Mark Helias

Mark Helias

Helias at Cornelia street cafe, July 2, 2010 Pnoto: Claire Stefani
Background information
Born (1950-10-01) 1 October 1950
New Brunswick, New Jersey United States
Genres Jazz
Occupation(s) Musician, Composer, Educator
Instruments Double bass
Labels Enja, Radio Legs, Koch Records, GM Recordings
Associated acts Ray Anderson, Slickaphonics, Gerry Hemingway, BassDrumBone, Anthony Braxton, Dewey Redman, Marty Ehrlich
Website Mark Helias.com/

Mark Helias (born October 1, 1950) is an American jazz double bass player and composer born in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

He did not begin playing the double bass until the age of 20, graduating from Yale University's School of Music with a Masters degree in 1976. He has also studied at Rutgers University.[1] He teaches at Sarah Lawrence College, The New School, and SIM (School for Improvised Music).[1]

Helias has performed with a wide variety of musicians, first and foremost with trombonist Ray Anderson, with whom he led the ironic 1980s avant-funk band Slickaphonics, and a trio with Gerry Hemingway on drums, formed in the late 1970s, later named BassDrumBone, and continuing to play together. Besides Helias performed with the previous members of Ornette Colemans original band, Don Cherry, Dewey Redman, and Ed Blackwell, just as with musicians affiliated with the AACM, such as Anthony Braxton, Anthony Davis, Muhal Richard Abrams, and Julius Hemphill. Furthermore he played with Cecil Taylor, Marilyn Crispell, Simon Nabatov, and reed players Oliver Lake, Carlos Ward, Arthur Blythe, Don Byron, and Marty Ehrlich, whereas less usual were performances with Abbey Lincoln, Mose Allison, and J.B. Horns.

Since 1984 Mark Helias has released six recordings under his own name and further six albums leading the archetypal improvising trio Open Loose since 1996. The group comprises Helias on bass, first Ellery Eskelin, then Tony Malaby on tenor saxophone and Tom Rainey on drums.

Recognition/Awards

Discography

As leader

With Open Loose

Collaborations

With Sophia Domancich and Andrew Cyrille

With Terrence McManus and Gerry Hemingway

With Michael Moore, Alex Maguire, and Han Bennink

With Mark Dresser

With Daniele D'Agaro and U.T. Gandhi

With Christy Doran, Bobby Previte, Gary Thomas

With Slickaphonics

With Ray Anderson and Gerry Hemingway a.k.a. BassDrumBone

As sideman

With Ralph Alessi and Modular Theatre

With Barry Altschul

With Ray Anderson

With the Ed Blackwell Project

With Jane Ira Bloom

With Anthony Braxton

With Marilyn Crispell

With Franco D'Andrea

With Anthony Davis

With Benoît Delbecq Unit

With Paul Dunmall Sun Quartet

With Marty Ehrlich

With Ricardo Gallo's Tierra de Nadie

With Dennis González NY Quartet

With Jerome Harris

With Gerry Hemingway

With Peter Herborn

With David Lopato

With Joe Lovano

With Michael Moore

With Simon Nabatov

With Operazone (Bill Laswell-Alan Douglas-Karl Berger-Project)

With Jim Pepper

With Bobby Previte

With Enrico Rava

With Dewey Redman

With Joe Rosenberg

With Samo Salamon

With Dave Schnitter

References

  1. 1 2 Sunderland, Celeste (2007-02-22). "Mark Helias". All About Jazz. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
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