“Trickster Tales” featuring John Gunther and the Carpe Diem String Quartet Saxophonist and composer John Gunther collaborates with the renowned CDSQ celebrating the joy and breadth that happens in music when like minded artists get together to have fun and make beautiful music. “I wanted to draw from the wonderful artistry that Charles, Amy, Korine, and Carol possess and bring in my own voice as an improviser.” The “Trickster” title refers to Gunther’s setting of a West African folk tale as well as arrangements of the genius Thelonious Monk who himself had a trickster persona. "Anansi and the Sky God" for saxophone and string quartet. The title of the composition comes from the West African folk tale of the trickster spider “Anansi” and his adventures with the Sky God. The piece is in six movements with each movement highlighting both a character in the folktale and a specific African musical instrument or music tradition. The work incorporates non-traditional elements of composition for the string quartet including improvisation and extended instrumental techniques. I. Anansi goes to Nyame the Sky-God and asks the price for all the stories in the world. (Isicathamiya) II. Onini the Python (Kora) III. Mboro the Hornet (Fiddling of Dagbon) IV. Mmoatia the bad-tempered Fairy (Mbiri) V. Osebo the Leopard (Gahu drumming) VI. Anansi delivers his captors to Nyame & is made god of all stories Also featured on the recording are arrangements of the music of Thelonious Monk including “Monk’s Mood”, “Crepuscule with Nellie”, and “Think of One.” John Gunther "...a fluent compose-performer who is redefining mainstream Jazz." Cadence John Gunther is a composer and multi-instrumentalist playing Saxophones, Clarinet, and Flute. With a restless musical spirit, he explores all forms of jazz from traditional to avant-garde as well as classical music, world music and experimental electronic music. He has performed on stages throughout the U.S., South America and Europe, in Carnegie Hall, in the middle of the ocean, and on the back of a truck. He has performed or recorded with jazz greats Dave Douglas, Ron Miles, Christian McBride, The Woody Herman Orchestra, and The Maria Schneider Orchestra as well as guest appearances with the Sinfonietta Paris Chamber Orchestra and the Banda Nacional de Cartago in Costa Rica. As part of New York city's "downtown" music scene for many years, he produced five recordings for Creative Improvised Music Projects (CIMP) and is co-founder of the contemporary jazz ensembles, "Spooky Actions" and "Convergence." John is an Associate Professor and director of the Thompson Jazz Studies Program at the University of Colorado Boulder. In 2007 he founded the Boulder Laptop Orchestra [BLOrk] to explore the intersection of music, performance, art, and technology. Carpe Diem String Quartet Charles Wetherbee – violin; Amy Galluzzo – violin, Korine Fujiwara – viola; Carol Ou - cello One of the most unique and sought-after chamber ensembles on the concert stage today, the Carpe Diem String Quartet performed over 90 concerts in 33 states across the USA in the 2011-12 season, most recently playing for an audience of over 4000 at the Redlands Bowl in southern California. Carpe Diem is a boundary-breaking ensemble that has earned widespread critical and audience acclaim for its innovative programming and electrifying performances. With programming that reflects its passions for Gypsy, tango, folk, pop, rock, and jazz-inspired music alongside the traditional string quartet repertoire, Carpe Diem has defied easy classification while quickly becoming one of America’s premier “indie” string quartets.