Tomorrowland Lux Quartet

• 1Intricate Drift09:55
• 223 Januarys05:16
• 3Congratulations and Condolences06:20
• 4Deeply Us04:57
• 5The Wayward Line09:25
• 6Speak Eddie06:26
• 7Dried Print on Cardboard09:45
• 8Tomorrowland09:36
• Total Runtime01:01:40

Info for Tomorrowland

Celebrating the life-giving power of light, the Lux Quartet is an exploratory new quartet co-led by two of the most celebrated and visionary artists in modern improvised music: pianist Myra Melford and drummer Allison Miller. Drawing on a shared passion for the preservation of nature and a boundary-stretching approach to music, the two innovative composers and bandleaders are joined by saxophonist Dayna Stephens and bassist Scott Colley, together crafting a sonic environment that glows with its own intense yet nurturing radiance.

Melford and Miller have long embraced the natural world in their individual work. Melford often combines her passion for the outdoors with poetic and philosophical imagery in bands like Snowy Egret, Fire and Water or The Same River, Twice. Miller's captivating work Rivers in Our Veins is a multi-media journey into the cultural and ecological life of rivers. The two have worked together for several years in the drummer's ensemble Boom Tic Boom, a recent touring version of which also featured Stephens and Colley.

Both musicians are renowned for incisive playing across the entirety of the jazz spectrum. The saxophonist has worked with Kenny Barron, Ambrose Akinmusire, Julian Lage and Gerald Clayton, among others; while Colley is a deeply respected bassist who has enjoyed extensive collaborations with Joshua Redman, John Scofield, Herbie Hancock and Chris Potter to name a few. The quartet developed such profound chemistry that it evolved into its own singular entity. The name Lux Quartet was inspired by the role of light in the panoply of life on Earth, from the vitality of the sun's ray to the bioluminescence of creatures in the deepest oceans - a suggestive indication of the heights and depths that the band endeavors to explore.

"All the tunes have an inherent sense of strength and freedom, form and abstraction; they are like structures without walls. Each player seems to move in and out of the compositions organically, so that over the course of the album you get to hear individual members solo, in duo with all three others, in trio and together as a quartet of equals. The music is responsive, democratic and generous: these are conversations full of striking statements, fascinating details and intriguing asides." (The Irish Times)

Lux Quartet

Lux Quartet
co-led by pianist Myra Melford and drummer Allison Miller, is proud to present its eponymous debut: a glowing musical encounter with Dayna Stephens (saxophones) and Scott Colley (bass). The program features original compositions by all four band members, exploring philosophical and spiritual themes through the language of jazz. The name Lux Quartet was inspired by the role of light in the diversity of life on Earth, from the vitality of the sun’s rays to the bioluminescence of creatures in the deepest oceans—a suggestive reference to the heights and depths the band seeks to explore. The sound resulting from this combination of players is, according to Melford, “like throwing a spark at tinder—everything immediately bursts into flames.”

Melford and Miller have a rich history as collaborators, notably in Miller’s Boom Tic Boom, which has featured Melford’s pianistic brilliance on four albums to date. Their respective 2023 efforts—Melford’s Cy Twombly–inspired Hear the Light Singing and Miller’s ambitious multimedia work Rivers in Our Veins—appeared on many year-end critic’s lists. The two are thrilled to welcome Dayna Stephens, a formidable voice on all the saxophones, who worked with Miller and pianist Carmen Staaf on their co-led 2018 release Science Fair. The mysterious “23 Januarys,” Stephens’ first contribution to the Lux Quartet book, is derived from one of Messiaen’s modes of limited transposition, posing very particular challenges for improvisation and interplay.

Scott Colley, four-time Grammy nominee, first-call sideman and noted leader in his own right, recorded “Tomorrowland” on his 2010 release Empire (featuring Bill Frisell) and returns to it here, transforming it to close out the album in a dark and contemplative rubato space. “Scott has played with everyone and he really knows no boundaries,” Miller says. “His ears are huge, and I feel the same way with Dayna and Myra. That’s a big element of why this band worked so well from the start. We were able to listen and push the music in different directions night to night.”

This album contains no booklet.