Sounds Of Berklee

September 23, 2015 | By Curtis Killian Latin Grammy-nominated Cuban tenor saxophonist Carlos Averhoff, Jr is a contemporary Afro-Cuban Jazz composer and educator described by All About Jazz as "a dynamic fresh new voice on the saxophone." Born in Havana, the son of legendary saxophonist Carlos Averhoff was classically trained in some of Cuba's best music schools, and after completing extensive academic studies at Berklee and beyond, now holds faculty positions in the Berklee woodwind department as well as Berklee's City Music Program. Says Averhoff, Jr. of his alma mater: "Berklee is a universe of music connected to the world." Hear the title track from Carlos Averhoff, Jr.'s 2015 debut album, iRESI, via Sounds of Berklee, and catch him September 26, 2015 at Berklee's Beantown Jazz Fest and October 15, 2015 at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

October 30, 2013 | Adam Renn Olenn Originally from Groningen, Holland, 2010 alumna Femke Weidema met Brandon James in Los Angeles after leaving Berklee. The two quickly discovered that their shared interest in combining Americana and pop music came alive in the haunting, irresistible combination of their blended voices, and Cotton Wine was formed. They wrote their first song on the road and recorded it on Brandon’s iPhone. Several thousand views later, they launched the Cotton Wine "Song A Week" YouTube series, which has received over 200,000 views to date. Cotton Wine recently completed a year-long tour of the southeastern United States, and has just released its self-titled debut.

October 23, 2013 | Rob Hochschild It's been a great year of collaboration between Berklee students and Latin music superstar Alejandro Sanz. Back in February, students recorded a cover version of his hit, "La Música No Se Toca" and produced a stirring video of their version, all with his stamp of approval. For the students involved with the project, it generated a critically important credit for their resumes; after all, Sanz has won 3 Grammy Awards, and 16 Latin Grammys. Sanz will work even closer with Berklee students and faculty when he hits the stage for Alejandro Sanz Meets Berklee, on November 6, 2013. He'll perform on a select number of tunes during the night while various members of the Berklee community take their turns paying homage to him.

October 10, 2013 | Adam Renn Olenn Berklee College of Music, Heavy Rotation Records (HRR), and Berklee Alumni Affairs present the seventh annual CMJ Music Marathon showcase of alumni and student artists on Thursday, October 17, from 8:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. at Sullivan Hall in New York City. The show features rock, Americana, funk, reggae, and Latin music by the Hello Strangers, Shun Ng, Sylvana Joyce + the Moment, Sirma (HRR), Red Oblivion (HRR), Miko and the Musket, and Numasbala. The lineup is curated by the Red Room at Cafe 939, Berklee's all-ages nightclub that hosts national and local acts year-round. Berklee's CMJ Music Marathon 2013 Showcase is open to ages 18 and up. Admission is free for CMJ badge holders and $10 for the general public. Sullivan Hall is located at 214 Sullivan Street (between Bleecker and West 3rd), New York, NY (A, B, C, D, E, F, M train to West 4th; 1 or 9 to Houston Street; 6 to Bleecker). For more information, call 212 477-2782. The event includes free raffles for a chance to

September 15, 2015 | By Curtis Killian Described by the New york times as “forthright and flexible, eager and full-toned,” jazz clarinetist Felix Peikli is one of several Berklee alumni coming to Beantown Jazz fest Saturday, September 26 in Boston. Born in Norway, Peikli has toured the globe with Ralph Peterson Jr’s renowned jazz quartet, the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, and his mentor and Berklee professor Harry Skoler in homage to their shared idol Benny Goodman. This past May Peikli released his debut album with the Royal Flush Quintet, all Berklee alumni, including this track Queen of Hearts featuring Marcus Miller on bass.

Rob Hochschild | October 8, 2013 These are heady times for Chile-born saxophonist Melissa Aldana. She moved to Manhattan after graduating form Berklee in 2009; began making a name for herself in that competitive and overpopulated scene; and just a few weeks ago, achieved something that no woman instrumentalist has ever done: she won the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition. It was the first time a female had ever won first prize in a non-vocal Monk competition since the birth of the awards in 1987. Fortunately for the Berklee community, Aldana had already been scheduled to perform this week at her alma mater. She'll perform with her Crash Trio at Cafe 939, in a concert that NPR will air and make available to jazz fans worldwide via NPRMusic video and audio. Aldana is one of several talented Berklee alumni to perform in the NPR series, The Checkout—Live at Berklee. This week's Sounds of Berklee podcast features an Aldana original, "Free Fall," a composition that she performed during the final roun

Rob Hochschild | September 25, 2013 Students in the Berklee Global Jazz Insitute are among some of the most innovative and talented young musicians on the planet. "We are not just challenging our students to become stronger, more creative, and imaginative musicians. We want to inspire them to become mature, socially aware people who actually make a difference in our world," says BGJI faculty member John Patitucci. On "Tres Arañas," a composition penned by student violinst Alex Hargreaves, the BGJI Green Ensemble shines. While that track will give you a taste, jazz lovers will have a chance to hear more when the Global Jazz Ambassadors perform with guest artist drummer Adam Cruz at the BeanTown Jazz Festival on September 28, 2013.

