Kurt Ribak Trio
At a Glance
How do you pronounce Ribak? REE-bok, like the shoes
Style: Soulful, eclectic, and accessible original jazz.
Instrumentation: Piano/keyboards, upright bass,
drums
UPCOMING GIG:
The Kurt Ribak Trio will celebrate the release of their third CD, "gone" at Yoshi's in San Francisco
on Tuesday, June 30 2009. Press
Release
UPCOMING RADIO:
Kurt will be interviewed by Alisa Clancy on KCSM-FM 91.1 at 9 AM
on Wednesday, June 24, 2009. This will be Kurt's fifth appearance
on KCSM-FM.
Venues Kurt Ribak has played:
Festivals
Fillmore Street Jazz Festival, San Francisco Jazz Festival, North Beach
Jazz Festival, Union Street Jazz Festival, Shasta County Blues
Festival, American
Arts Festival, San Anselmo Art & Design Festival, and Yerba Buena
Gardens.
Nightclubs and Restaurants
Yoshi’s, Pearl's, Pres a Vi, Chaya Brasserie, Prima Ristorante,
Enrico’s, Hotel De Anza, Bruno’s, Shanghai 1930, Downtown Restaurant,
Jupiter, Paragon, LJ's
Martini Club and Grille, The Albatross, Freight & Salvage, Club
Deluxe, Café Bastille, Café
Claude, Café de la Presse, Hi-Ball Lounge, Maritime Hall, San
Francisco
Legion of Honor, and many others.
Churches
First United Methodist (Pt. Richmond, CA), Moraga Valley Presbyterian
Church (Moraga, CA), Christian Church of Pacific Grove (Pacific Grove,
CA), and Lafayette United Methodist Church (Lafayette, CA).
Radio Shows
KCSM-FM (San Mateo, CA) Mid-Day Jazz, West Coast Live (KALW-FM, San
Francisco, CA), KCSM Desert Island Jazz, KRKD (Oakland, CA) and others.
Gig info: http://www.ribak.com/gigs.html
CD info
Our first CD, "Kurt Ribak Trio" is now back in print, having sold
out its inital run. Our second CD, "more" has almost sold out its
inital run. Our third CD, "gone" has just been released. You can
hear
samples of them and purchase them at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/kurtribaktrio
.
You can also purchase the
CDs at http://www.afm6.org/cdstore.htm
and at amazon.com. They are
available for download at emusic.com, iTunes, and other major download
sites. You can also buy
the CDs at Groove Yard, 5555 Claremont Avenue Oakland, CA 94618 and at
Down Home Music, 10341 San Pablo Avenue, El Cerrito, CA 94530.
Contact: Kurt
Ribak
Phone: 510-703-7035
e-mail: kurt@ribak.com
fax: 510-528-4774
postal mail:
P.O. Box 8045,
Berkeley, CA 94707-8045
BIOGRAPHY

Who’s Kurt Ribak?
Kurt Ribak (pronounced REE-bok, like the shoes) grew up in Berkeley, CA. Early musical experiences included singing in the San Francisco Boys Chorus and studying 'cello. While a student at UC Berkeley Kurt began playing electric bass, buying his first good bass with money made working as a janitor. At Cal he continued to play classical music and studied jazz while playing in the UC Jazz Ensembles, where he met and first played with pianist Greg Sankovich. Kurt also studied West African drumming with C.K. Ladzekpo and spent summers teaching at Cazadero Music Camp, where he played with trombonist Julian Priester, guitarist / composer Paul Dresher, and steel drummer Andy Narell, as well as working in the local early music scene.
Kurt subsequently earned a scholarship to Berklee College of Music, after a bout with tendinitis. He graduated with top honors, studying bass with Whit Browne, Bruce Gertz, and John Repucci. Kurt spent many hours transcribing and absorbing the styles of bassists Paul Chambers, Ray Brown, and Charles Mingus, but also spent hours dissecting the compositions and arrangements of African bandleader Fela Kuti and R&B giant James Brown.
Kurt first learned of his love of composition while at Berklee College of Music. His early tunes often reflected a strong Thelonious Monk influence, while others reflect his love of the great bassists/composer/bandleader Charles Mingus, whose music he studied intensively at Berklee. Later tunes bring to mind the South African composer Abdullah Ibrahim a.k.a. Dollar Brand, Horace Silver, Lee Morgan, and Cannonball Adderley.
After graduation from Berklee Kurt returned to the San Francisco Bay
area.
Drummer Bryan Melvin, formerly with the great electric bassist Jaco
Pastorius,
said Kurt plays bass "the way it should be played." R&B legend
Johnny
Otis sought him out to say Kurt’s playing reminded Otis of the late
bassist
Curtis Counce, a favorite sideman of Otis.
