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Biography
The music of percussionist, composer, and bandleader Gregg Bendian reflects his varied interests in free jazz, contemporary classical music, and also progressive rock. Among Bendian’s first main areas of curiosity was the music of Varese and Webern, which he looked into during his advanced research at William Paterson University while still a higher school college student in NJ. In early stages, Bendian also familiarized himself using the avant-garde jazz explorations of Cecil Taylor, Anthony Braxton, and Ornette Coleman, and he vowed to someday use Taylor. In search of this objective, Bendian analyzed drumming (for senior high school credit) with Steve McCall and Andrew Cyrille. After extra research at Rutgers University or college, he created the Gregg Bendian Task, a fresh music and chamber jazz group, and started collaborating with users from the burgeoning NY downtown picture, including John Zorn, Ned Rothenberg, Tom Cora, Expenses Frisell, Butch Morris, Tag Dresser, Leo Smith, George Lewis, and Robert Dick. Bendian also started his 1st association with Derek Bailey, becoming a member of Company, the English improvising guitarist’s loose-knit worldwide collective. In 1989, Bendian recognized his imagine carrying out with Taylor, providing as drummer from the Cecil Taylor Device both in concert and on the A&M documenting In Florescence (which include two single percussion compositions penned by Bendian: “For Steve McCall” and “Entity”). In following years, his musical organizations possess included such performers as Bailey, Evan Parker, Gary Lucas, Peter Brötzmann, Paul Plimley, and William Parker. In Dec 1996, Bendian became a member of with guitarists Bailey and Pat Metheny and drummer Paul Wertico in the Knitting Manufacturing plant in NEW YORK, documenting over three hours of avant-noise improvisations which were released like a divisively controversial Compact disc box arranged on the Knitting Manufacturing plant label. His are a innovator — and as well as Nels Cline, a Los Angeles-based fusion-oriented electrical guitarist and regular Bendian collaborator — offers met with a far more uniformly positive crucial reaction. For a free of charge jazzer and modern classical-leaning percussionist, Bendian offers embraced some rather improbable sources of motivation, making him a distinctive and extremely individualistic physique on the existing creative music picture. For instance, his Interzone quartet — who features Bendian on vibraphone and glockenspiel, Nels Cline on guitar, Cline’s sibling, Alex, on drums, and different bassists, including Dresser and Joel Hamilton — offers paid homage to both famous British prog rock and roll outfit Gentle Large and grasp comic book designer Jack Kirby. Barely names that regularly show up within the liner records of either avant or trad jazz CDs, but, on the other hand, Gregg Bendian’s musical globe has shown to be far from regular.