Adam Renn Olenn | September 17, 2013 Belgian bassist Sebastian Jasinski moved to Paris after graduating from Berklee in 2003 and gigged for several years before committing himself to producing his own music. Under the moniker Lenox, Jasinski produced, composed, and played all of the instruments on his Lenox debut, Opening Act, and collaborated with a panoply of vocalists to create a record that is both varied and cohesive. Jasinski’s single "Colorblind" is in rotation on Virgin Radio France, as well as MTV in France and Belgium. He recently completed a tour of Switzerland and France, and plans to move to Montréal to produce his sophomore album.

Rob Hochschild | September 10, 2013 As talented a songwriter as student Molly Tuttle is, music fans who have seen her perform live are immediately impressed as well with her virtuosic skill as a flatpicking guitarist and her ability as a clawhammer and fingerstyle banjo player. But for Tuttle fans, it always comes back to the song and the voice. She's been performing on stage since she was 11, and recorded her first album at age 13. She’s appeared at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, Strawberry Music Festival, Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival, and numerous other festivals and venues across the country. And Tuttle has won awards as songwriter, vocalist, or guitarist from a number of organizations. You can watch a video version of the song featured in this podcast, recorded in the studios at Berklee's internet radio station, the BIRN. The track features Tuttle, guitar and vocals; John Mailander, fiddle and voice; and Matt Witler, mandolin. Tuttle and Mailander perform at Club Passim on September 12, 2013, as part of

Adam Renn Olenn | September 3, 2013 Before alumnus Lucky Diaz ’97 founded his nationally acclaimed Family Jam Band, he wrote and performed as a singer-songwriter. Emily Herndon of May Stands Still had been covering one of his songs during her live shows, and audience pressure led her to ask Diaz’s blessing to record it. Herndon recorded the song with alumni bassist, producer, and mix engineer Wes Switzer ’08, who then invited other Berklee alumni to add parts. He asked Scott Bauer ’07 to play guitar and keyboardist Cole Degenova ’08 to contribute when he stopped by on a tour. Switzer then sent the files to Asha Sukumar ’07, who was teaching music at an ashram in India, to add the finishing touch with her violin. The result is a transcontinental collaboration between alumni who’ve stayed close, both personally and professionally, even as their careers have woven together and verged apart over the years.

Rob Hochschild | August 26, 2013 The music of Unlimited Perception is as diverse as the countries its bandmembers hail from, including Turkey, Colombia, and Israel. The musicians met as Berklee students in 2012 and released its debut recording, Awakening, earlier this month. "Unlimited Perception makes fusion music in the best sense of the word—a wide variety of musical ideas and cultures woven into a seamless tapestry of fresh and interesting sounds," says Matthew Nicholl, Berklee's chair of contemporary writing and production. Unlimited Perception's music features a blend of South American rhythms such as bambuco and cumbia with microtones and lyrical melodies. The band will perform at the Detroit Jazz Festival on September 1, 2013.

Rob Hochschild | August 23, 2013 Moira Lo Bianco '12 is a bona fide triple threat as a composer, arranger, and pianist. Taking an organic approach to transcending genre, Lo Bianco has explored a range of musical traditions, including Indian, Middle Eastern, flamenco, classical, and jazz. Hailing from Italy, Lo Bianco studied at conservatories in her home country before graduating from Berklee last year. Her musical collaborators include Simon Shaheen, Marco Pignataro, Kinan Azmeh, and Arooj Aftab. Lo Bianco recently launched a workshop series entitled Improvisation for Classical Pianists, in partnership with M. Steinert & Sons. This week's podcast features a track from Lo Bianco's debut full-length album, Lunaria, released in 2013.

Rob Hochschild | August 15, 2013 The three members of We Avalanche met as Berklee students in the past few years and continue to make Boston their base of operations. Guitarist and vocalist Brady Custis and mandolinist Zach Baldwin-Way first encountered each other while on a Berklee study abroad trip in Athens in 2010. Cellist Eric Law rounded out the band, which cites a wide range of influences, including Hank Williams, Paul Simon, Pete Seeger, Elliott Smith, Sonic Youth, and Joanna Newsom. We Avalanche recorded its debut album, Time Travels, in Nashville, Tennessee, and released it in 2012. The band performs on Saturday, August 17 at Boston's Carson Beach as part of Berklee's Summer in the City series.

