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David G White
Not one to swim in waters others have swum, David is an acclaimed jazz guitarist and innovative composer. What defines his music is a defiance of labels. To wit: although he was schooled in bebop for many years with acclaimed teacher Charlie Shoemake in Los Angeles, he was exploring odd meters and long form composition in the 1990s long before that was fashionable as it is today (e.g. All Stories Are True; Object Relations). His acclaimed band in the mid 2000s, Big Neighborhood (nominated for a Grammy with Neighbors), combined eclectic guitar-synth contrapuntalism with edgy, harmonically-based improvisation. His current trio project with John Lockwood and Mark Walker is a fascinating and unique hybrid that contains traces of bebop, latin, free, and harmony-rich 21st century jazz rendered in an eletric modern guitar vein.
He has worked with George Garzone, Valery Ponomarev, Jeff Ballard, John Lockwood, Tim Armacost, Stomu Takeishi, Calvin Hill, Doug Miller, and Mark Walker, among many others, has 7 CDs as a leader, and toured extensively throughout North America. His orientation is synthesis, in the truest sense of the term, weaving influences as diverse as Frank Zappa and Paul Hindemith to Led Zeppelin to McCoy Tyner into a cohesive 21st century concept. This makes it hard for algorithms and marketers but rewarding for those seeking out new jazz that is fresh, adventurous, inspired, and non-derivative.
David was raised in Chile, New York City and Spain, has lived and played extensively in New York, Boston and Seattle, and now makes his home in Oakland, California.
Gear
David plays PRS and D'Aquisto guitars with Fender and Polytone amps, and uses the Line 6 Helix Stomp for effects along with an Electro-Harmonix harmonizer.
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From Dan McCleneghan in All About Jazz:
"Big Neighborhood's sound seems to walk streets similar to those frequented by Chick Corea's Elektric Band, with a looser and more spontaneous swagger in its step. This is a cohesive blend of glowing guitar (with a bit of Bill Frisell folksiness creeping in on occasion) with an ebullient, usually odd-meter bass/drum rhythm team and a succinct alto sax (weaving in and out of the mix; not standing out in front of it) working a precision versus freedom groove about as skillfully and engagingly as it can be done. The influences are varied—calypso, modern jazz, 20th Century classical, reggae, '70s rock—all mixed together by Big Neighborhood into a fresh, forward-leaning sonic brew."
