Michael Formanek

Bassist and composer Michael Formanek has been a major presence on the New York City creative jazz scene since the 1990 release of his debut album as a leader, Wide Open Spaces, on the Enja label. Formanek had already proven himself a skillful sideman in ensembles led by the likes of Freddie Hubbard, Joe Henderson, Dave Liebman, Fred Hersch, and Attila Zollar, but Wide Open Spaces was the first recording that revealed the bassist's ability to write widely varied compositions emphasizing the strong talents of his own ensemble members (in this case saxophonist Greg Osby, violinist Mark Feldman, guitarist Wayne Krantz, and drummer Jeff Hirshfield). In 1992, Enja released Formanek's second recording, Extended Animation, which featured the same bandmembers as Wide Open Spaces except for one important difference: a switch in saxophonist from Osby to Tim Berne.



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