid pattern. I was hoping this would open up the sound a bit. The Beyerdynamic M99 has three positions, a linear frequency pattern (flat), one with a dip in the mid frequencies and one with a gradual boost in the mid-high to high frequencies. The sound definitely had a open quality to it, but it was not as pleasant as I anticipated on. There was a metallic edge to the sound, and I could not get a balanced sound over the whole register of the horn, no matter how I positioned the microphone.
plus: open sound, nice design.
minus: metallic edge and to directional for the saxophone.

Electrovoice N/D 468
-Dynamic with a Supercardioid pattern.
I was very curious about this microphone. The N/D 468 is made with voice and instruments in mind, has a supercardioid pattern and a pivoting head design, which could possibly be ideal for saxophone. What I noticed first was the output of this mic. There was significantly more volume coming out of this mic then the other three. The tone was warm but not too dense, and had less variation over the whole register then the other three mics. From the four microphones tested this one was the most fun to play through. The pivoting head made it very easy to fine tune the position of the mic in order to find the sweet spot.
On the frequency response graphics it showed that there is a significant boost in the mid-high to high frequencies which I was a little concerned about, but I was proven wrong with this mic. The warmth stayed over the whole register and there was less of an edge then the other mics. One last positive note is that it is not a large microphone, it will fit in your case and the design looks very durable. One minor point is that the sound is not as natural as I would like it to be, it has a specific character that is very dominant. But I am learning that this is the nature of the beast with the dynamic microphone. Overall the EV N/D 468 is definitely an upgrade from the Shure 58.
plus: small and beautiful design, warm and pleasant sound over the whole register, pivoting head, not expensive and durable.
minus: not as natural sounding as I would like it to be.

Conclusion
This was a great learning experience for me. I learned that there is an amazing difference between the four mics, and it always surprises me how much influence the character of the microphone has over your tone. The dynamic microphone is attractive due to its durability but you will not get that natural sound that you would like to hear. There is a nasal quality that I do not seem to be able to get ride of with any dynamic microphone plus they in various degrees tend to be to directional for the saxophone. The cardioid patterns will give you an indication in directionality and openness of the sound but it is not set in stone as shown by the RE 320. Also, you cannot take the frequency response graphics of each mic to literally as proven by the N/D 468. The N/D 468 is my favorite mic over these three, but it has its limits which comes with the dynamic technology. I am starting to think that dynamic is not the way to go, the shure gets replaced by the N/D 468 but the quest continuous.

The Detroit Festival was quit amazing, a real Jazz Festival free for the audience which is a testament to the generosity of the organization and the city to the people of Detroit and beyond. The vibe was fantastic.

Chicago was also great, a nice concert at the Old School Town plus, I got to visit one of my favorite museums, the Chicago Art Institute. They had a great Chagall as a special, his America Windows which includes all the muse with as theme freedom of expression. A fantastic piece.

Back in NYC I played the September Suite of Amina Figarova, a great piece written in dedication of 9/11. I was there when it happened and therefore it was a profound experience. I think the piece really captured the different emotions we all lived through here in NYC.

This week I will be performing with Armen Donelian, two concerts as part of a CD-release party including a phenomenal line-up: Armen Donelian, Mike Moreno, Tyshawn Sorey, Dean Johnson and me. Plus I will be playing with Tony Moreno (not related to Mike) at the 55 bar iincluding another fantastic line-up; Tony Moreno, Jean Michel Pilc, Ron Horton, Dean Johnson and me. Talking about great bands, Tim Horner’s record is out (the places we feel free), a fantastic release with all originals by Tim. Please check it out.

I have to tell you that it is quit amazing to be playing with so many excellent musicians. It keeps me on top of my game, and it clarifies my own vision in what I would like to see developed in my own music.

I was asked to write an article with as topic Art-Music for Brilliant Corners, a publication on the arts and the written word. I am very excited about this, Art has always been in the center of my life, my father being a painter and my mother a pianist and opera singer. As soon as it is finished i will post it on my site.

Plus, looking forward to the Borgani Soprano that I will be getting in in November to try. And I am on a quest for the ideal mic for saxophone on stage. I am in the process of test driving a few different models. More on this later.

In October I will be touring in EU plus I am going to Baku for the Baku jazz Festival which is a first. Very exciting.

And a last update. I am working on an arrangement for a piece written by Tony Moreno. It sounds like we will be going into the studio soon which is very exciting. This band is another killer.

