2014: Obstreperous Doves

Christina Stanley: violin, voice, electronics
Karl Evangelista: guitars
Bill Noertker: basses
Nava Dunkelman: percussion
Dave Mihaly (drums)

The Obstreperous Doves was founded in 2011 by bassist/composer Bill Noertker as a forum for improvised group praxis. For 14 years, Noertker has led his own experimental jazz ensemble, Noertker’s Moxie, for which he composes music inspired by visual art. Though the dove is traditionally a symbol of peace, the quest for peaceful coexistence is not necessarily passive. In the democracy of the group improvisation, obstreperousness is valued. In music it is possible to assert one’s own voice and to simultaneously listen to and value the voices of one’s fellow human beings. This is the ethos of the Obstreperous Doves. Each member of this ethnically diverse, cross-generational ensemble brings their own wide range of musical experiences. All are composers, improvisers, bandleaders, and sidepersons. All have played in a variety of situations and genres. All are able to draw from their wealth of experience to engage each other in improvised musical conversation.

Christina Stanley is currently an active performing violinist, vocalist, improviser composer and teacher. She has premiered works by George Lewis and Roscoe Mitchell under conductor Petr Kotik. Her original painted graphic scores have been featured at the Outsound New Music Summit, Temple Ad Hoc , and Rock Paper Scissors Gallery.

Filipino-American guitarist/composer Karl Evangelista ranks among a new wave of creative musicians grounded in jazz, 20th century experimentalism, and popular song, exploring the place of multiculturalism and ethnic co-existence in an increasingly post-cultural, trans-idiomatic cultural space.

Percussionist Nava Dunkelman’s musical interests span the globe from Japanese taiko to Indonesian gamelan to American marching band, and from classical to contemporary to the avant-garde. She studied at Mills College with William Winant and others. She is a co-founder of the improvisational ensembles Dapplegray and Dunkelpek.

Dave Mihaly is a multi-instrumentalist, percussionist, singer and composer. He has played in many jazz, rock, punk, folkloric and experimental bands and is featured on over 40 recordings, including his own Shimmering Leaves Ensemble. He is also a member of DaMaDa, a group that blends folk songs of various Chinese minority tribes with free jazz interpretations.

Artist (photo by Photographer)