Erik Van Dam - Saxophones
Tatiana Castro Mejía - Piano
Evan Palmer - Bass and double reeds
This Music (TM) Series is a Boston musician’s initiative to recognize the creativity of many who haven’t been given the stage as leaders, often younger than the Jazz scene veterans; those with acknowledgement who can create a new project and musical ideas; and the unsung “gems” who aren’t in the public’ eye and deserve to be. The emphasis is on the freer forms, the adventurous (to help find a “home”).
John Dalton is a Boston based musician, composer, and educator. As a graduate of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, he received a diverse musical education, especially in his studies with Chris Poudrier and Jim Robitaille. while there, he developed fluency in a variety of styles as both an improvising musician and composer.
As a performer, John has been featured in a variety of settings, and both a sideman and leader. He was a featured performer at the New Bedford Jazz Festival, and an ensemble member at the Portuguese Music Awards.
He has performed or shared the bill with artists such as Jim Robitaille, Jing Wang, Dino Govoni, Amanda Monaco, Barry Altschul, Ricky Ford, Jerome Harris, Stefano Battaglia, Kaya Meller, Kamil Piotrowicz, Anastassiya Petrova, and Royal Hartigan.
John has also received grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Medford Arts Council, and the Somerville Arts Council, for work with his modular ensemble Spheres of Influence. He is a passionate educator, teaching at various studios in the greater Boston area. He is also a published scholar in journals such as The Peer Review.
John also leads the group Spheres of influence, which is a modular ensemble that performs original compositions, standards, as well as arrangements of well known repertoire. The group size is flexible, but it is most often operates as a trio, quartet, or quintet. The group has played at various concerts and occasions in the greater Boston area.
Music instructor at Bosse school of Music and Morningside Music Studio
Jon Garelick, Boston Globe
He brings technical excellence, musical sense, dynamics, and heartfelt soul to his playing, making him a valued asset for any music making enterprise in the current overly commercialized music scene… a high level percussionist… his positive impulse for originality in his art.
Erik Van Dam: Master of the bari, tenor, alto, and soprano saxophones. Having studied with the highly acclaimed Joe Lovano and later George Garzone, Erik has gone on to draw inspiration from many influences
Pianist and composer Tatiana Castro Mejía was born in Colombia. In 2004, she earned a scholarship to study with Ernesto Jodos and Rodrigo Domínguez. She played in Mair, Tekeye, Bogotaires and Proyecto de Música Contemporánea. She released Ciclos, her first album. She co-directs a music and dance collective improvisation project with dancer Aleema Curri. She leads a quintet that plays the music of Eric Dolphy.
Now residing and performing in Boston part of the Creative Improv Jazz/New Music scene!
Evan Palmer (they/he) is an improviser, bassist, multi-instrumentalist, composer and educator based in Boston, Massachusetts. They specialize in avant-garde and improvised music.
Raised in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, Palmer moved to Boston in 2018 to attend Berklee College of Music, where they studied with John Lockwood, Francisco Mela, Bob Gullotti, Bruce Gertz, Bruno Räberg, and Linda May Han Oh. They graduated in 2022 with a Bachelor of Music in Bass Performance.