Adam Renn Olenn | August 5, 2013 After a decade singing opera, Berklee alumna Kim Logan traded the proscenium for the recording studio and the barroom stage. As the fourth generation in family to work in the entertainment industry, Logan is comfortable on both sides of the board and in the board room. Now based in Nashville, this Sarasota native is performing in support of her eponymous LP, writing as a guest blogger for Lockeland Springsteen, and collaborating with filmmaker Trilbee the Hooligan and fashion designer Rachel Hesse on a wide range of projects.

Rob Hochschild | July 31, 2013 Ali Amr was one of Berklee's first Palestinian students when he enrolled at the college in 2008. Amr—who is from Ramallah, West Bank and now lives in New York—is a vocalist who accompanies himself on a 72-string lap harp, the qanun. He leads the Ali Amr Experiment, a five-piece group that fuses jazz, Latin, and Arabic music. Amr's quintent will play the mainstage of the Newport Jazz Festival on Saturday, August 3, 2013. One of the tunes they'll perform is "Najat 1958," a song dedicated to his mother. The track was recorded live at Berklee's Cafe 939

Rob Hochschild | April 26, 2013 Jazz pianist Caili O'Doherty—a native of Portland, Oregon—has received national awards for jazz piano performance and composition from DownBeat magazine and an ASCAP Foundation Young Jazz Composer award. She will graduate from Berklee in May 2013 with a degree in performance. As a member of the Berklee Global Jazz Institute (BGJI), O'Doherty has worked closely with jazz greats, such as Danilo Pérez, Joe Lovano, Terri Lyne Carrington, and John Patitucci. She performs on the same stage with other students and several of her Berklee teachers at the third annual BGJI Summit, to be held at the Berklee Performance Center on April 29, a concert that will feature as a guest artist drummer Brian Blade.

March 6, 2013 Berklee College of Music, the only college to host an official party at the SXSW Music and Media Conference—one of the music industry’s biggest events—presents its SXSW Party on Friday, March 15, 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., at Brush Square Park (East Tent), 409 East 5th Street (Neches and 5th), Austin, Texas. Berklee’s eighth SXSW party is the college’s first at an outdoor all-ages venue. Also for the first time, the lineup is curated by The Red Room at Cafe 939, Berklee’s all-ages nightclub that hosts national and local acts year-round. The party features up-and-coming Berklee, Berkleemusic, and Heavy Rotation Records (HRR) alumni and students performing rock, pop, electronic, Americana, and folk, including acclaimed singer-songwriter Melissa Ferrick, David Stewart Jr., Air Traffic Controller, Chloë Sunshine, Red Oblivion (HRR), Bear Language (HRR), Rebecca Loebe, the Lights Out, Holiday Mountain, and the Field Effect. In addition to performing with her band, Ferrick is cohosting the event with

Rob Hochschild | March 6, 2013 Spanish student guitarist Javier G. F. Escudero came to Berklee a few years ago after studying classical music at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid, but the music he's making in Boston is a far cry from what you'd expect to hear at the average conservatory. Escudero and his band provide the leadoff track on the latest disc—Ripple Effect—from Berklee's student-run jazz label, Jazz Revelation Records, and it stands out as a hard-hitting fusion of straight-up funk and adventurous jazz. The tune, "Carahuevo," was written by Toño Gutierrez and features, besides Escudero, keyboardist Rafa Santana, tenor saxophonist Chisco Villanueva, bassist Antoine Katz, and drummer Victor Alvarez.

Adam Renn Olenn | February 25, 2013 Vocalist Farah Siraj’06 grew up in Amman, Jordan and Spain. At Berklee her studies in world music led her to combine her loves of Middle Eastern modes, flamenco singing, and bossa nova grooves into something new and mesmerizing. Sung in Jordanian Arabic over a samba, and supported by Arabian instruments like the qanun and darbuka, “Min Ghairak” is a song of love and longing from a distance with a hope of being reunited. Siraj performs internationally in support of her records Nomad and The Arabian Jazz Project, both of which have been praised by critics in New York Time Out and The Boston Globe. Her music and humanitarian efforts have gained widespread recognition; Siraj was invited to perform at the United Nations Humanitarian Awards in New York, and the U.N. Security Council listened to her music before passing legislation regarding the genocide in Darfur.

Rob Hochschild | February 19, 2013 The three members of Bear Language—alumnus vocalist and guitarist Luca Buccellati, student bassist Archi Denis, and student drummer Ian Barnett—met at Berklee, coming together as a small group that packs a wallop with a big sound, memorable songs, and a powerful live set. Describing its music as "explosive Beatles-driven rock" combined with the "funky dancable grooves of Two Door Cinema Club," Bear Language was listed in Deli magazine's Top 10 New England Artists of 2012. Bear Language will perform in Austin, Texas, in March at the South by Southwest Music Festival and plans to release its debut disc in April. Learn more at the band's website and at the website for Heavy Rotation Records, which features a new Bear Language track on its latest release, Dorm Sessions 8.