by Andrea Canter

Chris Thomson © Andrea Canter

Thomson describes the ensemble as “a modern jazz quartet playing music as influenced by the sounds of new music of any style and genre as it is by the great jazz heritage of the past.  All four musicians have a unique and inspired approach to playing songs as well as improvising.” For this performance, Bells and Whistles features a Midwest collaboration of Thomson on saxes, Bryan Nichols on piano, and Chicago-based musicians Kurt Schweitz on bass and Andre Beasley on drums.

Chris Thomson studied classical and jazz music, and began composing and leading his own bands during the short-lived run of the Brilliant Corners club in St. Paul. Turning to more adventurous use of electronics a few years ago when a bike accident temporarily restricted his ability to use his saxophone, Thomson began investigating “new sonic territory” via his laptop, and has been more seriously “delving into the infinitely deep and ever-changing world of computer music, finding new influences in the various styles of electronic music that friends have been exposing me to.” Recently Chris has been recording and/or performing with many of the Twin Cities most creative artists, including J.T. and Chris Bates, Anthony Cox, Dean Magraw, the Chris Morrissey Quartet, Dave King, Spaghetti Western String Co., Dosh, Jay Epstein, Bryan Nichols, Tanner Taylor, Michael Lewis, Adam Linz, Alden Ikeda, Tim Glenn, Greg Schutte, Adam Levy, Kelly Rossum, Yawo Attivor, and many others. His music can be heard regularly Cafe Maude, the Kitty Cat Klub, and as curator of the iQuit Music Series at the Rogue Buddha Gallery in NE Minneapolis. In addition to Bells and Whistles, he performs with the Enormous Quartet, Shovel and the Jazz Is Now! Nownet, and in a solo laptop and AV show.