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Richard Bona - bass
Taylor Haskins - trumpet
Etienne Stadwijk - keyboard
Ernesto Simpson - drums
Samuel Torres - percussion
John Caban - guitar
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Richard Bona has been recognized as one of the planet’s five revelations of the past decade. A complete artist, an absolute master of his art, and a melodist of rare elegance and sensuality, he’s also a poignant singer, and a member of that exclusive club, "the world’s best bassists.”
For the past fifteen years, Richard Bona, dubbed “The African Sting,” has been displaying his smile, humour, serenity and grace wherever he’s travelled. His first two albums revealed a wonderful storyteller, a surprising musician, and a spellbinding vocalist. His unique style is situated at the crossroads of a horde of influences - jazz, bossa nova, pop music, afro-beat, traditional song, and funk.
Munia, the title of his third CD, actually means “tale” in the Douala language (part of the Bantu group, one of the 220 dialects spoken in the Cameroon.) There’s a contained emotion, unsettling charm, soft magic, and keen, blinding flashes to be found on the program of this elegant, “crossbreed” record whose release, due on September 30th, will be followed by a European tour that includes a concert on November 5th at La Cigale in Paris.
The grandson of a famous percussionist and singer, Richard Bona was born in 1967 in Minta, a village in the center of Cameroon perched on the plateau of Adamaoua, between the small shrubs of the savannah and the virgin forest. His music, too, can be compared with the colors, twittering and profusion of the thousands of species of birds that live there. Music was his environment from the day he uttered his first cry. His mother and four sisters sang in the local church every Sunday, and the little boy joined them on the rostrum when he was five. Sounds, harmony and song were a genuine passion for Richard. The boy was remarkably ingenious, and not only made reed flutes for himself, but also a large balafon, wooden percussion instruments, and his own 12-string guitar. He did so with whatever he could find, like any other kid in a poor country: Bona laughs, “I hung around the workshops where they repaired bicycles, and as soon as the guys turned their backs I’d put brake-cables in my pocket for my prototype.” He rehearsed for eight to twelve hours a day, and also spent part of his time appearing as a singer and multi-instrumentalist in a whole range of religious ceremonies, from weddings and christenings to private and public celebrations. One important detail: Richard had a highly unusual gift - he only has to look intently at someone playing, and he can learn the instrument.
He was eleven when he went to Douala with his father; the sprawling, sea-port city was the second largest in the country, with almost two million inhabitants. He was quick to find his first job: as a guitarist with a dance-group. Bona recalls, “At the time, in West Africa, the guitar was the instrument in fashion; there was no salvation without it.” In 1980 the French owner of a local club gave him the task of setting up a little, jazz-inspired group (with soul-jazz and jazz-rock leanings), and he was entrusted with a collection of some five hundred vinyl albums so that he could “soak in it to the maximum.” So Richard discovered jazz, the freedom, complexity and virtuosity of the music invented by the American descendants of his forebears. “That’s how I came across the Jaco Pastorius album, the first one, the one with his name on it, [Jaco Pastorius, Columbia, 1976] and I never looked back. When I started listening to it I wondered for a moment if I’d got the speed wrong, I thought I was playing it at 45 rpm instead, and I even took a look. Before Jaco, I’d never thought of playing bass.”
In 1989, when he was 22, the young man left Africa for Paris, where he quickly built a solid reputation playing with Didier Lockwood, Marc Fosset and André Ceccarelli, and taking part in studio sessions with musicians of the stature of Manu Dibango, Salif Keita and Joe Zawinul (My People, 1992.)
Like singer Angélique Kidjo (whom he also accompanied), who’d gone to New York to live with her family, Richard crossed the ocean in 1995 and settled in Manhattan. He quickly hooked up with Joe Zawinul again, and was invited to accompany him on a world tour.
His name began to circulate among the “pros”. Bona reflects on life in New York: “New York is a 120% jazz city. As soon as a door opens, you have to jump through.” Noticed in a midtown club by lyricist Jake Holmes (one of Harry Belafonte’s old associates), a few weeks later Richard was named Belafonte’s musical director, bassist and arranger. A “fabulous” eighteen-month adventure ensued for Bona alongside this particularly endearing character who’d been a great friend of the late Martin Luther King, Jr.; a notable, sincere combatant in the Black struggle for Civil Rights; and a major figure in “crossbred” music before his time (he’d already been mixing soul and calypso, folk and Creole song, jazz and rhumba in the Sixties…).
