His quintet jostles from occasional moments of unison playing into wide-burning group improvisations. Like much in Mr. Hwang’s catalog, this stuff feels both intensely personal and oddly mythic. - Giovanni Russonello, The New York Times

Hwang's leaps and flights are especially impressive; showcasing his superb dexterity while the band surges powerfully behind him...Much of the music turns on the rhythmic foundation provided by Filiano and Drury. They possess the finely-honed instincts of having played together for years, and the complexity of Hwang's compositions requires those instincts to be fully utilized.- Troy Dostert, All About Jazz

They’ve found a way to make “East meets West” work. This is a fascinating, rather chilling, but ultimately inspiring set of music, unlike anything most of us have heard. Not only are the compositions challenging and far reaching but the Burning Bridge ensemble consists of a unique set of instruments. - Jim Hynes, makingascene.org

***** Jason Kao Hwang is a unique artist… one of the frontrunners in creative jazz...what he has accomplished: he melds the jazz idiom with classical music structure and creates works such as this BLOOD... An uncompromising vision as it is challenging. Fine artistry on every count. - Grady Harp, Amazon.com

Andrew Drury – drum set
Ken Filiano – string bass
Jason Kao Hwang – composer/violin/viola

The music of Jason Kao Hwang (composer/violin/viola) explores the vibrations and language of his history. His compositions are often narrative landscapes through which sonic beings embark upon extemporaneous, transformational journeys. His recent release Blood, performed by Burning Bridge, his octet of Chinese and Western instruments, has already received critical acclaim. Downbeat Magazine named his quintet recording Sing House, one of the Best CDs of 2017. In 2013 and 2012 the El Intruso Jazz Critics Poll voted him #1 for Violin. The 2012 Downbeat Critics’ Poll voted Mr. Hwang as “Rising Star for Violin.” The first Burning Bridge was named one of the top CDs of 2012 by Jazziz and the Jazz Times. His quartet EDGE released three critically acclaimed CDS, EDGE (2006, Asian Improv), Stories Before Within (2008, Innova), and Crossroads Unseen (2011, Euonymus). As composer, Mr. Hwang has received support from Chamber Music America, US Artists International, the NEA, Rockefeller Foundation and others. As violinist, he has worked with Karl Berger, Anthony Braxton, William Parker, Butch Morris, Ivo Perlman, Oliver Lake, Reggie Workman, Pauline Oliveros, Tomeka Reid, Patrick Brennan, and many others.

Andrew Drury is a composer/improviser, percussionist, and advocate for the cause of adventurous music and international community. Drury has worked with world-class artists, well-known and obscure, in 30 countries and on over 50 recordings. He is a pioneer in the area of extended techniques known for his skillful use of a dustpan and the transformation of drums into wind instruments. Andrew performs as a soloist, works in groups of two to forty musicians, and collaborates with Ingrid Laubrock, Brandon Seabrook, JD Parran, Frank Lacy, Stephanie Griffin, Stephanie Richards, Robert Dick. He has played with Jason Kao Hwang since 2004. Others he has worked with include Wadada Leo Smith, Agustí Fernandez, John Tchicai, Wayne Horvitz, Myra Melford, Tomeka Reid, and Roswell Rudd. Drury founded the Soup & Sound house concert series and Continuum Culture & Arts, a non-profit organization that has initiated performances, workshops, recordings, and residencies on three continents. Originally from Seattle he studied for most of the ‘80s with Ed Blackwell, and now lives in Brooklyn.

Ken Filiano performs and records with leading artists in jazz and improvised music, fusing the rich traditions of the double bass with his own seemingly limitless imagination. Ken leads two quartets, Quantum Entanglements and Baudolino's Dilemma, and is co-leader of The Steve Adams/Ken Filiano Duo. His extensive discography includes a solo bass CD, “subvenire” (NineWinds), and his quartet's “Dreams From a Clown Car" (Clean Feed). For these and numerous other recordings and performances, critics have called Ken a "creative virtuoso,"a "master of technique" . . . "a paradigm of that type of artist...who can play anything in any context and make it work, simply because he puts the music first and leaves peripheral considerations behind.” (JazzValley.com / Robert Rusch / Chris Kelsey). Ken teaches master classes in bass and improvisation, has a private bass studio, and is a Guiding Artist and Advisor at Creative Music Studio in Woodstock, NY.

Tickets: $20 in advance/$23 at door/$10 full-time student with ID