The Wishbone Project CD Release Party at Iridium Jazz Club

The Wishbone Project is a newly formed quintet led by Kat Gang and Nate Mayland, who have discovered in each other the rare gem of inspiration. Kat and Nate have created a distinct sound by exploring the unique blend of the trombone and voice. The similar range and crystal timbre of both allow for either to take the lead while the other complements, or for the two of them launch into fiery harmonized bebop lines. Their songs are lyrical and reminiscent of jazz standards, yet are full of modern elements that life and performance in NYC has infused in them.

Kat Gang has a soul steeped in jazz. Born in Boston she began her music theory training as a teenager at Berklee and then fell in love with the energy of New York City and went on to gain her BFA from NYU. She escaped the Bush administration by seeking asylum in the UK and studying music at the Royal Academy in London. Kat lived and worked singing jazz all over England for seven years. She has performed twice at the GRAMMY Awards with the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, traded fours with Bobby McFerrin at the Blue Note Jazz Festival, and currently is back in New York with a residency at the Plaza Hotel with her quartet. Kat continues to explore the depth of jazz fusion and improvisation with her versatile, extraordinary ear and voice.

A native of Chicago via Madison, Wisconsin, Nate Mayland has been freelancing as a trombonist and composer in NYC since 2001. Sharing the stage and studio with such diverse artists as Bernadette Peters to Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes, from Harry Connick, Jr. to Eddie Santiago, from South Pacific to The Chico O’Farrill Jazz Orchestra, his ear for harmony and melody has been shaped into an edgy yet reverent tool with which he returns to the world all that he has absorbed. He is currently an in-demand performer on trombone, bass trombone and tuba, and is quickly gaining recognition as a creative and knowledgable composer.

Iridium Jazz Club, 1650 Broadway, 212-582-2121

December 20, 2011 at 10pm

$25 music charge