Soon thereafter, Bona became one of the most in-demand collaborators in music, working with a remarkable array of artists, such as Michael Brecker, Paul Simon, Chaka Khan, Tito Puente, Eddie Palmieri, Chucho Valdès, Mike Stern, Larry Coryell, Steve Gadd, Joni Mitchell, Harry Connick Jr., Herbie Hancock, Billy Cobham, Queen Latifah, Jacky Terrasson, Bobby McFerrin, Chick Corea, Zawinul (again, when Bona sang and played bass and percussion on his World Tour 98 and the CD Faces & Places), Pat Metheny and George Benson .
On the advice of Branford Marsalis, Richard was chosen to play on the first compact disc by Frank McComb, the singer from Buckshot Le Fonque (the funky side of the elder of the Marsalis Brothers). The album was released by Columbia and a few months later, still under Branford’s patronage, the label gave Richard the chance to add his first album as leader to his discography.
Scenes From My Life was released in 1998, and included such luminaries as Michael Brecker, Omar Hakim and Jean-Michel Pilc (among others). One might mention some of the comments greeting this record at the time: “We don’t like showing we’re impressed by the last kid to be discovered in New York. But even the most recalcitrant change their minds when the kid’s Richard Bona.” (Newsweek). “An unexpected masterpiece, the birth certificate of an artist who prefers to sing rather than knit the ready-to-wear suits of the most gifted bassist of his generation.” (Gérald Arnaud in Jazzman). “Richard Bona is a great singer, not a great bassist who sings. A singer and a composer, Richard Bona has just made a great record. A record of great diversity.” (Jackie Berroyer in Vibrations).
Bona reflects: “Music doesn’t stop at a bass solo,” he says, “demonstrations aren’t in my temperament. In France people have heard of me essentially as an accompanist. Who’d have let me sing? Fact is, I’ve been a singer since I was a child, and here I was given that chance.” Wrapped in pared-down arrangements, and stealthily carried by his striking voice, these twelve songs are simple and subtle reflections of Richard himself.
Reverence (Autumn 2001), his second Columbia outing, was more intimate, and confirmed the hopes placed in Scenes From My Life. It was a gracious salute addressed to the world, and dealt with problems and personal good fortunes as universal subjects: faith, communication between human beings… Better than that, the young man threw out a real call for people to live life more slowly, and so take fuller advantage of life.
Munia, Bona’s third album and his debut recording for Verve, is a multi-faceted, dancing work of absolute freshness, and perhaps his most eclectic, thrilling album to date. Munia showcases Bona’s singing, composing and arranging, in addition to his work on bass and piccolo bass, acoustic and electric guitars, synthesizers, vocoder, keyboards and percussion. “In New York, where I live with my son Leo, I feed on any number of things outside my own culture.”
Munia, and its eleven titles in collaboration with drummer Nathaniel Townsley, keyboardist George Whitty, pianist George Colligan and saxophonist Aaron Heick, is the best translation of this frame of mind, undulating from one genre to another, yet it never interrupts one’s listening. Munia also boasts appearances by several notable guests: Salif Keita (vocals), Djely Moussa Conde (kora) and Bailo Ba (traditional flutes) on the brisk “Kalabancoro,”; Kenny Garrett on alto saxophone and Vinnie Colaiuta on drums (the very jazzy “Painting A Wish”); or the virtuoso acoustic guitar of Romero Lubambo on the lively, cheerful bossa nova “Bona Petit” (one of the rare pieces on which Bona sings in French). There’s also tropical rock (“Balemba na Bwemba”), two extraordinary ballads (“Dina Lam” and “Muto Bye Bye”), a brilliant rhumba (“Couscous”), and an exhilarating fusion piece (“Engingilaye”). Taken together, with Richard Bona, we once again have a recording that’s a pure marvel. There’s really nothing more to add.
Tiki - A single listening to the opening bars of this new album’s title-tune should be enough, even with only half an ear: you’re hooked. The voice is so pure and suave that it seems to emerge from the ether, its sumptuous arrangements interlaced with skilful polyrhythm. You need nothing else to be convinced: Richard Bona has just made the album of his dreams. "Tiki", as it’s called, is an album still unequivocally in line with the aesthetics and spirituality of its three predecessors, yet it strongly demonstrates a new maturity. With his new album, Richard Bona gives us the full dimension of his exceptional talents in an apparently paradoxical, two-fold movement – one that combines introspective clarity with a renewed sense of openness towards the infinitely plural nature of our world today -, and he does this with the simplicity of means and obviousness of expression that are the characteristics of masterpieces. It is this extraordinary agglomerate of diverse, multiple influences, this swarming mass of simultaneous identities, that Richard Bona today manages to express so masterfully in his music, and he does it without sacrificing any of his style to a kind of baroque one-upmanship. Quite the contrary: never has his exceptional virtuosity seemed so under control, so channelled into a single musicality; never have his talents as a melodist been so incarnate so obviously, so spontaneously; and never have his arrangements been so uncluttered, while losing none of their richness and sensuality. "Tiki", without a shadow of a doubt, is Richard Bona’s album of maturity.
