New Haven's Firehouse 12 to Present Step in April 13th

Carlo Morena, piano/composer; Joe Fonda, bass/composer; George Schuller, drums/ composer; with special guest Ilse Pfeifer, voice

On Friday, April 13th, New Haven's Firehouse 12 will present a rare performance by the all-star trio, Step In. The group's current incarnation, with George Schuller joining founding members Joe Fonda and Carlo Morena, will be previewing new music it will record the following day for its upcoming fall release on Konnex Records. This concert will also feature special guest vocalist, Ilse Pfeifer.

“[Fonda's] association with Carlo Morena goes back some considerable time and the two seem in perfect communion on a highly eclectic set," noted The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD in its review of Step In's debut CD, What We're Hearing. One Final Note's John Chacona called the trio's self-titled follow-up “full of relaxed bonhomie and a warm, collaborative spirit," adding, “Musical give-and-take is [the point] and there's a lot of it here to step into."

Step In (a.k.a. Joe Fonda/Carlo Morena/Jeff Hirschfield) was founded 20 years ago by Fonda and Morena, who until recently worked with drummer Jeff Hirschfield as a trio. The group recorded two CDs, What We're Hearing (1994) and Step- In (2000), for Belgium's De Werf label, and most recently toured the Eastern U.S. and Italy last spring. Schuller, a regular collaborator with Fonda in other all-star groups such as Conference Call and the Michael Musillami Trio, joins Step In as a drummer and fellow composer for its next recording and the supporting tour of Italy in November.

About Firehouse 12:

Firehouse 12 is an award-winning bar, state of the art recording studio and unusually intimate music venue located in New Haven's historic Ninth Square District. Its distinctive 75-seat performance space, located inside the recording studio, offers world-class acoustics and unprecedented technical possibilities to both listeners and performers. Many of the most respected names in jazz and creative improvised music have performed at Firehouse 12 since it opened its doors in April 2005.

The local media has called it “one of the region's prime centers for new and improvised music" (Owen McNally, Hartford Courant), noting both its “astutely stylish, updated-classic aesthetic" (Hugh Elton, New Haven Advocate) and its dedicated fan base of “people who bring near-religious reverence to the music, producing an exchange of energy that often fires great performances" (Regina DeAngelo, New Haven Independent).

The Arts Council of Greater New Haven recognized owner/producer/ recording engineer Nick Lloyd with a 2006 Arts Award for his “visionary restoration" of this landmark firehouse building, which also earned the architects, Gray Organschi Architecture, a 2006 Design Award in the preservation category from Connecticut's chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

In 2007, Firehouse 12 founded its own label, Firehouse 12 Records, with the intention of releasing a mix of physical and digital-only recordings, including music recorded live during recent performances. Its first new releases, the Anthony Braxton 12+1tet's 9 Compositions (Iridium) 2006 and the Taylor Ho Bynum Sextet's The Middle Picture, will be released April 3rd.

Spring 2007 Spring Jazz Series schedule:

03/16 :: Steve Davis Quintet featuring Mike DiRubbo
03/23 :: Frank Kimbrough Trio
03/30 :: Ullmann/Swell 4tet featuring Barry Altschul
04/06 :: Wallace Roney Sextet
04/13 :: Step In: Joe Fonda/Carlo Morena/George Schuller
04/20 :: Taylor Ho Bynum Trio
04/27 :: Matt Wilson's Arts and Crafts
05/04 :: Tyshawn Sorey Quartet
05/11 :: David Weiss and Point of Departure
05/18 :: Rudresh Mahanthappa Quartet
05/25 :: Kris Davis Quartet
06/02 :: Andy Milne & Dapp Theory
06/08 :: Adam Birnbaum Trio