Bert Seager
He has toured extensively in the United States and internationally, including twelve tours to Japan. He has performed and recorded with Joe Lovano, Tim Hagans, George Garzone, Bob Moses, Joe Hunt, Richie Barshay, John Lockwood and Kazumi Ikenaga. He has performed in ensembles on stage with George Mraz, Miroslav Vitous, Mick Goodrick, Tom Harrell, Ben Street, Chris Speed, Billy Drewes and Jorge Roeder.
Bert is on the faculty of the New England Conservatory of Music.
For the past two years Bert has been selected for a residency in music composition at the prestigious MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Bert has been a recipient of a National Endowment of the Arts grant for jazz.
He is a graduate of Haverford College and earned a masters degree from the New England Conservatory of Music in 1984.
Bert’s compositions, improvisations and teaching reflect both an inward and outward-looking view of life and music. His trio plays a varied program of original music: always striving for transparency – framing each song’s improvised narrative in a playful three-way conversation.
Awards
MacDowell Colony Fellow, 2008, 2009, 2012
Tags
Bert Seager leads a seasoned trio through a collection of highly personalized standards and finely etched originals. Although rhythm-mates Messrs. Barshay and Roeder are short on years they are long on talent and they have had the good fortune to have played with Seager for an extended period. The ensemble spirit that has evolved from that experience shows up well in this recording. Bert’s playing, while generally eschewing technical fireworks, is striking in its thoughtfulness and logic and the organic lines seem to naturally grow from the trio’s interactive frisson
Primary Instrument
Piano
Willing to teach
Advanced only
Credentials/Background
Faculty at the New England Conservatory of Music, Boston MA In the Contemporary Improvisation and Jazz Departments.