Michael Formanek Archives

Jazz trio Thumbscrew, featuring double bassist Michael Formanek, honed the music for its latest album, Convallaria, at the Pittsburgh residency program City of Asylum. “I’ve done some composition residencies working on my own. But we were all there together, working on music every day, trying things out. I miss that from my younger days,” Formanek said of the residency spent...

The Distance is jazz double bassist/composer Michael Formanek’s latest, this time featuring his 19-musician big band, Ensemble Kolossus. “I wanted a large, rich, chewy sound with this music – and the ensemble’s rhythm section is particularly big, with piano, marimba, guitar, bass and drums,” Formanek said of the album, which was recorded in December in Brooklyn, New York. “I also...

Thumbscrew, a new modern jazz trio, composed of veterans from the scene, including double bassist Michael Formanek, has released its . Formanek, who has worked with everyone from Elvis Costello to Stan Getz, has joined forces with guitarist Mary Halvorson and drummer Tomas Fujwara to create Thumbscrew and its first album, which was recorded live in the studio. And while...

Twelve years after his last album, jazz bassist Michael Formanek has released his fifth CD as a leader, entitled The Rub and the Spare Change. The project started Formanek recruited a few musicians just to play with, and ended up being a recording of his quartet featuring saxophonist Tim Berne, pianist Craig Taborn and drummer Gerald Cleaver. “Beforehand, I just...