DISCOGRAPHY |
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Scenes From My Life, 1998 |
Kaze Ga Kureta Melody, 2000 |
Reverence, 2001 |
Munia (The Tale), 2003 |
Toto Bona Lokua, 2005 |
Tiki, 2006 |
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Taylor Haskins
trumpet |
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Taylor Haskins is fast becoming one of the most diverse talents in music, diving head-first into everything from playing with world-class jazz ensembles, new music ensembles and bare-bones experimental rock bands to composing & producing original music for film, television, art installations, and for his own group, the Taylor Haskins Experiment. In 2002 Taylor released his debut recording entitled "Wake Up Call" on the Barcelona-based Fresh Sound/New Talent label. AllAboutJazz.com called it an "impressive debut, wherein traditional forms are discarded and the beauty of new forms revealed." Recently Taylor released his second CD on Fresh Sound, entitled "Metaview”.
Taylor grew up in the quiet woods of New Hampshire, where he began his musical life around the age of 4 by plunking out television and movie themes by ear on the family piano. Formal piano lessons began at 5, and at the age of 10 Taylor started to play the trumpet in school band. He proved to be a natural at the instrument and had very little private instruction until after high school, when he earned full merit-based scholarships to both undergraduate and graduate school to pursue his musical studies. He studied classical trumpet with Dr. Robert Stibler at the University of New Hampshire (BA, 1994), and in 1994 Taylor relocated to New York City to study with trumpet legend Lew Soloff at the Manhattan School of Music (MM, 1996). In 1997 he was a semi-finalist in the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Jazz Trumpet Competition.
Currently Taylor plays lead trumpet with the Grammy™ award-winning Dave Holland Big Band, performs regularly with Cameroonian singer/bassist Richard Bona, and has also been a long-time member of Guillermo Klein's 'Los Guachos'. In addition, he has also performed and recorded with Maynard Ferguson's 'Big Bop Nouveau", Andrew Rathbun, Luciana Souza, the Maria Schneider Orchestra, Clark Terry, the Village Vanguard Orchestra, Peter Herborn's 'Large', Ed Palermo's 'Frank Zappa Big Band', TILT Brass Ensemble, the Bjorkestra, the Joey Sellars Jazz Aggregation, Rosemary Clooney, the Artie Shaw Orchestra, the Pablo Ablanedo Octet amongst many others.
In addition to playing trumpet and composing music for his own projects, Taylor has proven himself a versatile composer for various media, utilizing technology in combination with traditional composing methods. He has composed and produced music for over 50 national TV commercials for clients such as Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi, Target, AT&T, Buick, MasterCard, Bounty, LL Bean, Canon and others. He has created music & sound design for network ID's on the USA Networks as well as the WE Network. Taylor has also contributed original music to such films as "Arlington Road” (1999), "Waking the Dead” (2000), "No Maps For These Territories” (2000), "The Mothman Prophecies" (2001), "The Rules of Attraction" (2003), and most recently "Sorry, Haters" (2006). Taylor has scored numerous independent short films, including the award-winning comedy "Spot", for which he also wrote the screenplay. In addition to this myriad of musical activities, Taylor has also served as Creative Supervisor for music production house 'Face the Music' in Los Angeles, and for several years composed music as well as developed AI-based music software for 'tomandandy' in New York. |
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Etienne Stadwijk
keyboard |
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Etienne is a keyboardist, producer and arranger from Suriname, South America. He now resides in NYC, USA, where he also studied at the Berklee College of Music, majoring in Arranging.
He has performed at concerts and recorded with artists such as Jazz saxophonist Kenny Garrett, jazz flutist Herbie Mann, contemporary saxophonist Najee, blues legend Cornell Dupree, acid jazz groups Groove Collective and Brooklyn Funk Essentials, soul/R & B group Solo, Latin pop group The Barrio Boyz, gospel singer Ann Nesby, bassist Richard Bona, Freddie Jackson, Ultra Nate, The Ojay's, Berman Brothers and Evelyn 'Champagne'. New music.projects he has participated in include Richard Bona's new CD 'Scenes From My Life' on Columbia Records & Brooklyn Funk Essentials new CD 'Make them like it'. |
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Ernesto Simpson
drums |
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Born in Camaguey (Cuba), music was a pervasive presence in his upbringing. Ernesto’s father is an accomplished trumpet player and band leader and his mother’s love of music instilled in him the impetus to commence his musical studies at the Camaguey Conservatory of Music and pursue his degree at the National School of Instructors of Art in Havana.
