Ars Nova Workshop presents three true giants of improvised music — bassist William Parker, pianist Cooper-Moore, and drummer/percussionist Hamid Drake — in a performance by William Parker’s Heart Trio at Philadelphia’s Painted Bride Art Center, Friday, September 23, 2022.

About the Artists

The legendary William Parker has been heralded by The Village Voice as “the most consistently brilliant free jazz bassist of all time.” Throughout his career he has performed with Cecil Taylor, Don Cherry, Milford Graves, Matthew Shipp, Derek Bailey, Peter Brötzmann, and David S. Ware, among countless others.

An idiosyncratic pianist, composer, and builder of unique instruments, Cooper-Moore has been a singular voice in the New York improvised music world since his arrival from Virginia nearly half a century ago.

Veteran percussionist Hamid Drake is renowned for melding avant-jazz concepts with percussion traditions from across the globe, often in collaboration with AACM members and artists from Chicago and beyond including Michael Zerang, Ken Vandermark, Fred Anderson, Peter Brötzmann, Don Cherry, Adam Rudolph, and David Murray.

In addition to their performances as the Heart Trio, the trio has also worked together as part of William Parker’s bands In Order to Survive and the Cosmic Mountain Quartet.