BRATTLEBORO — The Vermont Jazz Center will present Eugene Uman's Convergence Project on June 11 at 8 p.m.
The Convergence Project is Uman's vehicle to present his original compositions as well as music that has influenced him. The Project includes Michael Zsoldos, saxophones; Jeff Galindo, trombone; Uman, piano; David Picchi, bass (electric and acoustic); and Jon Fisher on drums. There will also be surprise musical guests performing at this event, according to a news release.
After spending several years in Colombia, Uman found a niche blending the rhythms of Colombia such as cumbia, bambuco, and pasillo with jazz harmonies. While living in Antioquia in northwest Colombia, Uman was commissioned by the Big Band of Medellin to write for their 20-piece orchestra. He composed “Blues para Urabá,” a tribute to the strength of the common people of Urabá who were, at that time, in the midst of a civil war.
The rousing climax of that composition used a rhythm from the Atlantic coast called currulao. After finding such power in that experience, Uman continued to investigate the rhythms and forms of the music of his newly adopted homeland and internalized a small handful of the immense and richly varied catalog of Colombian rhythms.
Uman continues to visit Latin America; his relationship to Colombia, its people, and its highly developed art and music, will never be shaken. Still, his focus (and the repertoire of the Convergence Project) has morphed into a personalized amalgam of jazz-influenced styles. It continues to reference Colombian rhythms but has evolved to give a greater voice to Uman's love of vocal jazz, bebop, rock, gospel, and funk roots.
“The music that I compose is a reflection of my accumulated experiences,” Uman writes. “It is affected by what I am currently paying attention to, but is also strongly influenced by the listening and performing experiences of my formative years in rock, jazz, classical contexts.”
For the core of this newly configured Convergence Project, Uman sought out musicians who bring a youthful, strong voice to his compositions. He found this in a rhythm section that was near at hand, as Picchi and Fisher are two friends and professional associates he has known since they were both in college. These two players have accepted the task of studying and assimilating Colombian rhythms into their own vocabularies.
They are a rhythm team that brings a sense of unity cultivated from years of playing bass and drums together in numerous groups that explore a wide range of styles.
Picchi and Fisher join veteran Convergence Project members Zsoldos and Galindo. The ensemble offers a new twist to the interpretation of Uman's familiar repertoire and opens doors leading to the creation of new compositions with limitless possibilities.