m2theory

Michael Moss

As a  reed player and composer, Michael Moss has been actively involved in the music scene for many years, leading his own musical groups including the Accidental Orchestra, Mike Moss/4 Rivers and Free Energy.  Moss is President of 4th Stream Records and ERG Publishing, past-President of Free Life Communication (a musician’s cooperative in NYC), and former Music Director of Loft in the Sky Jazz Festival in Lexington, NY.  Moss has been the recipient of numerous Meet the Composer and NYSCA grants.  His label, 4th Stream Records, has produced multiple LPs, cassettes, and CDs.  Michael is now engaged in a deep study of Jewish liturgical music, collaborating with Chazen Michael Kasper and Chazen Sabrina Lipton.  Moss’ latest projects are the Accidental Orchestra and the New York Free Quartet.

As a  reed player and band leader, multi-instrumentalist and composer Michael Moss has played with a large eclectic group of musicians including Billy Stein, Rashid Bakr, Ras Moshe, Steve Cohn, William Parker, Sam Rivers, Dave Liebman, Dave Burrell, Michal Urbaniak, Richie Beirach, Paul Bley, Annette Peacock, Badal Roy, Bobby Moses, Armen Halburian, Mike Mahaffay, Jackson Krall, George Brown, Jimmy Madison, Sabir Mateen, Mark Hennen, Burton Greene, Bob Telson, John Shea, Laurence Cook and Greg Kogan.  He has studied music of the Middle East, India, Senegal, Ireland and Europe to work them into the jazz tradition of John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Miles Davis, Chick Corea and Cecil Taylor, all in an effort to truly understand World Music. He has traveled to India, Sri Lanka Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Thailand where he worked with the finest musicians. Moss has also worked with a number of established modern dancers including Judith Moss, Rosalind Newman, Beth Soll, Leslie Satin and others.

Most recently Michael has been composing a number of new pieces for the NYFQ/New York Free Quartet, a composition for chorus, Can We Forget Being Born Remembering? inspired by Louisa Bieler’s sestina in which the Hebrew portion of the piece is the cantillation of the third chapter of the book of Eicho (Lamentations).  His grand project has been to compose two symphony-length pieces which have been recorded by the Accidental Orchestra, a 22 piece small Renaissance jazz orchestra, entitled See Sharp or Be Flat/C# or Bb, and 

THE OLD ONE

I INCEPTION

II BRIDGE/DORJE

III QABBALA / TREE OF LIFE

IV BARDO THÖDOL // ANGELS AND DEVILS / WIZARDS AND DEATHEATERS

V THE MIND OF GOD / STREAMINGàTHRONE OF GOLD

Moss is following a life-long passion for expanding jazz improvisation to include musical traditions from around the world and has written original music to reflect these different ethnic traditions–jazz standards and original music written in the blues, South American, and up-tempo jazz genres.

To simplify, here are the cats I played and worked with in general categories of instrument and genre:

Reeds/Saxophones/flute/clarinets/oboe:  Billy Harper, Ras Moshe, Sabir Mateen, Dave Liebman, Sam Rivers,  Elliot Levin, Mark Whitecage, Blaise Siwulla, Michael Lytle, Perry Robinson, Richard Keene.

Brass/trumpet/trombone:  Waldron Mahdi Ricks, Steve Swell, Vincent Chancey, Roy Campbell, Ralph Denzer, Marty Cook.

Vocalists:  Bobby Harden, Annette Peacock, Jay Clayton, Kelly DeHaven, Gloria Tropp, Eve Zanni, Arlene Gottfried.

Strings/violin/cello:  Jason Kao Hwang, Rosi Hertlein, Fung Churn Hwei Louisa Bieler, Mikko Mikkola, Michael Urbaniak, Wyldon King, Toni Marcus, (violins), Stephanie Griffin (viola), Lenny Mims, Carol Buck, Martha Siegel (cellos), Sarah Larsen (v, french horn).

Guitar:  Billy Stein, Gabby Abularach, Rick Iannicone, Mel Nusbaum, Stanley Dorn, Jack Bowers, George Stavis (banjo).

Piano:  Steve Cohn, Richie Beirach, Paul Bley, Bob Telson, Greg Kogan, Mel Nusbaum, Annette Peacock, Burton Green, McCoy Tyner, Dave Stoler, Ben Sidran, Jack Bowers, Dave Burrell, H. Baron Moss, Mark Hennen, Peter Lemer.

Bass:  William Parker, Larry Roland, John Shea, Mario Pavone, Cameron Brown, Wilbur Ware, Peter Matthews, Robin Edwards, Billy Fletcher, Noah Young.

Drums:  Mike Wimberly, Warren Smith, Badal Roy (tabla), Chuck Fertal, Elvin Jones, Jackson Krall, Laurence Cook, Armen Halburian, Bobby Moses, Mike Robert Mahaffay, Dan Scholnick (tabla), Lenny Seidman (tabla), Jimmy Madison, Nasheet Waits, Rashid Bakr (Charles Downs), Muruga, George Brown, Myron Cohen, Selwyn Lissack, John Pietaro.

Puppeteers:  Ralph Lee, Bread & Puppet Theater.

Storytellers/poets:  Regina Ress, Diane Wolkstein, Regina Ress, Robin Bady, Elliot Levin, Kirk Nurock.

Dancers:  Judith Moss, Rosalind Newman, Beth Soll, Leslie Satin.