Best Coast Jazz Composers Series #4: Ben Goldberg

“ … an artist who now seems to find beautiful melodies at the end of every path.”
— NPR’s The California Report
One of the Bay Area’s most respected and singular musical voices, clarinetist and composer Ben Goldberg presents a concert of music by his Bay Area ensemble Ben Goldberg School, including selections from “Come Back Elliott Smith,” a collection of original compositions named for, inspired by and based upon Goldberg’s study of the songs of indie songwriter Elliott Smith (1969 – 2003). The compositions is Goldberg’s attempt to understand and reflect upon Smith’s hauntingly lyrical work – songs of immediate emotional impact that are beautiful vehicles for a wide-ranging exploration of the vast possibilities of melody and harmony. Goldberg’s ensemble features some of the most singular instrumentalists working in the Bay Area music scene:
Ben Goldberg, clarinet
Kasey Knudsen, alto saxophone
Jeff Cressman, trombone
David Ewell, acoustic bass
Hamir Atwal, drums
The Best Coast Jazz Composers Series at the Center for New Music showcases the extraordinary and singular talents of some of the Bay Area’s most creative and prolific jazz artists. The series features emerging and established composers from the Bay Area, Southern California and the Pacific Northwest, in evening-length profile concerts that explore several aspects of their diverse musical personalities, and celebrates the emergence of an eclectic, innovative and wildly creative New West Coast Sound in jazz.
Curated by Bay Area bassist and composer Lisa Mezzacappa.
Upcoming dates
Saturday, March 15: Karl Evangelista
Saturday, April 19: Dan Plonsey
Saturday, May 24: Jacob Zimmerman
Also! Ben Goldberg plays solo at the Rex Hotel on February 19.