ArtistInfo

The Respect Sextet

Band,
Jazz

The group comprises Eli Asher (trumpet, toys), James Hirschfeld (trombone, jamespectronics, toys), Josh Rutner (reeds, radio, toys), Malcolm Kirby Jr. (bass), Red Wierenga (piano, keyboard, accordion, redspectronics) & Ted Poor (drums). Formed in 2001, The Respect Sextet is a powerhouse ensemble dedicated to performing a wide variety of improvisational musics. Relying on their explosive energy, rare telepathy, outstanding musicianship, and a deep friendship, Respect pieces together free improvisations, original compositions, free jazz classics, television commercial jingles, text pieces, jazz standards, game pieces and more into “a whirling collage,” shouts Exclaim! Magazine, “that ransacks and reshapes the entire jazz tradition, from New Orleans march to Misha Mengelberg, Sun Ra to Charlie Parker.” Named “one of the best and most ambitious new ensembles in jazz” by Signal to Noise, The Respect Sextet continues—after a decade as a collective—to fearlessly push the envelope. Through its eclecticism, humor, devotion to improvisation, predilection towards swing, and its use of toys and “little instruments,” The Respect Sextet has drawn comparisons both to New Dutch Swing and the AACM. Many dialectics are at work (and play) in Respect’s world, in which the serious, heady, and intellectual mingle with the light, comic, and absurd, where compositions alternate and mesh with improvisations, and where tight ensemble work coexists with loose, empathic interplay.

Members

	Matt Clohesy b, cb AU
	Jason Price tr US
	Josh Rutner cl, ts
	Eli Asher tr, perc
	Ted Poor dr *1981 US
	James Hirschfeld tb, tam
	Red Wierenga p, acc
	Malcolm Kirby Jr. b, voc