musicians

David Rogers - composer, saxophones, Dagbamba talking drum
Marlene Rice - violin
Mark Stone - African drumset, Dagara xylophone, percussion
Matt Pavolka - acoustic bass

David Rogers (composer, saxophones, Dagbamba talking drum) is an eclectic and inventive composer in the jazz, new music, theater, and dance circles of New York. His original music draws on his extensive study of the talking drum, xylophone, and one-string fiddle traditions of the Dagbamba and Dagara tribes of northern Ghana, and is unique in its synthesis of these African forms with the instruments, improvisation, and blues inflections of American jazz. His study of African music has come through apprenticeships, living three years in Ghana in the homes of master musicians Abubakari Lunna, Bernard Woma, and Rallio Yiryelleh, studying native drum languages, and performing at traditional festivals and local funerals and celebrations.

In the U.S. he performs regularly in clubs and concert halls with Imaginary Homeland, as a saxophonist, and with the West African drum ensemble Benkelema. He has collaborated with African musicians Madou Dembele, Bernard Woma, and Kakraba Lobi. His compositions have been commissioned by the modern dance choreographers Rebecca Ashley and Miral Kotb, for experimental multi-media theater pieces ("No Condition Is Permanent," "Uber-Egwu"), and for the last six seasons of new composers at the Next Stage music ensemble. His CD "The World Is Not Your Home" presents Rogers' original music for jazz quartet plus African percussion featuring downtown jazz innovators Craig Taborn (pianist with the James Carter Quartet, Tim Berne) and Gerald Cleaver (drummer for Roscoe Mitchell, Jacky Terrasson) and clarinetist Derek Bermel (Guggenheim Fellow, Rome Prize winner). He has received additional commissions and grants from the New York State Council for the Arts, the Manhattan Community Arts Fund, and Meet The Composer.

Marlene Rice (violin) has performed throughout the U.S. and Europe, Japan, and the Caribbean as a member of Quartette Indigo and with such artists as Cassandra Wilson, James Carter (Chasin' the Gypsy band), Craig Harris, and Atlantic recording artists Straight Ahead. Her recording credits include Quartette Indigo, Steve Coleman, several projects with Lauryn Hill, Sandra Vincent, Patti Labelle, the Goody Mob, and Tony Rich. She has appeared four times at the prestigious Detroit Montreux Jazz Festival, at the St. Lucia Jazz Festival, the Atlanta Jazz Festival, Birmingham Jazz Festival, Tri-C Jazz Festival, and was selected to appear in the New South Showcase. Her string section work has included performances with McCoy Tyner, Freddie Hubbard, and such pop artists as Aretha Franklin, Smokey Robinson, Rod Stewart, and Sammy Davis, Jr. Marlene is known in creative jazz music and beyond for the soulful tone of her violin and its warm and bluesy improvisations.

As a percussionist and ethnomusicologist, Mark Stone (African drums & percussion) has an extensive knowledge of African and American musical traditions. He has performed with the foremost percussion groups of Ghana (West Africa), Uganda (East Africa), and Trinidad (West Indies). In Ghana, Mark performed with Godwin Agbeli's Sankofa Dance Theatre and master xylophonist Bernard Woma. In Uganda, he was an honorary member of the Nakibembe Xylophone Group for a six month period, performing at village funerals and weddings. In a recent trip to Trinidad, Mark joined the steel drum ensemble, Scrunters Pan Groove, performing in the finals of the individual steel drum competition and throughout the 2001 carnival activities. In the United States, Mark is a member of the Dutch-American new music ensemble Tonk, which has performed in Amsterdam and New York City and recently released the album, "Fences." In addition, Mark directs the percussion/dance ensemble Biakuye, performing at art institutes, universities, and public schools throughout Michigan. Mark holds a Master's degree in Percussion Performance from the World Music Center of West Virginia University and a Bachelor's degree in Percussion Performance from the University of Michigan School of Music. As a 1996-1997 Rotary Scholar, Mark researched traditional Ugandan music at Makerere University. His research in Ugandan music was recently published in "African Music," the journal of the International Library of African Music in South Africa. Mark currently teaches at Oakland University where he directs the African Ensemble and Steel Band while teaching courses in music history.

Matt Pavolka (acoustic bass) has performed throughout the U.S. and Europe, Japan and South America with Matt Wilson, Jeff Ballard, Josh Roseman, Tony Malaby, Gene Jackson, Charlie Persip, George Garzone, Ray Anderson, Ben Riley, Mark Turner, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Guillermo Klein, Seamus Blake, James Spaulding, and Steve Kahn, among others. Recent tours have included headlining at the Yokohama Promenade Jazz Festival in Japan with House of Illusion, which he co-leads and composes for, and two national tours with The John Funkhouser Trio. Among the recordings Pavolka can be heard on are "Funkhouse" (The John Funkhouser Trio), "The Big Van" (The Gulliermo Klien Orchestra), "House of Illusion" (The Akiko Pavolka Quartet), "The Peter Hess Quartet" (Peter Hess), "Los Argentos" (Richard Nant) and "The Arrival" (Vista). Matt is one of the most in-demand rising bassists of the New York jazz scene, much prized for his deep resonant sound, impeccable groove, and startlingly inventive solos.