We are already getting geared up for next year. If you are an advanced student please put the HJW on your to-do list. We accept a total max of 10 students, it is very intensive and we are working on scholarships. We are also very happy about our connection and collaboration with the conservatory in Copenhagen. Hopefully we can get the conservatory of Amsterdam and the MSM in NYC also involved for 2012.

If you are an intermediate student please look into the workshops organized by New York Jazz Workshop. The faculty is very strong, and here we also accept a max. of 10 students. It is for adults only and you will be working on music for 4 days 11am to 5pm in the heart of NYC.

And there was also a lot of playing, with Global Motion at the Rochester Festival, with Amina Figarova at the Erie Jazz Festival and with Landmarc and the group of Sebastian Noelle at the Corneliastreet café in NYC. Coming up is the Tony Moreno group also at the Corneliastreet café, a US tour and EU tour with Amina and Landmarc gigs in the NYC area.

As many of you know I am also involved with a Mixed Meter / Polyrhythm class every Tuesday night in NYC. That will start again in the end of September, I can’t wait, a fantastic workshop that I am always very much looking forward to. If you are interested in participating please let me know.

On the web I surfed into a you-tube clip that includes a great arrangement of Doug Beavers titled bedtime story. I play a solo on it, and I think the arrangement is amazing. There is no real video, just a still, but the sound quality is very good, check it out: http://youtu.be/mrB0N2nd_qU

And for inspiration, trane at its best, an hour and a half of train in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNSwEE_HLuE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Oke, back to practice.



The 5^th annual Hudson Jazz Works (intensive four day program) which will be held in August is completely booked. We have students from all over the world, and we were able to offer some grants that we received from Ton Kooiman Ergonomics, The Bank of Green and Green Arts. This is very exciting, we have the highest level of students we have ever had plus we have a special guest, the great Vic Juris, whom you might know of my latest release Landmarc or from the Dave Liebman group. Included in the program will be a Concert and open Masterclass, if you would like to attend and hang out for a day in Hudson NY let me know, then I will give you directions. Its worth it, plus, there is an amazing coffee/espresso place on the main street, very important.

New York Jazz Workshop has also been working very hard on a summer summit series. It’s the third year and we offer four courses, a Improv.Comp course given by yours truly, a guitar course by Vic, a vocal course by Fay Victor and a Rhythm course by Tony Moreno. They are all amazing musicians, world reknown, and need little introduction. If you don’t know them, look them up. These courses are spread out over July and August and located in Midtown Manhattan and there are still spots available. Let me know if you are interested, I highly recommend any of these courses.

So teaching, these last two months have been a lot about teaching and it got me in a new learning cycle. I picked up a book named ‘Just play naturally’ by Vivian Mackie. She is a cellist who studied directly with Pablo Casals, one of my hero’s. This was recommended to me by a great  Alexander technique teacher, Beret Arcaya, whom I met through a student of mine who is going through some physical issues. Mackie made the correlation between the teachings of Casals and Alexander technique. An inspiring book, especially the first half (published by Duende Editions).

The second book I picked up is the famous study of counterpoint by Johann Joseph Fux’s ‘Gradus Ad Parnassum’ (published by Norton Publishing). It is blowing me away, what a fantastic work, heard about it through the years but never really gotten to it. No wonder Mozart, Back, Handle, Beethoven, Listz etc. studied out of this book. And I love the introduction, that alone is worth the whole book.

And…..I will be back at the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, in a week. I will be playing there 5 nights in a row with great pianist and friend Nikolaj Hess, man, can’t wait. Plus, there is an amazing coffee place on Jeagerbrogade, they won first price in a world competition and burn the beans on the spot. Very hip.

Well, on a general note, I am dedicated in my music to move deeper and closer to the essence of what needs to be played, an ongoing life long quest, but something I will have in front of every note and rest.

But that is not all. Right now I am in full swing with getting the two workshops together that I am involved in as co-director and teacher. I can highly recommend both workshops and now would be the time to check this out and register if interested since both workshop programs only take a maximum of 10 students:

The 5^th Annual Hudson Jazz Workshop includes me, Armen Donelian and Vic Juris as guest and I am very excited that this is the first year we can offer scholarships. So please check it out on my teaching page and apply if you are interested.

The New York Jazz Workshop 3^rd annual Summer Summit series again is going to be amazing. We have an Improv program with me and Tim Horner, Vocal program with Fay Victor, Guitar program with Vic Juris and a Rhythm program with Tony Moreno. Please check it out if interested, also on my teaching page.

