JAGGED SPHERES: WEBBER / STEMESEDER / GRAY
Jagged Spheres is the debut album of the collective trio Webber / Stemeseder / Gray. These sensitive
improvisers are at the forefront of a new wave of the Brooklyn avant‐garde jazz scene. Austrian pianist Elias Stemeseder, drummer Devin Gray, and saxophonist and flautist Anna Webber share a unified aesthetic relating
to the developments and outcomes of improvisation, and how these can connect to composition. Their concert, like the new recording, features both composition‐like improvisations and original music written by each of the members. Jagged Spheres is a cohesive collection of music that speaks to a singular vision.
ELIAS STEMESEDER– piano
Originally a classically trained, Austrian pianist Elias Stemeseder discovered jazz and improvisation as
a teenager. He subsequently began taking lessons at the local music school and was shortly after accepted as a student to the Anton Bruckner University in Linz at fifteen. Since then he has worked as a leader and a sideman, playing in notable concert spaces and clubs all over Europe and the United States. In 2008, Elias began to play with the great avant‐garde musician and drummer Jim Black, with whom he recorded the critically acclaimed album Somatic for Winter & Winter and has performed at the Reykjavik Jazz Festival in Iceland and the BMW Competition in Munich, among others. Elias Stemeseder has also worked with Nels Cline, Tim Berne, Chris Speed, Chris Tordini, and Greg Cohen. He currently lives in Berlin.
ANNA WEBBER – flute, tenor saxophone
Webber is an improvising
saxophonist and flutist who persistently avoids the expected. Her newest album, Percussive Mechanics (Pirouet Records, 2013), also firmly establishes her as a forward thinking composer. She has performed and/or recorded with such diverse talents as Mark Turner, John Hollenbeck, Tony Malaby, John Riley, David Liebman,
Ben Street, Lage Lund and Stefon Harris (notably appearing on his 2009 Grammy‐nominated album Urbanus). She has toured throughout the USA, Canada, and Europe; is the winner of the Prix Francois‐Marcaurelle 2010 at the OFF Festival of Jazz in Montreal and received national recognition as a finalist in the Mary Lou Williams Saxophone Competition. Originally from British Columbia, Canada, Webber now lives in Brooklyn, New York.
DEVIN GRAY – drums, melodica
Devin Gray’s fresh approach to modern drumming has enabled him to play with many of America’s great jazz musicians. He has performed and recorded with innovative musicians of contrasting styles and backgrounds such as: Tony Malaby, Gary Thomas, Ingrid Jensen, Dave Burrell, Dave Ballou, Michael Formanek, George Garzone, Chris Speed, Sam Rivers, John O’Gallagher, Ellery Eskelin, Kris Davis, Ted Rosenthal, Dave Liebman, Andrew D’Angelo, Vardan Ovsepian, Bill McHenry as well as many others. Devin has been fortunate to perform in many places around the globe and continues to make peace with his audiences. He is a top call young drummer in many modern jazz circles in New York City as well as multiple cities on the East Coast of America. His most recent album, Dirigo Rataplan (Skirl Records, 2012) features compositions written for a quartet consisting himself, Ellery Eskelin, Dave Ballou, and Michael Formanek. He is currently living, playing, and composing in Brooklyn, New York.