--=[ Will Bernard ]=--

Will Bernard - Party Hats [2007]

An alumnus of the jazz studies program at Berkeley High School that included Peter Apfelbaum, Josh Redman, Charlie Hunter, Craig Handy and Steven Bernstein and Lenny Pickett, Bay Area guitarist/composer Will Bernard first began playing and recording on an international level during his membership in Peter Apfelbaum's Hieroglyphics Ensemble, whose first recording was on Don Cherry's "MultiKulti" (A&M 1989). Since then Will has been involved with a host of boundary stretching groups, ranging from jazz, hip hop and world music to experimental music, with many stops in between. He has performed and recorded with Jai Uttal and the Pagan Love Orchestra, Peter Apfelbaum's various band incarnations, Beth Custer, The Coup, and Pothole to name a few.

More recently Will has been seriously expanding his musical associates and has been working with a range of musicians that include Robert Walter, Stanton Moore, Dr Lonnie Smith, Idris Muhammad, Adam Deitch, Zigaboo Modeliste, and John Medeski. Between 2002 and 2005 he toured extensively in the US with Robert Walter's 20th Congress.

The 11 tracks on his latest, "Party Hats", are decidedly more digestible.The sound is an intriguing blend of acid jazz, soul and even a little afrobeat.Bernard's tricky jazz chops shine over the catchy, laid-back arrangements.


*Another Great Post From The Mich50 Collection *

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