GREGORYTARDY, tenor saxophone
FEMI TEMOWO, vocal & guitar
ERNESTO SIMPSON, drums
ROBER JUKIČ, double bass
Combining jazz, classical and world music, ”Life” is a new quartet led by Slovenian bassist/composer Robert Jukič who will together with three exceptional musicians (Gregory Tardy, Femi Temowo, Ernesto Simpson) present Robert’s 8th record ”Life”, which has been released on the Swiss label Unit Records in September 2013. The record features 36 musicians from 9 countries, but by limiting live performances to a quartet the compositions will reinvent themselves yet stay true to their essence.
ROBERT JUKIČ
An artist who is breaking prejudices! – Glasna
Robert is in a forceful creative swing! – Odzven
Bassist, composer, arranger and producer Robert Jukič is one of Slovenia’s most versatile and fruitful musicians. Starting out on electric bass as a teenager playing in different bands was the beginning of his musical life. Since then he has been playing with various Slovenian and international artists and has been exposed to different styles of music, which also reflects in his records. There are eight records under his name spanning from different styles of jazz to classical and world music, from alternative pop to chanson as well as traditional blues, folk and country music. As a bassist or composer/arranger he is featured on over 50 records with other artists proving his musical range. An eclectic, constantly self-reinventing artist.
Performances with: Mario Gonzi, Adrien Mears, Owen Hart JR., Oliver Kent, Flip Phillip, Ed Partyka, Martin Reiter, Renato Chicco, Jonathan Blake, Nicole Henry, Owen Howard, Howard Curtis, Andy Middleton, Femi Temowo, Deborah Brown, Pietro Iodice, Miles Griffith, Danny Grisset, Sheila Cooper, Steve Klink, Stephane Spira, Dusko Goykovich, Daniele d’Agaro, Tony Pancella, Rob Bargad, European Movement Jazz Orchestra, Generations international youth band, Big Band RTV Slovenia, etc…
Robert writes music for his and other bands as well as for short movies, multimedia performances and art installations. He also works with theater and teaches. He was awarded 2nd jury and public choice awards at the Slovenian jazz composition competition in 2008. The release of his 5th CD for which he wrote the words as well as the music was yet another showcase of his strengths.
GREGORY TARDY
Truly an awesome leader-performer and you’ll revel in his inventiveness and finesse. – Jazz & Blues Report
Saxophonist, multi-reedist, and composer Gregory Tardy is one of the most versatile jazz musicians of his generation, equally comfortable in a variety of musical and improvisational situations. Born into a musical family, he began his musical career studying classical clarinet. In his early 20s, while preparing for a symphony career he discovered jazz and hasn’t looked back.
In 1992, he started playing with the legendary drummer, Elvin Jones, and he recorded his first CD, Crazy Love. As a sought after sideman he has played with many prominent jazz artists including: Andrew Hill, Tom Harrell, Dave Douglas, Wynton Marsalis, Jay McShann, Nicholas Payton, Roy Hargrove, Steve Coleman, Betty Carter, Don Byron, Bill Frisell, Rashied Ali , Ellis Marsalis, Brian Lynch, John Patitucci, and many more. He has also performed and/or recorded along with many other notable saxophonists, such as Joe Lovano, Mark Turner, Chris Potter, Dewey Redman, Ravi Coltrane, and others. In more recent years, Tardy has gone full circle, by focusing on his clarinets more, using them on recordings by Tom Harrell, Ohad Talmor/Steve Swallow, Stefan Harris, Chris Potter and Andrew Hill.
His performance schedule has taken him all over the world, playing at all of the major jazz festivals and on some of the biggest stages in jazz. As a sideman, he has been featured on several Downbeat Albums of the Year and also several Grammy nominated recordings; including a Grammy winning CD with Brian Lynch in 2006. He also has recorded eleven CDs under his own name featuring his unique compositions, blending his love of traditional jazz with a more modern seeking style.
FEMI TEMOWO
The British Nigerian surely has an original guitar approach, marking him out as a new jazz guitar star having absorbed his influences and come up with something new. – Jazzwise Magazine
Femi Temowo is a MOBO Award nominated musician who was raised listening to West African pioneers such as Fela Kuti, Sunny Ade and Ebenezer Obey. Later he discovered the legendary Charlie Parker and classic jazz albums such as Miles Davis’ ‘Kind Of Blue’. It was when he became inspired by the great jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, that he decided to pursue his passion for the guitar, based around a fusion of these musical influences.
Early benchmarks in Femi’s career include being approached by critically acclaimed jazz saxophonist and UK Hip Hop artist Soweto Kinch, who asked him to become part of his newly formed quartet in 2002. His phenomenally successful collaborations with Soweto culminated in a nomination for the Mercury Music Prize, a BBC Jazz award for best new group and several MOBO awards.
As his talent and success gained momentum, so too did the demand for Femi as a versatile and stylish guitar player. Femi’s intricacy and skill on his instrument of choice led to a diverse range of high profile collaborations.
Femi’s slick and melodic guitar sound has earned him a place beside many great musicians and artists from across many genres, having played with the likes of – George Benson, Courtney Pine, The Roots, Omar, Roachford, Amy Winehouse, Jason Rebello, Eska Mtungwazi, Soweto Kinch, Terri Walker, Jean Toussaint, Don Blackman, Michal Urbaniak and many more.
ERNESTO SIMPSON
is a World Class Drummer & Percussionist whose life experience took him across continents and exposed to all kinds of musical genres, from his Afro-Cuban roots to Jazz, Funk, Fusion, Pop, R&B, as well as Brazilian. From the very beginning of his career, he has been sharing the stage with Dizzy Gillespie, Carmen McRae, Chucho Valdes, Arturo Sandoval, Herbie Hancock, Michael Brecker, Paquito D’Rivera, Mike Stern, Roy Hargrove, James Genus, Airto Moreira, Marcos Valle, Emilio Santiago, Tito Puente, Ray Barretto, Giovanni Hidalgo, Eddy Palmiery and most recently Richard Bona, Ramon Valle, Omar Sosa, Kyle Eastwood and Gonzalo Rubalcaba to name a few.