Album by Dingman ’02 Features Middletown Reflections

Vibraphonist and composer Chris Dingman ’02 releases his debut album, Waking Dreams, on June 21, 2011 on Between Worlds Music. Dingman is joined by many of New York’s best young musicians including trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, saxophonist Loren Stillman, pianist Fabian Almazan, bassist Joe Sanders, and drummer Justin Brown.

Dingman recreates the experience of dreams in the form of a suite of new music that travels over its 14 tracks from darkness to light, from hazy melancholy to serene peace, while moving, often obliquely, through moments and memories from the composer’s life.

The CD Release Party will be held on Saturday, June 18 at the Jazz Gallery, 290 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10013.
Sets at 9 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.
http://www.jazzgallery.org

Dingman shares the following comments about the Waking Dreams CD:

“My time at Wesleyan had a deep impact on my musical life. Although I graduated in 2002, it wasn’t until 2006 that I found myself writing music about my experiences in Middletown. ‘Indian Hill’ is one of the clearest pieces that I wrote during this time. Specifically, the piece harkens back to times spent in reflection with friends at the top of Indian Hill cemetery. But the song also represents this formative period in my life in general, and the feeling of transformation that I experienced while wandering the Wesleyan campus during my sophomore and junior years.

“When I was putting together the album Waking Dreams—a narrative suite that tells a story of my experiences over the past decade—it was clear that my time at Wesleyan was the incubator for my life (musical and otherwise) as it is today.  ‘Indian Hill’ became the theme of the album, recurring several times to remind the listener where the story began and to reflect on its progress. The music simulates how past experiences come back around, sometimes hauntingly, but often beautifully, to help us in the future. My experiences at Wesleyan have come back to me time and again in so many ways, and I am very happy to have a chance to express that in Waking Dreams.”

For more about Dingman and his music, go to http://www.chrisdingman.com.

For publicity information, please contact Matt Merewitz (matt@fullyaltered.com) at Fully Altered Media (http://www.fullyaltered.com).