The Fonda/Stevens Group

Irek Wojtczak & The Fonda-Stevens Group: Folk Five

by Angelo Leonardi
November 16, 2015

Il connubio con la tradizione folklorica è stata una delle costanti del jazz in Polonia. Dal loro enorme patrimonio di canti e danze popolari hanno tratto ispirazione -direttamente o indirettamente-importanti jazzmen di quel Paese: si va dall'opera pionieristica di Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski e di Zygmunt Wichary a quella di Zbigniew Namyslowski, Michal Urbaniak, Andrzej Trzaskowski e altri. Nell'ultimo decennio l'impegno del sassofonista Irek Wojtczak in quest'ambito è stato assiduo e l'ha portato alla formazione dell'ensemble Bees' Knees and ...

The Fonda/Stevens Group: Memphis

by John Sharpe
September 30, 2009

Eighteen years and eleven albums is not bad going for a band roaming that precarious borderline between the mainstream and the avant-garde. And it has been achieved with the same core line-up of the two principal composers, bassist Joe Fonda and pianist Michael Jefry Stevens, together with drummer Harvey Sorgen and trumpeter Herb Robertson. That this well-recorded studio date--recorded at the end of the band's first ever US tour in March, 2008--speaks volumes about where the music finds itself is ...

The Fonda/Stevens Group: Memphis

by Troy Collins
September 23, 2009

The 11th album of their storied 18 year career, Memphis is only the fourth studio recording of the venerable Fonda/Stevens Group, making this release a delightful surprise. Co-led by bassist Joe Fonda and pianist Michael Jefry Stevens, the veteran quartet is rounded out by trumpeter Herb Robertson and drummer Harvey Sorgen. Boasting a collective resume that includes stints with Tim Berne, Anthony Braxton and Dave Douglas, they draw on a wealth of innovative collaborations for their own idiosyncratic explorations.

The Fonda / Stevens Group: Memphis

by Nic Jones
September 22, 2009

Memphis marks the 25th anniversary of the bassist Joe Fonda and pianist Michael Jefry Stevens' period of collaboration. Their quartet is a fine example of how a long established band can gel without becoming predictable, with many of its moves unforeseeable in advance. This helps to keep the music fresh, but it's the level of collective empathy that often takes it to another level.

This is obvious on “Whale Majesty," which as a model of subtle, veiled interplay that offers ...

The Fonda/Stevens Group: Forever Real

by Glenn Astarita
April 11, 2005

These days, there are few modern jazz groups which can seamlessly merge elements of free improvisation with mainstream and post-bop stylizations, while still maintaining a signature group sound. The Fonda/Stevens Group is partly about the sum of its parts, where the respective musicians emerge as stylists by honing a group-based methodology that stands on its own. A portion of this outing features trumpeter Herb Robertson's warm lower-register voicings via sub-theme dialogues with pianist Michael Jefry Stevens. They methodically intermingle quaint ...

The Fonda/Stevens Group: Forever Real

by John Kelman
March 24, 2005

Since emerging on the scene in the late '80s with trumpeter Dave Douglas and the Mosaic Sextet, pianist Michael Jefry Stevens, bassist Joe Fonda, and drummer Harvey Sorgen have all worked in a variety of contexts. Fonda was Anthony Braxton's bassist of choice in the mid-'90s; Stevens has worked in trios with Mark Whitecage and Dominic Duval; Sorgen has been involved with everything from free jazz to the blues/roots group Hot Tuna. But it's within the context of the longstanding ...

The Fonda/Stevens Group: Forever Real

by Dennis Hollingsworth
March 19, 2005

John Cage said that music is all around us, ever present in the universe. Yet we do not always have the “ears" to decipher it. Forever Real offers the opportunity to exercise your “ears," presenting you with unique sounds that ebb and flow like the tide.

This effort is the eighth recording from the Fonda/Stevens Group. Largely unknown here in the US, the group is well recognized in Europe, certainly unfortunate as it deserves recognition. Bassist Joe ...

Playscape to Release the Fonda/Stevens Group's "Memphis" September 29th

Source: All About Jazz
July 30, 2009

Playscape Recordings will officially welcome The Fonda/Stevens Group to its roster with the September 29th release of Memphis (PSR#033108), the eminent ensemble's 11th recording. Only the fourth studio release in the band's two-decade existence, Memphis was recorded at the end of a week-long March 2008 U.S. tour. The Fonda/Stevens Group is co-led by bassist/composer Joe Fonda and pianist/composer Michael Jefry Stevens and features trumpeter Herb Robertson and drummer Harvey Sorgen. Memphis takes its name from Stevens' composition, “Memphis Ramble," one ...
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482 Music to Release Next Fonda/Stevens Group, Document Chicago CDs

Source: All About Jazz
February 17, 2005

The 482 Music label is proud to announce the forthcoming release of the legendary Fonda/Stevens Group's eighth recording, Forever Real (482-1032), as well as the eighth title in its ongoing Document Chicago series, Rosenberg/Baker/Hatwich/Daisy's New Folk, New Blues (482-1031). These two new titles continue the label's mission of supporting new creative music performed by veterans and up-and-coming performers alike.

Fonda/Stevens Group Forever Real Street Date: March 22, 2005 482 Music 482-1032 http://www.482music.com/albums/482-1032.html ...
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