Artist Name: Sha
Residency Dates: February – April 2023
Born: 1983
Hometown: Bern, Switzerland
Lives & Works: Bern
URL: www.sha-music.ch | Instagram: @__s_h___a___ | Facebook: Stefan Haslebacher
Education:
2010-2011 | Master of Arts in Music Pedagogy (MHS Luzern)
2008-2010 | Master of Arts in Music Performace Jazz (MHS Luzern)
2005-2008 | Bachelor of Arts in Music (MHS Luzern)
Bio/Statement:
Swiss multi-reedist and composer Sha was born in Bern and lives where the music takes him. Since 2004 he has been playing worldwide tours with Nik Bärtschs’ Ronin, Nik Bärtsch’s Mobile and The Legendary Lightness. He composed for his own groups Sha’s Banryu and Sha’s Feckel and collaborated with dance and theater projects at Opernhaus Zürich, Gessneralle Zürich and VorOrt. For the influential Jazz and Classic label ECM-Music he recorded six records with Nik Bärtsch. In 2021 he released his first solo record Monbijou, recorded in the vast hollow interior of the box girder bridge Monbijou in Bern. The record consists of several distinct vignettes, composed throughout the years and woven into a 30-minute suite. While the very idea of a solo performance might evoke images of an internal monologue, Monbijou reaches outwards and is essentially a work about the hidden space around us, as defined by the sounds we make. Echolocation for emotion, if you will! Sha played at the Montreux Jazz Festival 2021 with his solo-program, and has been on tour all over North America playing at festivals such as BigEars, SXSW Austin, NYC Winterjazz Fest, Montreal Jazzfestival and SFJazz. The show with Ronin in 2011 at Poisson Rouge in New York was one of the concerts of the year listed in the Wall Street Journal and the show with Nik Bärtsch in 2019 was ranked among the best concerts in the New York City Jazz Record.
Sha is represented by Ronin Rhythm Records and Ohsotrue.
John Kelman (www.allaboutjazz.com):
“Sha’s music appeals to both hemispheres, creating its own union that can be taken on a purely
instinctive level while providing plenty of grist for those who like their music as food for thought.“
Sid Smith (www.bbc.co.uk):
“His sax offers up soaring notes of purest silver.”
Brent Burton (Washington City Paper):
“Whenever the monosyllabically named Sha steps into the spotlight, the reed player evokes the modal improvisations of musicians like John Coltrane and Jan Garbarek.”
Supporter: Sha’s residency is made possible with support from Canton of Berne Office of Culture / Cultural Promotion.
