BIX TOP ACT: Ari Hoenig Trio

Ari Hoenig (born November 13, 1973 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a jazz drummer, composer and educator known for his unusual and intense approach to drumming, emphasizing complex rhythms in direct harmony with other group members.

Ari is best known for the fact that his drumming is not limited to keeping the tempo or being a secondary theme to the music in which he plays, but for elevating drumming to an indispensable part of the performance. Hoenig is also known for his unique ability to change the pitch of a drum using drumsticks, mallets and even parts of his body (such as his hands and elbows). With this technique, he can play any note of the chromatic scale, virtually any melody, and even improvise over a chord structure as any other instrumentalist would. Hoenig was born into a family of classically trained musicians. As his father was a choir conductor and his mother a violinist, he came into contact with classical and folk music at an early age. He played both piano and violin as a child and rock and metal drums as a teenager before turning to jazz and improvised music. Ari has recorded, written and produced 14 CDs as a leader. He has written and published three instructional books, four instructional DVDs and a songbook. His group currently tours worldwide and performs regularly at the legendary New York jazz club Smalls.

Ari is currently touring and performing with his trio consisting of Gadi Lehavi on piano and Ben Tiberio on bass, as well as his quartet with Tivon Pennicott on tenor saxophone, with whom he won the BMW World Competition in 2013. Other artists with whom Hoenig has performed or recorded include Shirley Scott, Jean Michel Pilc, Mike Stern, Kenny Werner, Joshua Redman, Wayne Krantz, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Robert Glasper, Richard Bona, Chris Potter, Toots Thielemans, Pat Martino, Billy Childs.

Cast: Ari Hoenig (dr); Gadi Lehavi (p); Ben Tiberio (b)