J.S. Bach, Mozart, Alvin Fielder, Skryabin, Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Jesus, Thom York, Bill Evans, Keith Jarrett, Arvo Part, Lennie Tristano, Philip Glass, Esbjorn Svenson Trio, Brad Mehldau, Steve Reich, Squarepusher, music, Radiohead, Birth, Jason Moran, Rachmaninoff, Mark Turner, James Booker, Professer Longhair, John Cage, Jason Marsalis, and Wayne Shorter.
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BBC 30 min. documentary feature. BBC FEATURE)
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WATIV
WATIV is William A Thompson IV. A jazz pianist and composer who is most known for releasing the alblum "Baghdad Music Journal" while serving in Iraq as Army Counter Intelligence Agent, Will grew up in Mississippi and Louisiana where he was steeped in music. Most notability jazz music, as to follow a family tradition. However, this roots music has lead him to much sound art that need not be classified, a current example is the record Baghdad-Music-Journal-(recorded and released while William was serving in Iraq and currently available on itunes). William currently lives in Jackson, ms where he continues to perform write and seek harmony.
WATIV is also a band. With a deep rooted heritage in the improvised music of New Orleans, band mates William A Thompson IV, Milton Villarrubia III and Matthew Golombisky originally united as a jazz piano trio that had no fear of exploring sounds not commonly associated with jazz. Villarrubia’s fiery intensity on drum set, Golombisky’s passionate melodically driven bass and Thompson introspective piano voice could only have been augmented by the oud/percussion playing of Jeremy Bleich. This band’s intensity, whether it be an explosion of sound or slow movements of color, can only be described as true, with abundant resources to draw from.
Iraq: William was there as an interrogator and counter Intelligence Agent with the US Army, subject to a "back door draft" known as stop-loss. While there he distinguished himself as the first artist in the history of music to release a body of work while still in a combat zone. The result is an album known as "Baghdad Music Journal.
WATIV Ensemble: Reunited after Katrina and Iraq, the WATIV Ensemble has begun to perform and speak on current issues for intrigued audiences abroad. Formerly at Piano trio featuring Milton Villarrubia on drums and Matthew Golombisky on Bass, the band has been joined by Oudist Jeremy Bleich, uniting the traditions of New Orleans Jazz, Jewish music, Arabic sounds, and live laptop performance. The ensemble feels it important to take the facts about Iraq, Katrina, Arab/Israeli issues, and force the American public to deal with truth.
The Story: The complexity of this story is impossible over to stress. One thing is for sure. There is a wealth of rich, interesting and important information in this story, which can be presented in a very personal way.
WATIV Baghdad Music Journal, which was recently released by the High Mayhem label of Santa Fe, NM.
'tis good to exist...with new friends. Good to meet you...we shall play soon. that song I couldn't remember----"At A Loss"...I'll get it to you if you want. Peace, J
