Hello folks! I'm just writing to tell you about a few musical things I've got going on in the near future.

Have You Heard?

This Monday night I am very happy to be featured on one of my favorite radio shows, Have You Heard?, hosted by the great saxophonist Patrick Wolff. Each week Patrick does a deep dive on the work of a single artist (usually someone on the less well-known side) in a way rarely heard on this coast. For this show we'll be hearing tunes from several of my albums (plus an unreleased track of a work for big band) as well as having some conversation about the jazz world in my usual curmudgeonly fashion. You can hear the show Monday at 9pmon KCSM; the show will be also be available for one week after at the Have You Heard? website.

Jazzschool Classes

I'm happy to be offering three classes this summer as part of California Jazz Conservatory's Jazzschool summer session, geared toward intermediate musicians of all ages:

• Demystifying Coltrane Changes: A deep look into how to take the fear out of learning daunting tunes like Giant Steps and Countdown, including theory, listening and in-class playing. More info here.
• Counterpoint & Beyond: An introduction to one of my favorite compositional toolboxes, with an eye toward real-world contemporary and jazz applications. More info here.
• Modernize Your Language: A look at three ways to take the next step beyond bebop and mode-based improvising, with an eye on integrating with the student's existing language, through theoretical discussion and in-class playing. More here.

If you or someone you know might be interested, please check out the links above to find out more and register. Class space is limited! (And a reminder: I'm also accepting new private students in trumpet, improvisation, composition, ear training and harmony.)

Asian-American Orchestra Performances

This weekend and next, I'll be making my debut with percussionist & composerAnthony Brown's Asian-American Orchestra. The group consists of an eclectic (in a good way!) mix of western and eastern instruments including shakuhachi and sheng (Chinese mouth organ) as well as a burning jazz ensemble. For these performances we'll be joined by the Ojalá Batá percussion ensemble, plus poet Genny Lim and vocalist Amikaelya Proudfoot Gaston. We'll be performing original works by Brown as well as a new realization of Max Roach's classic Freedom Now Suite (you all know I don't do plain old tributes).We'll be doing two performances this Sunday June 5 at the San Francisco International Arts Festival at Fort Mason, followed by a show on Saturday June 18 at Musically Minded Academy in Oakland. Hope to see you!

Also...

I'm happy to announce that I am among the lucky crop of grant recipients for San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music's 2016 Musical Grant Program, to compose a set of pieces for my brand new 7-piece ensemble Wood/Metal/Plastic, premiering next year. And just a reminder that my new album Interview Music ("complex chamber music with solo space" - Doug Ramsey, Rifftides) is now available on CDBaby, Amazon, and iTunes. You can hear a free track from the album below. Thanks![embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFjbnC96zQg[/embed]

Hello folks! If you missed our CD release show last week, you have another chance to see this band and hear music from our new CD on Kabocha Records, Interview Music. (The title is sort of an inside joke about the jazz scene. More on that here.)This Sunday (4/24) at 4pm we are thrilled to be returning to Chez Hanny in San Francisco's Portola District, an intimate "jazz salon" that has been presenting unique concerts for over a decade.The band will feature my longtime partners in crime Kasey Knudsen on alto saxophone, Sheldon Brown on bass clarinet and tenor saxophone, Jon Arkin on drums, Fred Randolph on bass, Adam Shulman on piano, and myself on trumpet. We will be playing all the music from the new album (including my four-part title suite) plus new expanded arrangements of music from our previous albums Sink/Swim, Contextualizin', and Roads & Codes ("★★★★½” —DownBeat).Chez Hanny (click link for more info) is located at 1300 Silver Avenue, San Francisco. $20 donation is requested. Email reservations are strongly recommended (see previous link) as seating is first come, first served (doors open at 3:30pm). I hope to see you there!BUT: If you can't make it and still want to hear Interview Music, the album is now available on CDBaby , Amazon, and iTunes . And you can hear a full track from the suite here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcF9k56U4DUALSO: A few weeks ago I was fortunate to be invited to do an interview with Alisa Clancy on our great local jazz station KCSM to talk about the album. You can listen to the interview below.http://iancareyjazz.com/audio/KCSM_interview_040816_edit.mp3ALSO ALSO: I'm going to be playing this Saturday afternoon with the great drummer and composer Bryan Bowman and his quintet at a new house concert venue in the East Bay. The show is at 4pm at 1034 Talbot Ave. in Albany, $10 donation requested. Thanks!