Ernesto Simpson began his musical career at an early age and had his first paying gig with his father’s band.
His exposure to a variety of styles, rhythms, combined with African and Afro-Cuban, South American styles has allowed him to develop a powerful and innovative concept fitting perfectly the needs of the new collective music.
His musical sophistication is matched only by his ability to play on a very high level with great consistency, freshness and unique taste. He is known for his furious commitment that soloists playing with him had to exert all their might to keep along with him.
Ernesto performs in a myriad of arenas from Jazz to R&B, Latin, ethnic and more. Because of his commitment to excel, he constantly develops new ideas with technique to spare. His love for music and respect for his instrument and peers lead him to play everything with incisive, deep, soulful perfection.
Active on the New York jazz scene swiftly is establishing a high reputation among his peers that his incendiary riffs ignite anyone’s imagination.
Touring with recognized international bands Ernesto Simpson’s name has become much better known in the music world.
He has performed and shared stage with personalities like Carmen McRae, Dizzy Guillespie, Winton Marsalis, Mike Stern, Michael Legrand, Herbie hancock Michael Brecker, George Benson, Salif Keita, Giovanni Hidalgo, Arturo Sandoval, Paquito D' Rivera, Ray Barreto, just to name a few, he also plays for the famous Cameroonian song-writter, singer and bass player, Richard Bona. |
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Samuel Torres
percussion |
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| Percussionist, arranger, composer, producer.
Born in Bogota, Colombia, Samuel graduated in Music Composition from Universidad Javeriana of Bogota. He started playing at age twelve and recalls learning a great deal from in-home jam sessions with friends of his musically inclined grand parents and relatives and began playing around with different bands in his hometown.
Although a classically trained percussionist, Samuel was drawn by the sound and rhythms of different styles, especially Latinamerican and Jazz. In 1998 he traveled to the United States, where he was contracted with Grammy Award Winner Arturo Sandoval with whom he toured throughout the world for four years.
Upon his arrival to the US Samuel has played with renowned jazz artists such as the late Tito Puente, Chick Corea, Poncho Sanchez, Caribbean Jazz Project, Pete Escovedo, Dave Valentin, Michael Brecker, Don Byron and Claudio Roditi amongst other.
He has also performed as a guest of the Florida International University’s big band, the 4th of July Esplanade 2000 with the Boston Pops, 2000, Singapore Arts Festival, the "5 de Mayo" Celebration 2001 with the Nashville Symphony, the Hollywood Bowl Latin Festival 2001 with the L.A. Philharmonic, 2001 Newport Jazz Festival in Madarao, Japan and many more.
Samuel’s stellar playing landed him the Second Place at the 2000 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition for Hand Percussion.
He creates beautiful, yet challenging music designed to appeal to the discriminating listener. With artfully, dynamic and relaxed chops that match speed with precision, The Boston Globe describes his playing: "a ferocious conga solo by Samuel Torres that seemed not humanly possible".
Samuel moved to New York in late 2002, where he is gaining recognition and respect in the most competitive of musical settings while continues performing in leading venues and festivals throughout the world.
Latin Percussion, Inc., the renowned percussion builder appointed him as the leader, producer, composer of "Drum Solos Revisited" a DVD targeted to those interested in learning and/or improving their technique and soloist improvisational skills. Founder of LP, Martin Cohen claims that "he had not met an arranger/producer so talented in over 25 year".
In 2004 Samuel Torres began working with the exceptionally gifted bassist, Richard Bona, again demonstrating his commitment to taking his talent to all areas of music. |
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John Caban
guitar |
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| Brooklyn based guitarist, producer, and composer John Caban’s unique playing has graced performances and/or recordings with such diverse artists as Richard Bona, Art Neville, Bo Diddley, Kenny Kirkland, Alana Davis, KJ Denhert, Brother Love, Neycha, Gianna Nannini, Dispatch, drum ‘n’ bass maverick’s Boomish and many others. With roots deep in rock, blues, funk, r&b, experimental, ambient and world music, a rich tonal palette, lyrical sensitivity and strong rhythmic feel combine to make his distinctive atmospheric guitar style a fixture on both the stage and studio in NYC and beyond. John can be found at www.johncaban.com |
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