Craig Taborn / Dave King – Heroic Enthusiasts

Internationally renowned Jazz musicians Dave King and Craig Taborn first played music together in 1982 at a winter basement birthday party in Golden Valley Minnesota where they both grew up. This first meeting performing rock covers on synthesizer and drum set led to a long friendship and a shared interest in jazz, the 70s and 80s rock underground and electronic music. All these influences resurface in Heroic Enthusiasts.

The duo evolved during rehearsals for the Daylight Ghosts-quartet that performed at the BIMHUIS in 2017. Electronic music was the point of departure for the compact compositions, which Taborn describes as ‘evolving miniatures’ and which are inspired by Thelonious Monk, Ornette Coleman, Sun Ra, Drexciya, Silver Apples, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Herbie Hancock, Ryuichi Skakamoto and other luminaries.

Pianist Craig Taborn is being hailed as a ‘visionary of the current wave’ (Downbeat) because of his intriguing, concentrated style of playing. Dave King is best known as the drummer for The Bad Plus, the American formation  that redefines the boundaries of the piano trio with its hyper-energetic performances.