ton trio.
The Oakland based Ton Trio is made up of Aram Shelton on alto saxophone and bass clarinet, Kurt Kotheimer on bass, and Sam Ospovat on drums. All three found their way to the San Francisco area after a time in the midwest, and each became active playing creative music shortly after their arrival. After playing separately in different contexts, Ton Trio formed in the summer of 2007.
The composed music of Ton Trio is written by Shelton, some pieces using melodic and rhythmic material in a traditional head format while in others the parts are interchangeable and can be explored extensively by each player, with parts being rearranged simultaneously to create new harmonic relationships. The music covers a lot of ground from compositional rearrangement to high-energy freedom.
Ton Trio's first album "The Way" is now available directly through Singlespeed Music.
It's also available as a download through the iTunes music store
Kotheimer and Ospovat push “One Last Thing” with a driving, pulsing beat that moves in flux, stretching the rhythm allowing Shelton’s alto free rein to skim effortlessly above - Cadence
Shelton, Kotheimer and Ospovat comprise a trio of utmost conviction. - Paris Transatlantic
The opening "The Way" recalls early Ornette Coleman with Shelton and Ospovat playing the simple melody repeatedly until the song opens into its improvisational phase. What impresses here is the equality of force—the saxophone, drums and bass share equally in the sound mix. Every minute gesture of Ospovat is heard, and he is equally responsible for the melody. - All About Jazz
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Kurt Kotheimer
Kurt Kotheimer grew up just blocks from the one time home of noted abolitionist John Brown. Kurt began playing the guitar at age eight and in high school he switched to the acoustic bass and began playing jazz. His bass playing is marked by a compositional style, his improvising focused and coherent. While studying music in college he had the privilege of playing with great improvisers such as Jackson Moore, Chris Jonas, and Joe Maneri. He has written for and co-led several ensembles with his longtime collaborator, multi-instrumentalist, Joshua Smith. Most recently, Kurt has been creating computer music that explores microtonality, recursion, and extremely dense polyphony.
Sam Ospovat : Sam on Myspace
Originally from Lincoln, Nebraska, Sam studied music at UC Santa Cruz and Mills College. Currently based in Paris, France, he plays drums/percussion in several San Francisco area bands including Gene Baker's R & B Free Jazz Gospel Supreme 80, Kids and Hearts, Beep, and The Humans. He has recorded for Tzadik, New Albion and Ghostly International among others, and has played with Matt Nelson, Nate Brenner, Eric Vogler, Will Redmond, Lorin Benedict, Michael Coleman, Andrew Conklin, Scott Rosenberg, Quentin Sirjacq, Ches Smith, Leo Smith, Cecil Taylor, Chris Brown, Graham Connah, and Willie Winant.