MARK DRESSER
"Mark Dresser is an inventor.
He also may be the most important bassist to emerge since 1980 in
jazz or classical music." Boston Herald, February 1, 1998
"Mr. Dresser, a bassist who is one of the great instrumental
forces in recent American jazz outside of the mainstream...New
York Times, February 25, 2000
"Mark Dresser awed the assembly with his compositions for
solo bass-no one expected to be nailed to the floor by one guy
with a four-string."
Los Angeles Times
Mark Dresser, born in 1952 has been composing and performing solo
contrabass and ensemble music professionally since 1972
throughout North America, Europe and the Far East. Emerging from
the L.A. 'avant garde jazz' scene of the early 70's, Dresser
performed with the "Black Music Infinity." Concurrently
he was performing with the San Diego Symphony. After completing
B.A. and M.A. degrees at UCSD and a Fulbright Fellowship in
Italy, Dresser relocated to New York in 1986 after being invited
to join the quartet of composer/saxophonist, Anthony Braxton.
Dresser played with Braxton's longest performing quartet for nine
years. Once in NY, Dresser began an active career as a performer
as well as focusing on composition, beginning with a pair of
cooperative groups, Tambastics and the string trio, Arcado.
Numerous European tours, awards, six CD's, and several
commissions resulted from these two associations including a
composition for string trio and orchestra from WDR Radio of
Cologne Germany, "Bosnia,"a piece for the Trio du
Clarinettes of France and Arcado, and a Mary Cary Flaggler
recording grant. In 1991 Dresser began composing for his own
ensembles beginning with the quintet, "Force Green," as
well as two trio scores for the classic silent films "The
Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and "Un Chien Andalou."
In 1995 "Invocation" a CD of solo contrabass works was
released. (Knitting Factory Works) Recent chamber works include a
commission by Swiss flute virtuoso Matthias Ziegler, and
"Loss of the Innocents" for clarinet, cello, and tuba
which were recorded on the 1997 Tzadik CD, "Banquet"
and have been performed in festivals Europe and the United
States.
Mark Dresser's current projects include his Modular Ensemble, the
Mark Dresser Trio and various quartets. He also performs and
records in duo with cellist Frances Marie Uitti,
(Cryptogramaphone) with bassist Mark Helias,(De Werf) as well as
with the coop trio C/D/E with saxophonist Marty Ehrlich and
drummer Andrew Cyrille.(Pao) Dresser also performs and records in
groups led by Gerry Hemingway, Jane Ira Bloom, Satoko Fujii, and
others. He has performed and/or recorded over eighty cds with
some of the strongest personalities in contemporary music and
jazz including Ray Anderson, Tim Berne, Bobby Bradford, Tom Cora,
Marilyn Crispell, Anthony Davis, Dave Douglas, Fred Frith, Vinny
Golia, Earl Howard, Oliver Lake, George Lewis, Misha Mengelberg,
Ikue Mori, James Newton, Bob Ostertag, Evan Parker, Louis
Sclavis, Vladimir Tarasov, Henry Threadgill, and John Zorn. He
has given lecture demonstrations at the Julliard School, National
Superior Conservatory of Paris, UCI, UCSD, Brown University,
Mills College, New England Conservatory and others.
"You've got to pity Dresser's poor bass-you wouldn't treat a
dog the way he manhandles his instrument. But the gnarled tones
and vicious swing he tortures out of it are worth the abuse. In
Dresser's slanted compositions, the jazz tradition is only so
much grist for the mill." The New Yorker, August 18, 1997