Chris Dingman: "Airtight Logic"

It's true that Chris Dingman conveys "the picture of accommodation and restraint," to borrow words from The New York Times. Yes, he's adaptable, as evidenced by his lengthy list of employers, which includes Steve Lehman, Ambrose Akinmusire, Gerald Clayton, Anthony Braxton, and numerous others. But Chris is also "dazzling" in the limelight; his "fondness for airtight logic and burnished lyricism" has been recognized by the DownBeat Critics' poll (Rising Star Vibraphonist of the Year), the Jazz Journalist Association (Up-and-Coming Artist of the Year nominee), and NPR (Piano Jazz: Rising Stars).Chris was raised in San Jose, California, and studied music at both Wesleyan University and the Thelonious Monk Institute, as well as abroad in Kerala, India. In 2007, he moved to New York, and quickly found himself in demand in a breadth of situations. The vibraphonist’s self-released debut album, aptly titled Waking Dreams, has been described as ”gorgeous” (Time Out New York), “brilliant” (All About Jazz), and “deeply lyrical” (New York Times). “The thing that happens to me most, actually, is [that] fragments or pieces or repeating pieces of music are ringing in my head as I’m dreaming, and often during the waking hours,” explains Chris during an interview with NPR. “And on occasion, I have woken up with these fragments in my head and written them down.”On Saturday, Chris makes his first appearance on our new stage (1160 Broadway, 5th floor) with a brand new group called Soundscapes, which features the guitarist Ryan Ferreira and the cellist Okkyung Lee.Read our 2012 interview with Chris, and listen to him on NPR's Piano Jazz: Rising Stars.