SAY WHAT ? nonet with Richard Baratta, Steve Bernstein, Billy Martin and others
Falcon
Richard Baratta:
Grammy nominated Richard Baratta, began his musical journey at the age 12, playing sax, flute and drums, and eventually, exclusively drums, playing mostly jazz all through his teens.
From 1975 thru the mid 80’s he played with Hal Galper, Johnny Hartman, John Stubblefield, Mike Richmond, Kyo Kawasaki, Stu Goldberg, The Saheb Sarbib Multinational Big Band, Jack Wilkins, Peter LaBarbara, the Marveletts, and others. In 1984, Baratta decided to alter paths and pursued a movie career.
Since 1984, Baratta has worked on over 50 movies, first as a location manager, then Unit Production Manager, and for the past 15 years as a Co-Producer and Executive Producer. Some of his recent films have been JOKER, CHICAGO 7, Martin Scorsese’s IRISHMAN, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET, TAKING OF PELHAM 123, 5 SPIDERMAN movies, ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, MAID IN MANHATTAN, AWAKENINGS, BIG and many ,many more.
In 2017 he decided to return to his roots and main love and began performing music again, as well as producing films. In the past year he has played with Eric Alexander, Vincent Herring, Walter Blanding, Marcus Printup, Gerald Cannon, Bill O’Connell, Emmett Cohen, Mike LeDonne, Jerry Weldon, Rogerrio Bocatto, Dave Kikoski, Mike Goetz, Paul Bollenback, Dave Stryker, Pat Bianchi,etc.
In 2019 Baratta released his CD, COMEBACK, a live recording of Latin/Jazz at the Astor room. In 2020 he released MUSIC IN FILM-THE REEL DEAL to critical acclaim.
From that recording he and bandmate Bill O’Connell received a 2022 Grammy Nomination. In September of 2022, a new recording, MUSIC IN FILM - THE SEQUEL, was released to great reviews. .In August of 2023 he released OFF THE CHARTS, with John Patitucci, Dave Kikoski, Jerry Bergonzi and Paul Rossman. It was on the Jazz Weekly Charts for 18 consecutive weeks. He has been performing frequently with his GOTHAM CITY LATIN JAZZ SEPTET, as well as THE 3B’s + 2.
Billy Martin:
Billy Martin was born in NYC in 1963 to a Radio City Rockette and a concert violinist. At age 17, he devoted himself to music and dove into Manhattan's thriving, eclectic musical landscape. In the years to follow, he honed his craft everywhere from Broadway orchestra pits to Brazilian nightclubs and burgeoning underground performance spaces. In the late 1980's East Village Martin found his home (and his artistic voice) playing at the original Knitting Factory on Houston Street with John Lurie's Lounge Lizards, The John Lurie National Orchestra, John Zorn's Cobra ensembles, Samm Bennett, Ned Rothenberg, and many other uncompromising musical groups. From the roots of the downtown scene he emerged with Medeski Martin and Wood, bridging the harmonic complexity of jazz, the conversational fluency of free improvisation, and the groove and swagger of classic R&B and funk. A series of albums and high-profile collaborations brought the band international acclaim.
Cyro Baptista:
Cyro’s credits read like a "Who’s Who" of modern music. His talent and versatility have led to associations with a wide range of leading jazz, rock, pop, classical, avant-garde and Brazilian artists. From Paul Simon to Yo-Yo-Ma, Herbie Hancock to Kathleen Battle, Trey Anastasio( from Phish) to John Zorn, Wynton Marsalis to Laurie Anderson, from the legendary Brazilians Milton Nascimento and Caetano Veloso to Sting – they all wanted Cyro’s magic touch on their recordings or live performances.
Paul Rossman:
Paul has recorded and/or played with illustrious jazz artists including guitarist Paul Bollenback, saxophonists Vincent Herring, Eric Alexander, Craig Handy, and Jerry Bergonzi, Grammy nominated pianist Dave Kikoski, two-time Grammy nominated organist Pat Bianchi, Diva Orchestra pianist Tomoko Ohno, trumpeters Marcus Printup and Vinnie Cutro, Latin jazz pianist/composer Bill O'Connell, bassist Gerald Cannon, bassist Calvin Hill, Grammy nominated bassist John Patitucci, bassist Michael Goetz, Grammy winning bassist Boris Kozlov, bassist Vince Leggiere, Latin Jazz flautist and composer Connie Grossman, Brazilian percussionist Rogerio Boccato (Grammy ensemble player), percussionist Roger Squitero, drummer Carl Allen, and film producer/jazz drummer Richard Baratta.
