Kakalla

Kakalla is a group dedicated to the fusion of jazz improvisation with chamber music, rock, the avant-garde, Balkan folk music, tango, and other ethnic influences. Based in the Boston area, their recording The Voice of Blood was released in March 2001. The group performs all original material written by leader and bassist Thomson Kneeland, with a view to combining intricate composition with the freedom of individual and collective improvisation.

Kakalla has performed throughout the eastern U.S. and is steadily expanding their geographical scope. Kakalla has been selected by the Massachusetts Cultural Council to be on the New England Touring Roster.

About the Music: Kneeland cites specific influences such as traditional and modern Bulgarian music, Greek rembetika, Albanian folk music, rock, and the avant-garde as being essential to the group's musical aesthetic. Kneeland's works also draw aesthetic and compositional inspiration from the music of Lou Harrison, Bach, Shostakovich, Vasks, Bartok, Piazzolla, Messiaen, Takemitsu, and Kenny Wheeler. The goal is not to authenticate or reproduce a musical tradition, but to interpret and fuse seemingly disparate traditions into a single "folk" music. —Courtesy Calabash Music