BRATTLEBORO — On April 18, the Vermont Jazz Center welcomes the Holopohonor Sextet, a group of young jazz musicians.
The group includes local pianist Miro Sprague; Josh Joshnson on alto saxophone; Eric Miller, trombone; Diego Urbano, vibraphone; Dave Robaire, bass; and Jonathan Pinson on drums.
Sprague connected with the other five musicians of Holophonor while attending the Thelonious Monk Institute's two-year graduate school, the world's most selective jazz studies program led by chair and primary teacher Herbie Hancock.
For each graduating class, only one individual is accepted per instrument. For the 2014 graduating class there were just seven students. An extremely strong bond was created among them.
“The time we played and lived together at the Institute was so powerful,” Sprague said. “The chemistry will be there for life and can be instantly ignited.”
Sprague said that the Thelonious Monk Program “is based on a mentorship model. Its concept is to preserve the teachings of the jazz masters in a practical setting... having them work with us in performance situations. This includes playing music, telling stories and having lengthy conversations about their experiences; much like the way the older musicians learned.
“Having relationships with jazz masters highlights the significance and respect for the lineage of jazz musicians. There's less of that now than there was in the past. They've passed on a bit of their knowledge to me, I am sharing what I've learned with others.”
Holophonor's performances feature original music from each member of the group as well as works written collectively. Their sound combines compositions with improvisational freedom while remaining accessible to the listener. As young ambassadors representing the Monk Institute, the group has performed in Israel, Japan, Sweden, and Turkey, as well as the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.