Bobby Previte

Albums from the closing years of the 1980s positioned Bobby Previte among the select group of jazz drummers recognized equally for their compositional skills, a distinction shared with Jack DeJohnette, Bob Moses, and a few others. Previte’s work as bandleader, sideman, composer, and arranger took him beyond jazz conventions, incorporating elements of modern composition, heavy metal, funk, free improvisation, and additional styles.

In 1973 he earned a B.A. in music at the University of Buffalo after studying percussion under Jan Williams. Relocating to New York City in 1979 allowed him to work alongside figures central to establishing the downtown scene. Bump the Renaissance marked his debut as a leader in 1987, with Pushing the Envelope appearing the same year and Claude’s Late Morning following in 1988; Gramavision issued the final pair. Positive critical response solidified his standing as a particularly forward-thinking jazz composer.

Subsequent projects found Previte writing for ensembles such as the new music group Relache and creating his Music of the Moscow Circus recording. Throughout the 1990s his ensembles encompassed Empty Suits, Weather Clear, Track Fast, Latin for Travelers, and the Horse, an eleven-piece unit interpreting material from Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew era. He has overseen a pair of albums by accordionist Guy Klucevsek, issued a solo electronic music collection, and took an acting role in Robert Altman’s Short Cuts.

Joining keyboardist Jamie Saft and bassist Steve Swallow in the New Standards trio during 2014 led to their self-titled debut on RareNoise that May. Cantaloupe then presented Terminals, a lengthy composition realized by Previte together with So Percussion, Zeena Parkins, Greg Osby, Nels Cline, and John Medeski. Mass arrived in 2016 via RareNoise as a modernist post-metal interpretation of 15th century composer Guillaume Dufay’s Missa Sancti Jacobi. For this project the drummer recruited Marco Benevento on cathedral pipe organ, the eleven-voice Rose Ensemble chorale under Jordan Sramek’s direction, electric guitarists Stephen O’Malley, Jamie Saft, Don McGreevy, and Mike Gamble, plus Reed Mathis on bass, with the album appearing in November.

The New Standards trio returned the next year with Loneliness Road on RareNoise, incorporating vocals by Iggy Pop on certain tracks. Terminal Quartets emerged on Cantaloupe as another installment in the Terminals series, while Rhapsody, issued out of sequence on RareNoise and reflecting Previte’s reflections on travel, featured pianist John Medeski, harpist Zeena Parkins, saxophonist Fabian Rucker, guitarist Nels Cline, and Jen Shyu contributing vocals, piano, and erhu; Previte performed on trap kit along with additional percussion, guitar, harmonica, and autoharp, the release occurring in February 2018.