For now, hope to see you at one of the concerts, on skype or as a student in one of the programs. Music is feeling great!

The new year started of with a great concert at the Kitano NYC, duo with Nikolaj Hess on Piano. What a great way to start the year. This time we focused more on medium slow pieces and ballads, something we accidentally got into at the Copenhagen Jazz festival in 2010. We did a night with ballads only, which was quit an experience. Something to think about for the very near future.

This was followed by a Global Motion concert at the Corneliastreet café. It has become a tradition to start the year of with GM at this venue which became my home base. Unfortunately the booker Poul Weiss went back to his native country but hopefully the vibe will continue.

Dick Hovenga, a great journalist who lives in NL but frequently visits the US wrote a fantastic four page article with great photo’s and an in-depth look into my career. His enthusiasm, knowledge in all music styles and his writing style is refreshing. I feel very fortunate that he took the time to get into my music and feel honored that he listed my latest release ‘Landmarc’ as his nr.1 most favorite Jazz release in 2010. If you read dutch please go and visit his music site www.writteninmusic.nl.

I got a chance to get into the production seat, producing a record for a Dutch Classical Bariton Saxophonist, Henk van Twillert, with a big imagination. He dreamt up a project in which he sings and plays Bariton and Soprano saxophone, joined by another vocalist, Brazilian percussion, drums, guitar and banjo. Fortunately it got recorded in NY, so I was able to put some of my guys together, Tony Moreno, Vic Juris and Nate Radley, plus I was able to put the two Tony’s together including Tony Marino on bass. Both Tony’s have been in the scene touring the world but this is the first time they actually played together, very cool, and of course they both sounded amazing. Also included in this project are Vocalist Joleen Wilkinson, Pianist John Austria, Banjo player Tuey Connell and Brazilian percussionist Vanderlei Pereira. It shows you that when you put great musicians together you will get something special.

And then there is the recording of Tim Horner, another killer drummer who has been in the scene for a very long time. He made is first recording as a leader and I am very proud to be part of this project which includes a list of jazz warriors: John Hart (guitar), Mark Sherman (Vibes), Martin Wind (Bass), Scott Robinson (Sax/Flute), Ron Horton (Trumpet/Flugelhorn) and Jim Riddle (Piano). A stellar formation with music all written by Tim, what an experience, a great reminder why I love playing music in the best city of the world, NYC.

Just got back from a tour with the Amina Figarova band. I am very impressed with this band, and how Amina uses the powers in her band. She knows how to take full advantage of the strongest qualities of each musician in the band, a rare talent to have. Plus she is playing her butt of. I am happy to be part of this great group of musicians and can’t wait to get together with them again next week in Mexico City.

More news; coming up is a concert with great guitarist Sebastian Noelle at the Corneliastreet café (NYC), a concert with the group of  Tony Moreno (55bar, NYC), a concert with Falkner Evans at the Kitano, a special duo concert with Armen Donelian organized by the New School, two CD releases, one from Armen and one from Tim plus the rumor that the Andrew Hill project will be recorded this year lead by Ron Horton and Tim Horner…..can it be true? Plus there is the Copenhagen jazz Festival in the summer, more touring in the US in the Fall, and finally, my first gig as a leader in the BIMHUIS in February 2011, it is happening! Already looking forward to it.

For more info please visit the concert list.

Moving forward..

We had a ball at the Stone, Landmarc sounded as great as ever and the new suite written when I was stuck in Copenhagen due to the volcano action is taking shape. I am highly anticipating a four page article written in Jazz NL about my music. I should have the copy in the mail soon, they named Landmarc the best release of 2010.

NYJW will have its student concert Sunday the 12^th at Boom NYC (152 Spring str. starting 5:30pm). All the workshops will perform and the faculty will round of the night with some music. If you are interested in joining a workshop this would be the night to check out.

Whats new next week? A great performance on December 15 with the Andrew Hill project lead by Ron Horton and Tim Horner. Its an all-star formation plus fantastic arrangements, always great to play with this group. (Brooklyn Jazz Wide Open, 622 DeGraw St. betw. 3^rd and 4^th Ave, 10pm). And I again have the pleasure to perform with Tony Moreno at the 55bar on Dec.23, all his music.

January 2011 will be great, playing a duo concert at the Kitano, a Global Motion concert at the Corneliastreet Café, and with Amina figarova at the Zinc Bar, a true NYC month. In February back on the road in Europe.