Belgian based electric bass player Farida Amadou performs a solo set and discusses her work with Option curator Andrew Clinkman.
New York based composer and bassist Brandon Lopez opens the 2020 Option series with a solo set followed by a conversation about his cross- genre work with Option curator Ken Vandermark
A mainstay of the Chicago music scene for more than 20 years including work with seminal bands The Eternals and Trenchmouth, Option welcomes bassist, guitarist, and composer Wayne Montana for a set of original sound making. Come and close out the 2019 Option series with a legendary musician from the city we call home!
“Chicago bassist and composer Nick Macri has led a prolific and highly varied career as both a leader and a sideman, making contributions on both electric and acoustic bass for ensembles and musicians as varied as The Zincs (Thrill Jockey), Ken Vandermark’s Audio One, The Horses Ha, and Stirrup with Fred Lonberg Holm and Charles Rumback. Tonight marks Nick’s debut on the Option stage.” -tim daisy/Option curator
Versatile bassist and composer Matt Lux performs a set of solo music on the Option Stage. He’ll then join Tim Daisy for a discussion about his life and work. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear one of the scenes most flexible and genre-blending musicians perform as well as talk about his decades-long career working with countless musicians and ensembles both here in Chicago and beyond.
Legendary saxophonist Urs Leimgruber has been a fixture on the international improvised music scene for decades and has performed with an amazing array of talents. For this rare Chicago appearance, Urs will perform a set of solo music and then join Chicago greats Jason Roebke and Jim Baker.
Prolific NY based composer and saxophonist Sam Weinberg and the versatile bassist and composer Henry Fraser perform solo and duo for their first appearance on the Option Series.
San Francisco Bay Area bassist and composer Lisa Mezzacappa presents a program that showcases different aspects of her far-ranging musical personality—combining improvisation, original compositions, graphic scores, and music for experimental film. She performs solo and in duos with with longtime collaborator, Bay Area drummer Jason Levis, plus a surprise guest or two from the Chicago improvised music community. Throughout the intimate salon-style performance, Mezzacappa will discuss her process composing music for improvisers and collaborating with artists in other media, as well as the (often hysterical, sometimes heartbreaking) trials and tribulations that have marked her artistic journey.
