Jazz Legend Bobby Previte Resumes Tribute to Miles Davis at Helsinki Hudson

Bobby Previte at Helsinki Hudson (photo Seth Rogovoy)

Bobby Previte at Helsinki Hudson (photo Seth Rogovoy)

(HUDSON, N.Y.) – The Voodoo Orchestra North, led by legendary jazz drummer, improviser, bandleader and composer Bobby Previte and featuring many great upstate New York musicians, continues its regular series of performances devoted to exploring the music of Miles Davis’s eternal electric jazz-funk masterpiece, “Bitches Brew,” at Club Helsinki Hudson, on Friday, February 13, 2015, at 9pm; and again on Friday, March 13, 2015, at 9pm.

Since late summer 2013, the Voodoo Orchestra has been rocking Club Helsinki with classic music from Miles Davis’s electric period. Previte is endeavoring to create a new improvisational music scene with musicians who live and work in and around Hudson, with Helsinki Hudson as home base. He recently premiered his new recording project, “Terminals,” with John Medeski and SO Percussion at Helsinki Hudson.

Reviewing the Voodoo Orchestra North’s debut in August 2013, local music critic Seth Rogovoy wrote, “From the opening bars, you knew you were in the hands of a master… a scintillating musical journey… [that is] even better than the real thing.”

Musicians who have taken part in the monthly jam sessions include Michael Kammers, Jonathan Talbott, Tony Jarvis, Tony Kieraldo, Ben Senterfit, Marty Ehrlich, Adam Schatz, Josh Colow, Mike Gamble, Baba Buffalo, Marco Benevento, Will Rast, Terence Murren, Dave Dreiwitz, Otto Hauser, and Peter Wise.

Bobby Previte

Bobby Previte

One of the greatest works of the twentieth century, “Bitches Brew” – released in 1970 – changed the entire landscape of not only jazz but rock, funk, soul, and pop as well. Hailed as a masterpiece upon its release, it has proven even more influential in the fullness of time. “The Voodoo Orchestra North starts where ‘Bitches Brew’ left off, and begins anew,” says Previte.

Bobby Previte is a performer/composer whose work explores the nexus between composed and improvised music. A recipient of a 2012 Guggenheim Fellowship for music, Previte is one of the seminal figures of the 1980s New York “Downtown” scene. His music has been labeled as “utterly original” by the New York Times, while the New Yorker says his ensembles “speak in visionary tongues” and the Village Voice calls him “a serious composer with the heart of a roadhouse rocker.”

Previte’s two hundred-plus original compositions have been recorded and released on Sony, Elektra, Rykodisc, Palmetto, New World, Ropeadope, Thirsty Ear, and Tzadik. Leading a plethora of diverse ensembles from his instrument, the drums, he constantly travels the world, presenting his music at clubs, concert halls, and festivals. He has collaborated with many of the leading lights in and beyond the world of music – from master composer John Adams to rock icon Tom Waits to the legendary filmmaker Robert Altman to Lenny Kaye, John Lurie, Elliott Sharp, Wayne Horvitz, Steven Bernstein, Charlie Hunter, Michael Tilson-Thomas and John Zorn.

Previte launched the original Voodoo Orchestra in the Tap Bar of New York City’s famed jazz club the Knitting Factory in 1999. Every Tuesday night, Previte and top jazz improvisers would assemble to play “Bitches Brew” in its entirety. The concept caught on, and Previte took the project to jazz clubs and festival stages around the world.

For reservations in The Restaurant or in the club call 518.828.4800.

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