Bill O’Connell:
Bill O’Connell is a living example of what can happen when the old axiom “Good things come to those who wait” is put to the test. His professional career spans almost half a century and has earned him widespread acclaim for his virtuosic skills as an attention-grabbing keyboardist, composer, arranger, and bandleader. Over the decades, the multi-talented musician has produced countless demonstrations of his myriad talents.
Steven Bernstein:
An impactful presence on the New York scene over the past 30 years, trumpeter, composer, arranger and bandleader Steven Bernstein has immersed himself in such a wide array of music with his bands Sexmob, Millennial Territory Orchestra, Diaspora Soul, Universal Melody Brass Band, Spanish Fly, Blue Campfire and the Butler-Bernstein Hot 9 that he defies easy categorization. A former member of the Lounge Lizards and Levon Helm’s Midnight Ramble Band, Bernstein has also composed works for film, theater and dance in addition to doing arrangements for a diverse list of artists ranging from Lou Reed to Lee “Scratch” Perry, Allen Toussaint, Marianne Faithfull, Linda Ronstadt, Rufus Wainwright, Darlene Love, Mario Pavone, Bill Frisell, John Lurie and the Kansas City All-Stars. His lengthy list of sideman credits includes recent recordings by Laurie Anderson (Heart of a Dog), Roswell Rudd (Trombone for Lovers), Mostly Other People Do The Killing (Loafer’s Hollow), Antony and the Johnsons (Turning) and Nels Cline (Lovers). He also continues to perform with Ray Anderson’s Pocket Brass Band, Omaha Diner and the Kamikaze Ground Crew.
Craig Handy:
From the time he arrived in New York at age 23 in 1986, saxophonist Craig Handy was acknoledged as a musician with big, burly tenor sound, sharp wit, and above all, individuality. Over the next few years he would breath life into those accolades through a number of important associations: holding his own on the front line of legendary bebop drummer Roy Haynes' band, working with South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, and weaving sensuous obbligati behind Betty Carter on the kind of tunes most young artist are presumed not to understand.
Jae young Jeong:
Jae young Jeong is a guitarist, composer, and educator who began his musical life at the age of 16. He initially started with learning classical guitar at a music academy, but after a year he switched his main instrument to electric guitar. In 2000, he started to attend Seoul Jazz Academy to learn music more deeply. During that time, he was able to familiarize himself with various styles of music and get many opportunities of playing in concerts, gigs, and recording sessions. After graduating from Seoul Jazz Academy, he continued his studies by taking private lessons with good jazz guitarists in Korea. While that time, he could learn more of jazz guitar techniques and different styles of playing. In 2007, he was accepted to Berklee College of Music as a World Scholarship Tour recipient. Throughout his school years, he performed with many talented students and has been selected as a bandleader to perform at ‘Jazz Guitar Night Showcase’ that took place at Berklee Performance Center. He studied with Mick Goodrick, Tim Miller, Hal Crook, Greg Osby, Sheryl Bailey, and Darren Barrett. In 2012, Jeong started master’s program in Jazz Studies at NYU Steinhardt, where he studied with artist faculty members: Peter Bernstein, Brad Shepik, Kenny Werner, Ralph Alessi, Andy Milne, Ralph Lalama, Billy Drewes, and John Scofield. Jeong has been performing regularly at several local jazz venues in New York City area.
Michael Goetz:
Michael has worked with pianists: Bill O'Connell, David Kikoski, Jeb Patton; Saxophonists: Vincent Herring, Walter Blanding, Steve Slagle, Ray Blue, Craig Handy, and Ira Sullivan; Trumpeters: Dave Douglas, Ingrid Jensen, Marcus Printup, Ray Vega; Guitarists: Paul Bollenbeck, Joe Beck, Vick Juris, Dave Stzyker, Douglas Munro, John Basile, Jay Azzolina; Percussionists: Richard Barrata, Roger Squitero, Rogerio Boccato, Richie Morales; Composer: David Amram.