Ken Filiano

Active since the early '80s, bassist Ken Filiano has since contributed to dozens of albums, most of them pertaining to creative jazz -- from post-bop to free improvisation. Despite his commanding level of activity, he has arguably yet to meet the recognition he deserves from the jazz press. Based in Brooklyn, Filiano keeps strong ties with the West Coast. He has recorded for Nine Winds, CIMP, Knitting Factory, and Clean Feed, among other labels. One of Filiano's first regular partners was saxophonist Steve Adams, with whom he started playing in 1980. Formative years took him through classical and jazz repertoires, which allowed him to develop formidable technique. His participation in Richard Grossman's 1989 LP In the Air brought him the first shards of critical acclaim. At the onset of the 1990s he began to appear alongside Vinny Golia and Rob Blakeslee. A member of the Aardvark Orchestra, he has also performed with Bertram Turetzky, Barre Phillips, Joëlle Léandre, Bobby Bradford, Rova Saxophone Quartet, and Paul Smoker, with whom he recorded regularly until the trumpeter's death in 2016. An educator, the bassist has taught at the University of New Mexico (Albuquerque), New York State University (Buffalo), UCLA, and Rutgers University. In 2002 Filiano finally released his first solo album, titled Subvenire. The November 2010 release Dreams from a Clown Car marked the recording debut of Filiano's Quantum Entanglements quartet, featuring saxophonists Tony Malaby and Michaël Attias and drummer Michael T.A. Thompson. He then joined Roswell Rudd for Embrace, which saw release in November 2017, a month before the trombonist passed away. ~ François Couture, Rovi