Dan Weiss Even Odds, Featuring Miguel Zenón and Matt Mitchell

Three time Shifting Foundation grantee Dan Weiss has been hailed as one of the top five jazz drummers by The New York Times, and his large ensemble recording “Fourteen” made the top ten list of their best recordings of 2014. Weiss’s innovative drumming and forward-thinking compositions have been pushing musical limits for decades. Weiss’s intense study of jazz, classical Indian, contemporary classical, west African, and metal sets a musical platform that creates a sound that transcends conventional style or genre. His compositional trademarks are angular yet emotive melodies, complex through-composed drum parts, rhythmic cycles native to many non-western music, and melodic shapes drawing directly from the raga system found in Indian classical music.

He has released four recordings with his trio: “Now Yes When” (2006), “Timshel” (2011), “Utica Box” (2019), and “Dedication” (2022), which have been critically-acclaimed for their unique approach to song structure and endlessly creative improvisation. Weiss also leads his sixteen-piece large ensemble that features some of New York City’s most gifted musicians. The two albums “Fourteen” (2014) and “Sixteen: Drummers Suite” (2016), released on the Pi Recordings label, have made numerous critic polls. His project, Starebaby, which features Craig Taborn, Matt Mitchell, Ben Monder, and Trevor Dunn, is an amalgam of jazz, metal, and new music. They have two releases: “Starebaby” (2018) and “Natural Selection” (2020), both also on Pi.

Weiss has been studying tabla under Pandit Samir Chatterjee for twenty-five years. He has performed with the legendary Ashish Khan and Ramesh Misra and recorded a solo tabla CD “3dcd” (2007). Weiss recorded two groundbreaking CDs “Teental Drumset Solo” (2005) and “Jhaptal Drumset Solo” ( 2011) where he performs classical Indian repertoire on drum set. Recently Weiss and longtime collaborator Miles Okazaki released a double LP titled “Music for Drums and Guitar” (2021).

In Even Odds, Dan Weiss experiments with diverse approaches to composition and improvisation. Due out March 29, 2024 via Cygnus Recordings, the album challenges saxophonist Miguel Zenón and pianist Matt Mitchell with Weiss’ inventive drum grooves and heady compositions.

www.danweiss.net
https://cygnusrecordings.bandcamp.com