Ben Ferris Trio

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Behind the Beat, 4-6 pm Fridays. Free.

Ben Ferris is a bassist, composer and educator from Madison. Ben performs regularly in the Midwest, especially with the Ben Ferris Trio, a creative music ensemble that focuses on new compositions by musicians in the band. His group the Ben Ferris Quintet released their debut album, “Home” in 2016 featuring original compositions by Ben and other members of the ensemble. He also leads the Ben Ferris Octet, a group that plays a diverse selection of jazz repertoire. Ben competed as a finalist in the 2017 International Society of Bassists Jazz Performance competition.

Ben is a founding member of “Mr Chair,” a contemporary ensemble of keyboard (Jason Kutz), percussion (Mike Koszewski) and electronic upright bass. As a sideman Ben performs with Darren Sterud, Nuggernaut (jazz-funk), The Jon Hoel Trio (original compositions with saxophone led trio), Gabe Burdulis Band (Nashville based original pop/rock music), as well as a number of performances in the classical, jazz, rock and contemporary music scenes.

A student of NEA Jazz Master Richard Davis, he graduated with a music-education degree from UW-Madison. He recently completed a Masters Degree in String Performance with Peter Dominguez at UW-Madison where he is currently pursuing a DMA in String Performance. Ben is the project assistant for the "Bridge Ensemble," a combined string quartet and jazz quartet that travels to do clinics and performances in public schools.

As an educator, Ben teaches a studio of private bass students, and has taught K-12 general music, songwriting, strings and jazz ensembles in public schools for seven years. He is on the board of directors and faculty for the Richard Davis Foundation for Young Bassists. More info can be found on his website, www.bferrisbass.com.