Ari Hoenig
Encyclopedia
Ari Hoenig is a jazz
drummer
, composer and educator known for his unusual and intense approach to drumming emphasizing complex rhythms. He currently leads a group that makes regular appearances in New York jazz clubs including the 55 Bar
and the Blue Note, in addition to performing worldwide. Joining him in the group is the noted French pianist Jean-Michel Pilc
.
Ari is widely noted particularly for his drumming not being relegated to keeping tempo, or being a side issue to the music he plays in, but rather for elevating drumming as an indispensable part of the performance, as many drummers such as Elvin Jones
, Tony Williams and Jack DeJohnette
have done before him.
in summer 1990. He attended the University of North Texas
College of Music for three years and was a member of the highly-regarded One O'Clock Lab Band
before relocating to New York. After the move to New York he began playing with fellow Philadelphia native Shirley Scott
.
In 2005 Hoenig appeared with his group at the Dominican Republic Jazz Festival alongside such jazz luminaries as Gonzalo Rubalcaba
and Chucho Valdés
.
, Kenny Werner
, Richard Bona
, Dave Liebman
, Chris Potter
, Joshua Redman
and the Jazz Mandolin Project
.
, Jazz Times, and The Jerusalem Post
.
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
, composer and educator known for his unusual and intense approach to drumming emphasizing complex rhythms. He currently leads a group that makes regular appearances in New York jazz clubs including the 55 Bar
55 Bar
55 Bar is a jazz club in New York City located at 55 Christopher Street.-History:The 55 Bar has been around since 1919. It was originally a speakeasy during Prohibition....
and the Blue Note, in addition to performing worldwide. Joining him in the group is the noted French pianist Jean-Michel Pilc
Jean-Michel Pilc
Jean-Michel Pilc is a self-taught French-born jazz pianist currently residing in New York. His technical ability has drawn comparisons to Michel Petrucciani, McCoy Tyner, and Cecil Taylor. Of particular note is Pilc's left-hand technique, which provides an almost ambidextrous approach to the...
.
Ari is widely noted particularly for his drumming not being relegated to keeping tempo, or being a side issue to the music he plays in, but rather for elevating drumming as an indispensable part of the performance, as many drummers such as Elvin Jones
Elvin Jones
Elvin Ray Jones was a jazz drummer of the post-bop era. He showed interest in drums at a young age, watching the circus bands march by his family's home in Pontiac, Michigan....
, Tony Williams and Jack DeJohnette
Jack DeJohnette
Jack DeJohnette is an American jazz drummer, pianist, and composer. He is one of the most influential jazz drummers of the 20th century, due to extensive work as leader and sideman for musicians like Miles Davis, Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Keith Jarrett and Sonny...
have done before him.
History
Hoenig was born to a vocalist father and violinist mother, exposed to classical and other music at an early age. He played both piano and violin, then rock and metal drums as a teen before settling into jazz. He attended Pennsylvania Governor's School for the ArtsPennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts
The Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts was one of the Pennsylvania Governor's Schools of Excellence, a group of five-week summer academies for gifted high school students in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The school was hosted each summer by Mercyhurst College...
in summer 1990. He attended the University of North Texas
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas is a public institution of higher education and research in Denton. Founded in 1890, UNT is part of the University of North Texas System. As of the fall of 2010, the University of North Texas, Denton campus, had a certified enrollment of 36,067...
College of Music for three years and was a member of the highly-regarded One O'Clock Lab Band
One O'Clock Lab Band
The One O’Clock Lab Band for years has been the premier ensemble of the Jazz Studies Division at the University of North Texas College of Music in Denton. The band has performed and toured abroad in Australia, Canada, England, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Norway,...
before relocating to New York. After the move to New York he began playing with fellow Philadelphia native Shirley Scott
Shirley Scott
Shirley Scott was an American hard bop and soul-jazz organist. She was most known for working with her husband, Stanley Turrentine, and with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis...
.
