An evening of experimental jazz that will travel a range of sounds along the sonic spectrum. Tellurium is Joel Wanek (upright bass), Jon Mueller (percussion), and Dan Godston (trumpet, percussion).

Bios:
Jon Mueller has been an active drummer and percussionist since the early 90s. Whether utilizing bombastic minimalism, dense interplay, or electroacoustic practices, his approach focuses on a physical dialog between situation and material. He has been featured on numerous recordings and has performed throughout the U.S., Japan, and Europe.

He has performed/recorded with: Aranos, Keith Berry, Jarboe, Jason Kahn, Asmus Tietchens, Jack Wright, Carol Genetti, Chris Rosenau, Collections of Colonies of Bees, Hal Rammel, Steve Nelson-Raney, Tetuzi Akiyama, Jim Schoenecker, Tom Wincek, Bhob Rainey, Martijn Tellinga, Glenn Kotche, Pele, Steven Hess, Tatsuya Nakatani, Werner Moebius, Lionel Marchetti, Adam Sonderberg, Tim Catlin, Matt Turner, Jeff Klatt, Achim Wollscheid, Fred Lonberg-Holm---s Lightbox Orchestra---

"Mueller---s minimalist percussion raises hypnotic palettes of solid color. He merges the human touch with the objects that he vibrates, pops, scrapes, or taps." --- All About Jazz

"Mueller goes straight to the core of drums' pneumonic organism, avoiding easy edulcoration to privilege spacing systems and sustained transmutations, where snare drums become turbocharged in an itinerant mass of resonant charms and the deep rumble of a sapiently treated (?) bass drum (???) skin transforms itself into a hoarse monster of droning majesty reigning in deafening volume." --- Touching Extremes

"Mueller has found a way to go beyond his free jazz past and take the world of instrumental virtuosity into the 21st century." --- Paristransatlantic.com

Joel Wanek is a photographer and educator living and working in Chicago. He teaches photography at many of the city's premier arts organizations including the Museum of Contemporary Photography, Center for Community Arts Partnerships, Marwen Foundation and the Hyde Park Arts Center.
His photographs have been featured in a diversity of publications including DownBeat, Jazz Times, Chicago Sun-Times, The Chicago Reader, ZoneZero, Vibrations (France) & The New Cosmos of Photography (Japan). He has participated in group shows at Bucket Rider Gallery and The Hyde Park Art Center in Chicago, and CENART in Mexico City.

Recently, Wanek's creative focus has been directed towards music. For the past three years, he has studied upright bass and improvisation with master musician Tatsu Aoki. Since then, he has had the fortune of playing with some of Chicago---s finest improvisers including Aoki, Nicole Mitchell, David Boykin, Josh Abrams, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Dave Rempis and Greg Ward. Currently he is a member of Aoki's Miyumi Project Big Band, Boykin---s Microcosmic Sound Orchestra and Ways & Means Trio.

In addition to performing, Wanek is also an active music presenter. A year rafter the passing of legendary bassist Malachi Favors Maghoustut, he organized a gathering of Chicago creative bassists to pay respects to him and his spirit. That initial event has grown into The Low End Theory, a musical series highlighting the city---s many innovative bassists.

Dan Godston composes music and plays the trumpet and other instruments in Ways & Means Trio (with Joel Wanek and Jayve Montgomery) and other groups in the Chicago area. For one year Ways & Means hosted a monthly series at Muse Caf-- called Lower & Upper Limits, which showcased collaborations between poets & musicians. He has worked with Bill MacKay, Jeff Marx, Mars Williams, Nicole Mitchell, and other musicians. He has also worked with these outstanding poets on creative projects: Jennifer Karmin, Sterling Plumpp, Ed Roberson, Toni Astante Lightfoot, and Michael C. Watson.

He teaches poetry and other art forms to young people, through these organizations: Snow City Arts Foundation, The Center for Community Arts Partnerships, The Poetry Center of Chicago, Marwen Foundation, and the Hyde Park Art Center. He also teaches at Columbia College Chicago.
Dan is also the founder and director of the Chicago Calling Festival, which provides cutting edge opportunities for Chicago based artists working in all media to collaborate with artists living in other locations around the world.