Kris Davis at Roulette

Pianist-composer Kris Davis – one of the most progressive, prolific figures on New

York City’s creative jazz scene – will unveil her octet project Infrasound in concert at

Roulette in Brooklyn on Jan. 6, 2014. Davis has created an evening-length suite for a

unique instrumentation, one whose power led to the name Infrasound – that being the

term for a low-frequency sound that’s felt as much as heard. The virtuoso Infrasound

band will feature four bass clarinets – played by Ben Goldberg, Oscar Noriega, Andrew

Bishop and Joachim Badenhorst – plus guitar (Nate Radley), accordion and organ (Gary ...

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Pianist-composer Kris Davis – one of the most progressive, prolific figures on New

York City’s creative jazz scene – will unveil her octet project Infrasound in concert at

Roulette in Brooklyn on Jan. 6, 2014. Davis has created an evening-length suite for a

unique instrumentation, one whose power led to the name Infrasound – that being the

term for a low-frequency sound that’s felt as much as heard. The virtuoso Infrasound

band will feature four bass clarinets – played by Ben Goldberg, Oscar Noriega, Andrew

Bishop and Joachim Badenhorst – plus guitar (Nate Radley), accordion and organ (Gary

Versace), piano (Davis) and drums (Jim Black). Davis created the music of Infrasound on a

commission from the Shifting Foundation, which has previously awarded grants to the likes

of John Zorn, Bill Frisell, Tim Berne, Craig Taborn and Zeena Parkins. Davis and company

will head into the studio right after the Roulette debut to record the music for an album.

About Infrasound, Davis says: “In writing these pieces, I was inspired by the

individual musicians I chose for this group and the sound of the bands they play in – for

instance, the earthy, energized Endangered Blood with Oscar and Jim and the snaky

improvisation of Bad Touch with Nate and Gary. And by using the four bass clarinets and

organ, I aimed for Infrasound to explore the low end of the spectrum, creating a living,

breathing wild animal.”

The 33-year-old Davis – an artist who offers “uncommon creative adventure,”

according to JazzTimes – has had one of the busiest, most notable years of her career in

2013. She released two albums under her name this year: the brand-new solo disc Massive

Threads (Thirsty Ear) and the quintet set Capricorn Climber (Clean Feed), which found Davis

alongside saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, violist Mat Maneri, bassist Trevor Dunn and

drummer Tom Rainey. The New York Times praised Capricorn Climber for being “an

engrossing lesson in ensemble flux, carried out with finesse,” adding that Davis is

“wizardly with tension.” The pianist also featured on the eponymous album by the kindred-
spirit collective LARK (with Laubrock, Rainey and trumpeter Ralph Alessi) and on bassist

Eric Revis’s trio album City of Asylum with drum sage Andrew Cyrille. That’s not to mention

that New York’s Jazz Gallery gave Davis a commissioning residency this past spring to write

and workshop new music for a second recording by her trio featuring Rainey and bassist

John Hébert; the resulting album – which will be her eighth as a leader – will be titled

Waiting for You to Grow, for release in early 2014.

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