Crossing Over Series presents an evening of contemporary chamber music by vibraphonist-composer Dr. Eldad Tarmu for vibraphone and oboe. Exploring the roles of classical and jazz performance practices, and the hybridization of the two, Tarmu’s compositions entrance the listener with jazz harmonies and grooving rhythms, while singing with classical phrasing and formal structure. This concert features the premiere of Winter Migrant, a through-composed suite for oboe/English horn and vibraphone, alongside compositions that leave plenty of room for improvisation and surprise.
Tarmu has recorded eight original albums, toured in twenty-five different countries, and composes lush chamber music which defies traditional classification. He is a professor of World Music Studies, Intro to Music, and African-American Music at Hudson County Community College in Jersey City. Dr. Glenda Bates is a classically trained obosit, a jazz vocalist, songwriter, curator, and multi-instrumentalist performing with symphonies, new music ensembles, jazz groups, and Baroque orchestras. She is also an active teaching artist and writes original children’s music.
Glenda Bates and Eldad Tarmu met in 2010 as Doctoral students in New York. They instantly struck a musical bond, and began collaborating on new music and jazz standards. This led to a multi-year woodwind quintet and vibraphone project with music composed by Dr. Tarmu. In 2017, Vibrant Currents quartet formed to premiere a concert of new music by Bates and Tarmu for woodwind trio and vibraphone. In their newest iteration, coming back to their original duo form, the two artists perform crossover music written by Eldad Tarmu.