UW Jazz Studies to Present Ari Hoenig Trio April 14

The University of Wyoming Department of Music’s Jazz Studies program will host the Ari Hoenig Trio Sunday, April 14, at 7 p.m.

The free public concert will take place in the Buchanan Center for the Performing Arts recital hall.

The Ari Hoenig Trio is composed of Ari Hoenig, drums; Gadi Lehavi, piano; and Ben Tiberio, bass.

Among the most influential drummers in jazz, Hoenig has built a career as a singular musician who has redefined the concept of melodic playing on the drum set. Hoenig, who also is a composer and educator, is known for his unusual and intense approach to drumming, emphasizing complex rhythms in direct harmony with other group members. He is noted for elevating drumming as an indispensable part of every performance.

Hoenig has the unique ability to modify the pitch of a drum by using drumsticks, mallets and parts of his body. Using this technique, he can play any note in the chromatic scale and virtually any melody, and he can improvise on a chord structure in the same way as any other instrumentalist would.

He has recorded, written and produced 14 CDs as a leader. He also has written and published three educational books, four educational DVDs and a songbook.

Hoenig is currently touring and performing with his trio as well as his quartet -- adding Tivon Pennicott, tenor sax, with whom he won the BMW Welt competition in 2013.

A major rising force on piano first discovered by renowned jazz musician Ravi Coltrane, Tel Aviv-born, New York-based Lehavi is an artist “flowing and burning, channeling Keith Jarrett and Chick Corea,” according to The New York Times.

First touching the piano at 6 months old and a serious student of the classical literature at 9 years old, Lehavi gravitated to jazz, performing with Coltrane while barely a teenager and making his recording debut on saxophonist Eli Degibri’s 2013 album, “Twelve,” at 17.

Tiberio has spent his 20s lending a crucial voice to the upper echelons of New York City’s vibrant jazz scene. His bass playing has been a fixture in the bands of his generation’s biggest torchbearers: María Grand, Joel Ross, Veronica Swift and Immanuel Wilkins.

Tiberio also has been called upon by acclaimed leaders, such as Aaron Goldberg, Shai Maestro and Ben Wendel. He has performed alongside numerous notable jazz artists, including Kenny Barron, Gretchen Parlato, Terrell Stafford and Will Vinson. Tiberio’s emergence as a bandleader and writer is now established as well, with the release of his debut album, “Rare Peace,” in September 2021.

For more information, call Kathy Kirkaldie, UW Fine Arts coordinator, at (307) 766-2160 or email kirisk@uwyo.edu.