New York-based composer, saxophonist, and flutist Anna Webber, called “one of the most exciting new arrivals on the New York avant-garde jazz scene” by Peter Margasak in the Chicago Reader, will perform with her Simple Trio at Studio Live in Cumberland at 8 p.m. on June 22.
The trio features bandmates John Hollenbeck on drums and Matt Mitchell on piano.
A native of Kelowna, British Columbia, Webber has been playing with her Simple Trio since 2013 and has since released two albums on Skirl Records: Simple (2014) and Binary (2016). Their performance at Studio Live in Cumberland is part of a tour culminating in a performance at the Vancouver Jazz Festival. It will be Webber’s first time bringing this band to British Columbia.
Webber composes all of the music for the ensemble, often finding inspiration from unlikely sources. For the Simple Trio’s most recent album, Binary, Webber looked to the Internet.
Using websites that turn words into drumbeats, YouTube test channels, and even her own IP address, she found a constant stream of inspiration for her compositions. The album’s title track was composed using numbers and letters produced by a random binary digit generator.
In addition to the Simple Trio, Webber also leads the septet Percussive Mechanics with which she has released two albums on Pirouet Records. Webber is featured on Dan Weiss’ album Sixteen: Drummers Suite, Harris Eisenstadt’s Recent Developments, and on an upcoming release from Jen Shyu’s Jade Tongue.
She is a member of the John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble, Ohad Talmor’s Grand Ensemble; Matt Mitchell’s Sprees and A Pouting Grimace; Fabian Almazan’s Realm of Possibilities; the Erik Hove Chamber Ensemble; and a new sextet from Bang on a Can All-Stars member Ken Thomson; among others. She recently played in the world premiere of Sila: The Breath of the World by Pulitzer Prize-winner John Luther Adams at Lincoln Center.
Tickets are $20 in advance, available at Bop City Records in Courtenay, Church Street Bakery in Comox and Rider’s Pizza in, Cumberland; $25 at the door.
Studio Live is located at 2679 Beaufort Ave. in Cumberland.