In 2001 Kurt started his own group, the Kurt Ribak Trio, which has
been his
primary musical focus. In 2003 he re-connected with UC Jazz
Ensembles
bandmate Greg Sankovich, the trio’s pianist. The Kurt Ribak Trio
features
Kurt’s own compositions but includes select jazz standards and
under-appreciated
tunes from the Great American Songbook.
The Kurt Ribak Trio has two CDs out, "Kurt Ribak Trio," and "more."
Both CDs feature
Kurt's compositions. The CDs have proven popular
in Japan, where Disk Union and GATS
Productions Ltd. are distributing the CDs. The track
"Pseudoafrocubanismo" from
"Kurt Ribak Trio" was licensed for inclusion
in the Japanese LP and CD release "Jazz Bar 2007, "
and the track "Prima" appeared
on "Jazz Bar 2008." The
releases enjoy regular
airplay on KCSM-FM and steady sales in both the US and in Japan.
A
third Kurt Ribak Trio CD, "gone," has just been
released. The CD release party will be held at Yoshi's in San
Francisco Tuesday, June 30.
Greg Sankovich
GREG SANKOVICH, piano, organ and
keyboards was
born in 1960
and was raised in the East Bay area of San Francisco. After showing
attraction to piano as a child, he began his keyboard journey with
classical training from age 6. His parents' interest in dance and
popular music inspired Greg's feel for music that moves people, so his
inclination from an early age was towards rhythmically-oriented music.
He went on to study with the finest jazz and latin pianists and
educators in the San Francisco area including Al Zulaica, Mark Levine,
and Art Lande. From 13 years old Greg was busy in the SF bay area with
local jazz, club and dance bands, and was an active member of the UC
Berkeley Jazz Ensembles, highlighted by concert tours in Japan and
Europe.
After graduation, Greg moved to Tokyo where he lived for over ten
years, performing with a long list of top Japanese artists. Greg has
contributed his sound to an eclectic range of musical talent from jazz
to R&B, hiphop to pop. He has performed and recorded music on over
25 record labels, and has produced music for TV, radio, and film.
Currently, Greg performs regularly in the SF Bay Area with his 6+ year
jazz-funk project Times 4 who are
working on their third cd release, bassist Kurt Ribak's jazz groups, an
R&B buddy band since his teens the Blue
Sky Band, and many other musically diverse freelance
projects.
MATT WILLIS, drums was born in Detroit in the late 50's and has made California and Hawaii his home since the late 1970's. Extremely versatile in all musical styles with a dynamic groove and easygoing nature, he performs throughout northern California with top musicians including world-renowned steel drum artist Jeff Narell, guitarist Ray Obeido, and jazz composer/ bassist Kurt Ribak among many others. Past credits include Hawaiian artists such as Henry Kaleialoha Allen, Loyal Garner and Melveen Leed plus American oldies acts the Shirelles, Drifters and Coasters. Matt is expert in Brazilian and Caribean rhythms as a result of years playing with Jeff Narrell and Batucaje. Matt currently resides with his wife and children in the Bay Area.


Tim Solook
Tim Solook is a working drummer whose talent to adapt to a variety of musical styles is always in demand. Born and raised in New Jersey, Tim studied music in Philadelphia and New York City, receiving his BM degree from the Manhattan School of Music.
While studying at MSM, Tim took private instruction from jazz drumming great Joe Morello and vibist David Friedman. Upon graduating, Tim studied vibes with Caribbean Jazz Project's Dave Samuels. Collectively these associations have molded a solid musical foundation for Tim's style.
Over the last 25 years, Tim has performed everywhere from the Newport Jazz Festival, Saratoga, NY, Continental Arena, Rutherford, NJ, and the Roxy in Los Angeles to the Jazz Keller in Frankfurt, Germany. He has recorded five nationally distributed CDs with Houston jazz pianist Joe LoCascio.
While living in Houston, Tim performed with celebrated jazz musicians Freddie Hubbard, Kirk Whalum, Herb Ellis, Charlie Byrd, Emily Remler, Dave Leibman, Roseanna Vitro, Monty Alexander, Tim Hagans and Randy Brecker. From 1996 to 2002, Tim held the position of percussion instructor at Houston Community College, working with private drum students and the percussion ensemble for five years.
Currently residing in San Jose, CA, Tim continues to teach, compose, record, and perform extensively throughout the Bay Area. His first CD as a leader called "ABILITY" was just released on the Sol Time record label.
Drummer Tim Solook played with the Kurt Ribak Trio from 2003 until December 2006, when he returned to Houston in search of more work and affordable housing. He appeared on the Kurt Ribak Trio's debut recording, "Kurt Ribak Trio."