Tom Ollendorff, Ari Hoenig & Conor Chaplin - Enchanted

2023

I met Tom Ollendorff in 2017. He came to my house to take a lesson during his visit to NYC. As soon as we started to play I knew we had a lot in common musically and potentially a strong musical bond. We parted with the intention to meet again.

The following year I received a formal invitation to come to the UK, and in February 2019 I travelled across the pond for 10 days of concerts with Tom and another British gem by the name of Conor Chaplin. Conor is a multi instrumentalist and a true team player and, in this case, our bass player.

Two years and two trio tours later, the onset of COVID turned out to be the catalyst for this album. As the world began to open up, the UK became an attractive place to tour due to their less stringent COVID policies. So, in October 2021, I once again made the short hop over the pond to  tour across the British Isles with Tom and Conor.

From clubs and theaters in Manchester, Cardiff, London and Leeds to farms in the Irish countryside, we spread our jazz love throughout the land, and even endured the odd raffle (a common occurrence at many jazz venues there). The two week tour culminated with two days of recording in the picturesque countryside setting of Giant Wafer Studios in mid Wales.

Not long after returning home, I realized yet another thing Tom and I had in common. It was Fresh Sound Records. I had done my last three records with them and Tom was currently working on one himself. The stage was set for collaboration and here you have the results.

—Ari Hoenig