Stephan Crump, Ingrid Laubrock and Cory Smythe—this trio consists of three highly innovative improvisers who are active on both the international and contemporary Brooklyn scenes. Memphis-bred, Grammy-nominated bassist Stephan Crump (best known for his work as Vijay Iyer's bass player) is emerging as a singular voice as a composer, with groups like Rhombal and his Rosetta Trio. Originally from Germany, saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock is now a key innovator on the Brooklyn scene, including as a composer/leader with groups like Anti-House and Sleepthief. She recently topped the 2018 Downbeat Annual Critics Poll for “Rising Star-Tenor Saxophone.” Pianist Cory Smythe works actively in new, classical, and improvised music and is celebrated across genre lines, as a core member of the International Contemporary Ensemble and a Grammy-award-winner for his work with violinist Hillary Hahn. The trio released its acclaimed album Planktonic Finales on Intakt in 2017, a series of recordings that demonstrate the trio’s finesse and sensitivity in collective playing.
Downbeat critic Brian Zimmerman said about Planktonic Finales:
"As one expects from a trio of such talented improvisers, the composite sound is one of discovery and process, of organic structures being assembled without a blueprint or fixed template. Fostering deep listening and uninhibited communication, the trio of Crump, Laubrock and Smythe seem to have synchronized around the same pulse."
Filament at The Vanderelli Room, 43215