Hyeseon Hong (pronounced hay-son · hong) – Things Will Pass – Pacific Grove Jazz
As one of the first Korean jazz composers to transplant herself from Seoul to the New York city jazz scene, Hyeseon Hong emerged with her large ensemble performing in now defunct clubs in the East Village. These early experiments in Korean jazz fusion eventually led to the creation of her big band, which has since performed all over NYC from Birdland to the Jazz Gallery. Following the release of her first recording EE YA GI, Things Will Pass highlights the next step in Hong’s compositional evolution. With her deeper dive into the American songbook and theater work, she has also refined her approach to harmonic and rhythmic Korean/western fusion. Her personal reflection and resilience after a major loss, are the main themes of Things Will Pass. Helping Hong craft those evocative sound pictures are some of New York City’s finest musicians who comprise the Jazz Orchestra. They include: tenor saxophonists Perry and Quintin Nachoff; alto, baritone and soprano saxophonists Alejandro Aviles, Andrew Hadro and Ben Kono; David Smith on trumpet and flugelhorn; trombonist Mike Fahie; guitarist Matt Panayides, pianist Broc Hempel and vocalist Aubrey Johnson.