Charlie Haden - Bass
As a member of saxophonist Ornette Coleman's early bands, bassist Charlie Haden became known as one of free jazz's founding fathers. Haden has never settled into any of jazz's many stylistic niches, however. Certainly he's played his share of dissonant music -- in the '60 and '70s, as a sideman with Coleman and Keith Jarrett, and as a leader of the Liberation Music Orchestra, for instance -- but for the most part, he seems drawn to consonance. Witness his trio with saxophonist Jan Garbarek and guitarist Egberto Gismonti, whose ECM album Silence epitomized a profoundly lyrical and harmonically simple aesthetic, or his duo with guitarist Pat Metheny, which has as much to do with American folk traditions as with jazz. There's a soulful reserve to Haden's art. Never does he play two notes when one (or none) will do. Not a flashy player along the lines of a Scott LaFaro (who also played with Coleman), Haden's facility may be limited, but his sound and intensity of expression are as deep as any jazz bassist's. Rather than concentrate on speed and agility, Haden subtly explores his instrument's timbral possibilities with a sure hand and sensitive ear.

Haden's childhood was musical. His family was a self-contained country & western act along the lines of the more famous Carter Family, with whom they were friends. They played revival meetings and county fairs in the Midwest and, in the late '30s, had their own radio show that was broadcast twice daily from a 50,000-watt station in Shenandoah, IA (Haden's birthplace). Haden debuted on the family program at the tender age of 22 months, after his mother noticed him humming along to her lullabies. The family moved to Springfield, MO, and began a show there. Haden sang with the family group until contracting polio at the age of 15. The disease weakened the nerves in his face and throat, thereby ending his singing career. In 1955, Haden played bass on a network television show produced in Springfield, hosted by the popular country singer Red Foley. Haden moved to Los Angeles and by 1957 had begun playing jazz with pianists Elmo Hope and Hampton Hawes and saxophonist Art Pepper.

Beginning in 1957, he began an extended engagement with pianist Paul Bley at the Hillcrest Club. It was around then that Haden heard Coleman play for the first time, when the saxophonist sat in with Gerry Mulligan's band in another L.A. nightclub. Coleman was quickly dismissed from the bandstand, but Haden was impressed. They met and developed a friendship and musical partnership, which led to Coleman and trumpeter Don Cherry joining Bley's Hillcrest group in 1958. In 1959, Haden moved with Coleman to New York; that year, Coleman's group with Haden, Cherry, and drummer Billy Higgins played a celebrated engagement at the Five Spot, and began recording a series of influential albums, including The Shape of Jazz to Come and Change of the Century. In addition to his work with Coleman, the '60s saw Haden play with pianist Denny Zeitlin, saxophonist Archie Shepp, and trombonist Roswell Rudd. He formed his own big band, the Liberation Music Orchestra, which championed leftist causes. The band made a celebrated eponymously titled album in 1969 for Impulse!

In 1976, Haden joined with fellow Coleman alumni Cherry, Dewey Redman, and Ed Blackwell to form Old and New Dreams. Also that year, he recorded a series of duets with Hawes, Coleman, Shepp, and Cherry, which was released as The Golden Number (A&M). In 1982, a re-formed Liberation Music Orchestra released The Ballad of the Fallen (ECM). Haden helped found a university-level jazz education program at CalArts in the '80s. He continued to perform, both as a leader and sideman. In the '90s, his primary performing unit became the bop-oriented Quartet West, with tenor saxophonist Ernie Watts, pianist Alan Broadbent, and drummer Larance Marable. He would also reconstitute the Liberation Music Orchestra for occasional gigs. In 2000, Haden reunited with Coleman for a performance at the Bell Atlantic Jazz Festival in New York City. Throughout the 2000s, Haden remained prolific, working with Gonzalo Rubalcaba on Nocturne and Egberto Gismonti on In Montreal in 2001; collaborating with Brad Mehldau, Michael Brecker and Brian Blade on the following year's American Dreams and John Taylor on 2004's Nightfall. That year, Haden returned to Montreal for the Joe Henderson tribute The Montreal Tapes with Henderson and Joe Foster and teamed up with Rubalcaba again for Land of the Sun. The Liberation Orchestra reunited for 2005's Not in Our Name, which was arranged and conducted by Carla Bley, and Haden celebrated his 70th birthday with Heartplay, a date with guitarist Antonio Forcione. Helium Tears, a 1988 session with Jerry Granelli, Robben Ford and Ralph Towner, was released in 2006. In 2008, Haden revisited his country roots with the Decca album Family and Friends: Rambling Boy. Late that year, the album's "Is That America (Katrina 2005)" earned a Grammy nomination for Best Country Instrumental Performance. In 2009, Haden was showcased on pianist Laurence Hobgood's When the Heart Dances which also featured vocalist Kurt Elling. He returned in 2010 with Jasmine, a duo date with pianist Keith Jarrett recorded for a documentary film on his life. In 2011, Haden revisited his longtime noir project Quartet West with Sophisticated Ladies and appeared on the ECM date Live at Birdland (recorded in 2009) with saxophonist Lee Konitz, pianist Brad Mehldau and drummer Paul Motian. Chris Kelsey, Rovi

Antonio Forcione - Guitarist
Hailed as the ‘Jimi Hendrix of the acoustic guitar', award-winning Forcione is considered one of the most charismatic and inventive performers to come out of Europe in recent years. He breaks the mould of most conventional, popular guitar sounds be it in the field of jazz, Spanish, African, Brazilian or improvised music. International tours have brought high critical acclaim from as far as Australia and Hong Kong to Russia, the Caribbean, USA and all over Europe.

Born in Italy in a small village along the Adriatic coast, Antonio first drew public attention at 13 when he toured with his own band throughout Italy as a guitarist, mandolinist and drummer. He got a diploma in art and sculpture from the Art Institute in Ancona, and studied music in Rome (as well as mime) before moving to London in 1983 in search of greater inspiration.

Unable to speak English, he initially resorted to busking in the streets of London's Covent Garden, and within 2 months he had won an award which led to a BBC television appearance before being whisked off to open for the pop group Barclay James Harvest on a major European tour for over a total of 300,000, people culminating in a concert at Wembley Arena. He never looked back.

He has performed in festivals and theatres from as far as Australia and Indonesia to the USA, Canada, Caribbean, Turkey, Lebanon and all over Europe, especially in France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the UK. His festival appearances include Womad, Glastonbury, Edinburgh, Melbourne, Koln, Verona, Granada, Hong Kong Arts Festival, Singapore Arts Festival and the Machoire d'Or in Montreux amongst others, as well as most major International Guitar festivals.



Antonio's constantly innovative approach to life has also led him to explore the realm of music comedy performance resulting in invitations to perform at comedy festivals throughout the world. He has performed with other comedians such as Boothby Graffoe, Django Edwards, Stephen Frost, Tanderika and Ursus & Nadeschkin, acted as musical director and performer for the award winning trio Ole, and formed the duo ‘Acoustik Maniaks' with guitarist Neil Stacey, as well as appearing in variety shows as a Solo comedy artist.

Artistic, intense, and formidably inventive, Antonio is a performer of genuine distinction. Ever unpredictable, his is a celebration of the unexpected elements in life, music of rare delicacy, humour and, not least, passion.