Humanities David Ake

• 1Humanities04:23
• 2Hoofer06:16
• 3Groundwork08:08
• 4Ripple05:39
• 5You May Have Already Won03:44
• 6Drinking Song04:11
• 7The North06:36
• 8Stream06:48
• 9Resource Center03:57
• 10Narration01:02
• 11Rabble Rouser04:52
• 12Walter Cronkite04:53
• Total Runtime01:00:29

Info for Humanities

Talented pianist David Ake brings an all-star lineup together on his stunningly intense new release “Humanities.” Ake's musical concept continues to evolve as his evocative original compositions and arrangements are presented by several of the finest musicians on the scene today. Serious listeners will delight in this captivating program that spotlights Ake playing in the front line alongside trumpet phenomenon Ralph Alessi and the virtuosic surprises of guitarist Ben Monder. It’s a sophisticated game of follow the leader with Ake hanging with the heavy cats while never forgetting to keep it swinging steadily with the underlying support of bassist Drew Gress and percussive metrics of drummer Mark Ferber holding down the rhythm behind him. Prepare to be inspired when pianist David Ake explores the depths of his own personal insights to unlock the hidden possibilities of “Humanities.”

"Ake’s Humanities documents 12 adventurous, improv-fueled journeys taken by a stellar band that includes Ralph Alessi (trumpet), Ben Monder (electric guitar), Drew Gress (acoustic bass) and Mark Ferber (drums). An educator and musicologist at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, Ake composed all the music on the album, with the exception of an intriguing arrangement of the Grateful Dead tune “Ripple.” Ake allows his collaborators to take flight; at various points on a track like “Hoofer,” he, Alessi and Ferber might craft individual lines that intertwine, yet occasionally contrast with one another to create a satisfying tension—but the track still feels cohesive. Monder shows that he can add subtle coloration to a track, or he can explode like a thunderstorm, as he does with the squall on “Groundwork.”

Throughout the disc, Alessi displays the wide variety in his sonic palette, delivering lines that are fiery, elegant and unpredictable. The band members on this project clearly enjoyed their individual freedom, but as a listener, one can always sense the sturdy architecture within the composition." (Bobby Reed, downbeat.com)

David Ake, piano
Ralph Alessi, trumpet
Ben Monder, guitar
Drew Gress, bass
Mark Ferber, drums

David Ake
Pianist, composer, and scholar David Ake's latest musical work is titled Humanities (2018 Posi-Tone). This album musically reflects Ake's latest chapter of his life, including his move from Cleveland to Miami in 2015, as well as his ruminations on the importance of critical thinking in the current “post-truth” political climate. As with his previous Posi-Tone release Bridges (2013) and Lake Effect (2015), Ake collaborates with the some of jazz's highest caliber musicians: Ralph Alessi on trumpet, Ben Monder on guitar, Drew Gress on bass, and Mark Ferber on drums.

Born in 1961 in New Haven, CT, Ake, moved to Chicago's northwest suburbs when he was five years old. It was here where he began classical piano lessons at age eight, played in rock bands in high school and experienced the Chicago area's incredibly diverse live music scene in the 1970s. Late during his high school days, Ake heard Keith Jarrett's "Solo Concerts: Bremen/Lausanne," which set him on his course, and he soon headed to the University of Miami to study piano with Vince Maggio and composition with Ron Miller.

After graduation, Ake moved to Munich, Germany, and began playing in numerous bands as a leader and sideman. Ake also began touring, including an amazing month-long stint in Cairo, Egypt (1984) playing alongside drummer Clifford Jarvis.

In 1985, Ake attended the California Institute of the Arts, where he studied and played with flutist/composer James Newton and the legendary bassist Charlie Haden, as well as fellow students Scott Colley, Ravi Coltrane, and Ralph Alessi. Ake graduated in 1987 with a Master’s degree in Jazz Studies. His passionate progression led Ake to New York in 1990, where he played with Ben Allison, Jeff Ballard, Gerry Gibbs, and other local stalwarts.

It was back to L.A. in 1994 for Ake to begin graduate studies in ethnomusicology and musicology at UCLA, where he earned his Ph.D. in 1998. It was in this period where Ake met producer Marc Free and recorded his debut record Sound and Time (1998 Posi-Tone). Ake also appeared on another record for Free's Posi-Tone label, Phil Farris’s Sun Sound (1998 Posi-Tone), recorded live at The World Stage, drummer Billy Higgins' club in L.A.

1999 brought another chapter to Ake's life, when he moved to Reno, Nevada, to become part of the faculty at the University of Nevada, Reno, where he served as Director of the School of the Arts, among other roles. During his time in Nevada, Ake published two books, Jazz Cultures (2002) and Jazz Matters (2010), as well as one co-edited collection, Jazz/Not Jazz, through the University of California Press. In 2005, Ake recorded the solo piano record In Between (Posi-Tone). Ake is also part of the group EEA, with Peter Epstein and Larry Engstrom, which released The Dark (2010 Origin) to critical praise. After two years as chair of the Department of Music at Cleveland’s Case Western Reserve University, he moved to South Florida, where he now serves as Professor and Chair of the Department of Musicology at the University of Miami’s highly acclaimed Frost School of Music.

This album contains no booklet.