Grant Wallace Band

Grant Wallace Band, Thomas Snydacker, and Ben Roidl-Ward perform at Narloch Piano Studio.

Suggested Donation: $10

Grant Wallace Band is a trio of composer-performers weaving a diaphanous sound from threads of new music, modern jazz, and old-time folk styles. Composing through a uniquely collaborative process, Ben Hjertmann (voice/mandolin), Chris Fisher-Lochhead (viola), and Luke Gullickson (piano/guitar) also draw inspiration from outsider artists including the band’s namesake. 2015 saw the release of the band’s debut album Axle of the World (with Rabbit) and the EP Four Songs, both on the Two Labyrinths label.
http://www.grantwallaceband.com/

Thomas Snydacker is a saxophonist and educator currently based in Chicago. He has appeared as an orchestral musician with ensembles including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, and the New World Symphony where he has worked under the direction of such luminaries as John Adams, Leonard Slatkin, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Marin Alsop. As a strong advocate for new music, he has a substantial list of premieres to his credit, including works by a pair of Rome Prize winners, Roger Boutry and John Anthony Lennon. Aside from his work with various orchestras; his saxophone quartet, the Estrella Consort; and as a soloist, Snydacker has performed with such notable new music ensembles as the Fulcrum Point New Music Ensemble, a.pe.ri.od.ic, and Mocrep. Snydacker is currently the instructor of saxophone at the Merit School of Music in Chicago. He has previously served on the faculty of Northwestern University as an instructor, teaching in the general music curriculum, coaching saxophone quartets, and directing the Northwestern University Saxophone Ensemble. He is currently in the final stages of a doctoral degree at Northwestern University. He also holds degrees from Arizona State University and the University of Minnesota, where he studied with Eugene Rousseau.
http://www.tsnydacker.com/

Ben Roidl-Ward is a bassoonist and improviser currently pursuing a Master’s degree at Rice University. A recent graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory, Ben has toured with Oberlin’s Orchestra and Contemporary Music Ensemble, and recently presented all-new works for string trio and winds on tour with the string trio Chartreuse. He has performed at the Kennedy Center and as the Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings’ Young Ensemble-in-Residence with his Reed Trio, Third Rail. As a soloist, Ben has been featured with the Seattle Symphony and the Oberlin Contemporary Music Ensemble. Currently a student of Ben Kamins, he previously studied with Francine Peterson and George Sakakeeny.