In 2005 Hoenig appeared with his group at the Dominican Republic Jazz Festival alongside such jazz luminaries as Gonzalo Rubalcaba
Gonzalo Rubalcaba
Gonzalo Rubalcaba is a Grammy Award-winning Cuban jazz pianist and composer.Gonzalo Julio Gonzalez Fonseca was born in Havana, Cuba, May 27, 1963, into a musical family rich in the traditions of the country’s artistic past...
and Chucho Valdés
Chucho Valdés
Chucho Valdés is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger. In 1972 he founded the group Irakere, one of Cuba's best-known Latin jazz bands. Together with pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Valdés is revered as one of Cuba's greatest jazz pianists...
.
Collaborations
Other artists Hoenig has recorded with include Mike SternMike Stern
Mike Stern is an American jazz guitarist. After playing for a few years with Blood, Sweat & Tears, he landed a gig with Billy Cobham and then broke through with Miles Davis' comeback band from 1981 to 1983, and again in 1985. Since then, he launched a solo career, releasing more than a dozen albums...
, Kenny Werner
Kenny Werner
Kenny Werner is an American jazz pianist.-Biography:Kenny Werner is a world-class pianist and composer. His prolific output of compositions, recordings and publications continue to impact audiences around the world....
, Richard Bona
Richard Bona
Richard Bona is a jazz bassist and musician. His real African name, as he said live in Montreal in a show with Bobby McFerrin, is Bona Pinder Yayumayalolo...
, Dave Liebman
Dave Liebman
Dave Liebman is an American saxophonist and flautist. In June 2010, he received a NEA Jazz Masters lifetime achievement award from the National Endowment for the Arts.-Biography:...
, Chris Potter
Chris Potter (jazz saxophonist)
Chris Potter is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist.-Biography:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Potter spent most of his childhood in Columbia, South Carolina where his mother taught psychology at the University of South Carolina...
, Joshua Redman
Joshua Redman
Joshua Redman is an American jazz saxophonist and composer who records for Nonesuch Records. He won the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition in 1991.-Biography:...
and the Jazz Mandolin Project
Jazz Mandolin Project
The Jazz Mandolin Project is led by mandolinist Jamie Masefield with a rotating cast of other musicians. Although not really a “jazz” band they are influenced by a variety of styles. Formed in 1993, the Burlington Vermont based, improvisational ensemble’s self-titled first album was released which...
.
Reviews
Hoenig's playing has been cited by diverse publications worldwide including the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, Jazz Times, and The Jerusalem Post
The Jerusalem Post
The Jerusalem Post is an Israeli daily English-language broadsheet newspaper, founded on December 1, 1932 by Gershon Agron as The Palestine Post. The daily readership numbers do not approach those of the major Hebrew newspapers....
.
- Drummerworld Feature on Ari Hoenig
- All About Jazz Feature on Ari Hoenig
- Philadelphia CityPaper article on Ari Hoenig
- http://www.smallsrecords.com/press-downbeat-hoenig-6-06.htm2006 article from Down BeatDown BeatDown Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
] - http://www.smallsrecords.com/press-latimes-hoenig-kh-11-20-05.htm2005 article from the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles TimesThe Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
] - http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0534,jazzguide,67277,22.html2005 review from The Village VoiceThe Village VoiceThe Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
]
Discography as leader
- Jazzheads (1999)
- Time Travels (2000)
- The Life of a Day (2002)
- The Painter (2004)
- Kinectic Hues (2005) (DVD Video)
- Inversations (2007)
- Bert's Playground (2008)
- Punkbop (2010)
- Lines of Oppression (2010)
Multimedia
- Giant Steps from the Kinetic Hues DVD (2005)
- Invitation from the Kinetic Hues DVD (2005)
- Drum solo from The 55 Bar, NYC (2006)
- Additional MP3 and video samples from arihoenig.com
External links
- Official Ari Hoenig site
- [ AMG Bio of Ari Hoenig]
- [ AMG review of The Painter]
- Article announcing Hoenig's 2006 signing with Dreyfus Records