- Genre :: Jazz
- Listen :: Earthling | Diamond in the Rough | Brick by Brick
- View :: Band Website
- download :: HiRes Image
Nasar Abadey and SUPERNOVA (Washington, D.C.) performs jazz in a multi-dimensional and multi-directional way—from crossing the borders of jazz and continuing beyond space and time. Nasar Abadey and SUPERNOVA perform and explore various jazz elements such as traditional African rhythms, bebop, fusion, Afro-Cuban, Afro Brazilian, and free form. Since the band was formed in 1979, it has sought opportunities for a wider, freer expression of music. The quartet’s musical inspirations include John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Wayne Shorter, and Duke Ellington. Nasar Abadey and SUPERNOVA see touring as an opportunity to engage in dialogue about jazz music, the elements particular to the genre, its history, and the mixture of cultures that contributed to the creation of jazz as an art form.
Nasar Abadey (drums) began playing drums at age five and received his first drum set at age 16. Inspired by Tony Williams, Max Roach, and Roy Haynes, this Maryland native creates jazz music steeped in modal, free form, fusion, and avant-garde styles pioneered in the 1960s and 1970s. His personal style is explosive, intriguing, and melodic. He has worked with Sonny Fortune, Dizzy Gillespie, and others. Abadey released his debut recording, Mirage, in 2000 (Amosaya Record), and is planning a follow-up release in 2010. Abadey has toured Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean. He is Professor of Jazz Percussion at Peabody Conservatory of Music, teaches privately, and runs workshops in Washington, D.C. and its neighboring public schools. Abadey attended Howard University and the University of the District of Columbia.
Bobby Butta (piano) is a hard-hitting, powerful, mainstream jazz pianist who plays high-energy modal jazz. He began playing a Hammond-F 100 organ at age six, and started his professional career playing in night clubs at age 14. Butta is skilled in the acoustic piano, Hammond B-3 organ, electric keyboard, and synthesizer. Butta has recorded three albums with Inside Out, Bob Butta Trio, and Fab Trio, and has worked and recorded with artists such as Gary Bartz, Billy Hart and Frank Morgan, among others. His musical influences include McCoy Tyner, Bud Powell, Herbie Hancock, and Cedar Walton.
Joe Ford (saxophone) ) is a passionate saxophonist who began playing in 1958 while in elementary school in Buffalo, New York. His melodious, humorous, dark and insightful style reflects the broad spectrum of the American experience, and ranges from spirituals, country, and rural blues to contemporary musical concepts and avant-garde jazz. Ford is classically trained and his influences include Sidney Bechet, John Coltrane, and Sonny Rollins. He has worked with musicians such as Frank Foster, McCoy Tyner, and the Fort Apache Band. His original post-bop tunes can be found on his album Today’s Nights. Ford received his Bachelor of Science in music education at Central State University, Wilberforce, Ohio.
James King (bass) began playing bass at age 17. He builds his music on the foundation of the traditional jazz bassists of the past, immersed in many variations of today’s modern sounds and concepts. Originally from Texas, now a Maryland resident, King has been influenced by both jazz greats and his contemporaries. He has worked with Elvin Jones, Gary Bartz, and Stanley Turrentine, and has released an album titled Allen's Odyssey. King attended Hampton University and the University of the District of Columbia.