This week, the California Report (produced right here in SF by our own KQED and broadcast throughout the state) featured local jazz writer Andy Gilbert's review of Roads & Codes:

Ian Carey possesses a bright, gleaming tone and a knack for attracting similarly accomplished musicians. Featuring material gleaned from sources far beyond jazz’s usual ken, his new album “Roads & Codes” reflects a singular vision, musical and otherwise... Carey turned the CD’s cover into a self-mocking 10-panel comic strip. The art depicts his quandary over how to present a new jazz album so that it might actually find an audience. On the back, his manga-inspired illustrations suggest the mindset with which he approaches each piece. While not presented as a suite, the album flows like an interlaced book of short stories, an impression heightened by his beautifully rendered art work.

You can check out the entire thorough and thoughtful review, which also features audio samples of tunes from the album, here:

Hi folks, I'm continuing to be happy with the good press and airplay Roads & Codes has been getting--it's in the top 100 in the U.S. jazz charts, and the top ten in Canada, which is more than I expected for an album with no standards and multiple tracks over ten minutes.Meanwhile, here are two quick audio cuts for you--first, I had a nice chat yesterday with Nicholas Mokover at KZSC (UC Santa Cruz). We talked for about ten minutes about my background, and the old NYC vs. Bay Area question. The entire interview is here:Ian Carey Interview, KZSC (3/12/13)Second, here's another cut from our Takoyaki 3 show last month in Berkeley--this is our version of the classic Ornette Coleman anthem "Lonely Woman" (originally on The Shape of Jazz to Come). Check out the looping effects at the end of the track--that's something I've been experimenting with more & more since originally attempting it to recreate the effects we used on our version of the theme from "Dead Man" (which you can hear a streaming version of here).Takoyaki 3: Lonely Woman(Ian Carey, trumpet/effects; Adam Shulman, organ, Jon Arkin, drums)

Hello folks, I'm pleased to report that after quite a while spent writing, rehearsing, recording, mixing, and designing the artwork,  the CD release show for the Ian Carey Quintet+1's new album, Roads & Codes, will be held February 21 in Oakland! This group has been playing together for close to ten years, but Roads & Codes ("on the cutting edge of new sounds and exciting compositions for modern jazz" --CriticalJazz), represents our most ambitious effort yet.The show will be next Thursday, February 21 at 8pm, at a nice new venue in Oakland’s uptown neighborhood, The Sound Room. It will feature the exact same personnel as the CD, even including Evan Francis, who we’re lucky to have joining us from his new digs in New York, and newest addition to the group, the great Kasey Knudsen, performing all the music from the album (including new arrangements of works by Stravinsky, Ives, and Neil Young) and select "hits" from our previous CDs. The show will also feature the original art which I’ve created for the album in both projected formats and as signed prints for sale.And to sweeten the pot for those on the fence, everyone purchasing a ticket will recieve a FREE COPY of the CD!WHAT: Kabocha Records and Bay Area Jazz & Arts present The Ian Carey Quintet+1: CD Release & Art Show for Roads & CodesWHO: Evan Francis, flute & tenor saxophone; Kasey Knudsen, alto saxophone; Adam Shulman, piano; Jon Arkin, drums; Fred Randolph, bass; Ian Carey, trumpet, flugelhorn, illustrationsWHEN: Thursday, February 21, 8pmWHERE: The Sound Room, 2147 Broadway (@ 22nd St.), OaklandTICKETS: $15, includes free CD with purchase! (advance tix available here.)Next Tuesday (2/19) will be the official "street date" of the album, which means it will be available for purchase at various sites around the web (links to come) and will (knock on wood) be heard on radio stations across the land.Hope to see you Thursday!

Hi folks: 2 things--first, want to hear my dulcet tones talking about my CD and my career so far, plus my mumblings about jazz philanthropy and the State of the Gig? Here's an interview I did last week with KVLU's Jason Miller. It also features a live cut from our CD release show with guest vocalist Lorin Benedict. Check it out:

• Ian Carey interview with Jason Miller, KVLU FM (7/17/10)

Second, I have a couple of short-notice gigs to tell you about: tonight, I'll be playing and hosting a jam session with drummer Bryan Bowman and bassist Adam Gay (while Ben Stolorow wows them in Japan) at Kaleidoscope in the Mission. Come on by and bring your music-making things!WHAT: The Kaleidoscope SessionWHO: Adam Gay, Bryan Bowman, and Ian CareyWHERE: Kaleidoscope, 3109 24th Street (@ Folsom), SFWHEN: Weds., July 21, 7:30-11:00HOW MUCH: Free!I'm also excited to be playing with the 16-piece Contemporary Jazz Orchestra (the former Pearl's Monday night band) this Sunday at the Benicia Fine Art & Jazz Festival. Come on out for a bonanza of big band bodaciousness!WHAT: The Contemporary Jazz Orchestra (led by Tod Dickow)WHERE: The Benicia Fine Art & Jazz Festival, First Street Green, BeniciaWHEN: Sunday, July 25, 5:00pmHOW MUCH: $8 adults, kids free!