Trenton, New Jersey (b. 1959)
Bassist/composer Drew Gress has performed extensively with artists
throughout the vast field of contemporary improvised music. He was a
founding member of the cooperative quartet Joint Venture, whose three Enja
albums, Joint Venture, Ways, and Mirrors, all received widespread critical
acclaim. He currently leads Jagged Sky, a New York-based quartet performing
his original compositions. The band includes Dave Binney, Ben Monder, and
Kenny Wollesen, and has recently recorded Heyday, their debut for the
Italian label Soul Note. (Due out September 1998)
Gress has toured North, South, and Central America, Europe, and Asia, and
has served as Artist-in-Residence at St. Petersburg
Conservatory in Russia and at University of Colorado-Boulder. He has been
awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and Meet the
Composer, and currently resides in New York.
When Drew is not performing with Jagged Sky, he can be heard with the Fred
Hersch Trio, the Dave Douglas String Group, Tim Berne's Paraphrase, Andy
Laster's Hydra, Erik Friedlander's Chimera, the Marc Copland Quartet, and
Don Byron's "Bug Music".
