Ken Vandermark

Ken Vandermark
Empty Bottle, Chicago, September 22–26, 2004; photo courtesy Seth Tisue
Background information
Born	(1964-09-22) September 22, 1964 (age 59) Warwick, Rhode Island, U.S.
Genres	Avant-garde jazz, free jazz, free improvisation
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instrument(s)	Saxophone, clarinet
Labels	Spool, Atavistic
Website	www.kenvandermark.com

Ken Vandermark (born September 22, 1964) is an American composer, saxophonist, and

A fixture on the Chicago-area music scene since the 1990s, Vandermark has earned wide critical praise for his playing and his multilayered compositions, which typically balance intricate

He was also a member of NRG Ensemble.^[2]

Biography

Boston and Montreal

Vandermark grew up in Massachusetts, graduating from

Compositions/arrangements for the Boston-based groups set the groundwork for and predicted approaches to recordings and live performances developed in Chicago. Although a trio, Lombard Street incorporated "suite forms" characteristic of later arrangements for groups of both substantial and limited instrumentation. Vandermark's "dedication pieces" are found first in Lombard Street performances, as in the case of "The Politics of Sound," which was dedicated to the musicians in Boston-based ensembles Shock Exchange, The Fringe, and the Joe Morris Trio. Works performed by Mr. Furious, such as "Cold Coffee", include some of the most convincing early examples of Vandermark's signature free-ranging charts. Developed further in Barrage Double Trio (e.g., "Agamemnon Sleeps") this simultaneously linear and episodic perspective on arrangement broadly has been the overarching architecture in most of his works for large-ensembles since that time.

Chicago

Vandermark has lived in Chicago since autumn 1989. Since then, he has performed or recorded with many musicians (including

The Joe Harriott Project, a brief celebration of Harriott in 1998 in the Chicago area, consisted of Ken Vandermark (reeds), Jeb Bishop (trombone), Kent Kessler (bass), and Tim Mulvenna (drums). The band played the music of Joe Harriott, transcribed and arranged by Vandermark.

In 2002 Vandermark recorded Furniture Music, his first released performances as an unaccompanied soloist.

After several years of Vandermark 5 performances of his arrangements of works by Sonny Rollins, Joe McPhee, Cecil Taylor, and others, Vandermark in 2005 announced, "Though I have learned a great deal by rearranging some of my favorite composers' work for the Vandermark 5, it's time to leave that process behind and focus more completely on my own ideas."

Vandermark is the subject of Musician (2007), one of a series of Daniel Kraus video documentaries on contemporary occupations.

Awards

Vandermark won the Cadence magazine poll in 1998 for best artist and best recording. He was a finalist for the 1998 Herb Alpert Fellowship.

In 1999 Vandermark was awarded a $265,000

In the mid-1990s, Vandermark was known, in part, for his many collaborations with other musicians. Some groups were ad hoc settings, while others were more stable. He worked not only in jazz, but free improvisation, noise, rock and roll of various stripes, and other settings. Due in part to wanting to focus more on his own compositions, Vandermark decided in about 2000 to limit his collaborations.

Vandermark is one of the founders and members of

DKV Trio

Composed of drummer Hamid Drake, bassist Kent Kessler, and Vandermark. The group is active only irregularly, except for annual end-of-year concert(s) in Chicago. However, in 2017 DKV played two tours, one with Joe McPhee, and in 2020 there was no end-of-year concert, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[8][9]

Spaceways Inc.

Ken Vandermark, Hamid Drake, and bassist Nate McBride. Originally devoted to interpretations of the music of

Perhaps Vandermark's main compositional vehicle, the Vandermark 5 released their first album in 1997. Initial personnel were Vandermark, Mars Williams (saxophone), Jeb Bishop (trombone and electric guitar, though the latter was gradually phased out), Kessler (bass) and Tim Mulvenna (drums). Williams left and was replaced by saxophonist Dave Rempis; while Tim Daisy took over Mulvenna's seat at the drums. Bishop left the group in 2005, and was replaced with cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm.

Their music could be broadly classified as

Active c. 2004–2007, the Free Fall Trio included Vandermark and two Norwegian musicians: pianist Håvard Wiik and bassist Ingebrigt Håker-Flaten. This group was loosely inspired by Jimmy Giuffre's groundbreaking early 1960s trio, which featured the same instrumentation. Like Giuffre, Vandermark played clarinet and emphasized a rather hushed and subdued chamber jazz that still managed to swing and take creative leaps.

Territory Band

After being awarded the MacArthur Fellowship in 1999, Vandermark used some of the financial windfall to assemble the Territory Band, a

In June 2012, Vandermark recorded Mutations/Multicellulars Mutations, the first album by a newly created ensemble called RARA AVIS, featuring Stefano Ferrian (soprano/tenor saxophone), Stefano Quatrana (piano), Luca Pissavini (double bass) and SEC_ (tape recorder, instant sound treatment). The ensemble premiered on April 26, 2013 at Novara Jazz Winter.

Marker

Vandermark named his group Marker for filmmaker

Edition Redux formed in Chicago in early 2023, featuring, in addition to Vandermark, the much younger musicians (Erez Dessel [de] (keyboards), Lily Finnegan [de] (drums), and Beth McDonald [de] (tuba, electronics)). Edition Redux's album Better a Rook Than a Pawn, based on compositions by Vandermark, was released in late 2023. The band did and will tour in 2023 and 2024.^[18]

Discography

References