Fieldwork

FIELDWORK is a collective of three widely celebrated composer-performers: pianist Vijay Iyer, saxophonist Steve Lehman (formerly Aaron Stewart), and drummer Tyshawn Sorey (formerly Elliot Humberto Kavee). Fieldwork’s music reflects each member’s ties to the American jazz tradition, modern composition, African and South Asian musics, underground hip-hop and electronica, and the influential music of Chicago’s A.A.C.M.. Fieldwork’s intensely collaborative rehearsal process resembles that of a rock band: they use group improvisation to develop and expand their intricate compositions into something larger than the sum of its parts. The result is a dense yet visceral musical world — tightly unified ensemble playing, extroverted and high-impact, but with a mysterious inner logic.

“Highly emotional, cutting edge and accessible, Fieldworks music mixes varied densities, changing meters and musical clusters piled over one another.”
-Irwin Block, The Montreal Gazette

“Fieldwork’s rhythmic logic can be immensely involved, but the results are disarmingly concise. The music is also rich in paradox: dark yet uplifting, intellectually demanding yet effortlessly funky.”
-David Adler, JazzTimes

“Together, they create intensely rhythmic music that combines jazz ingenuity, rock velocity and World Music savvy. Their visceral compositions constantly blur the lines between improvised flights of fancy and expertly calibrated arrangements…. The result is a heady, punchy outing that could serve as a template for daring, forwardlooking musicians everywhere.”
-George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune