Personic is a word coined from the conjunction of the words “person” & “sound”. This intersection with the human is also how sound becomes music. The early Latin use of the word persona described a mask used by actors; & I enjoy hearing in that a notion of the mask as a vehicle for sound. Personics are inseparable from the core attitudes & procedures associated with the word jazz. This insistence of a musician on maintaining a distinct independent personal identity in the face of standardization and erasure grows directly out of African American resistance to being used as a machine or as a servant to machines, which also led to a music that articulates an ethical model of human freedom that influences the entire world.

In this group, I work with two improvisers who have very strong & distinct identities, Lisle Ellis & Bern Nix. Neither have conventional musical imaginations, and they are supremely responsive musicians with whom I feel I can play anything, in any direction. The notion of solo acts as compositional fulcrum, an ordinarily a capella unfolding not linked to meeting the usual ensemble timetable coordinates. But, I’m also listening in terms of density & multiplicity, in terms of polyrhythm’s personification through collective improvisation: 3 simultaneous refractions of interactively unified ensemble thought. - patrick brennan

patrick brennan listens to, wonders at, wonders about, imagines & plays music. He coordinates ensembles, composes & plays the alto saxophone. An attraction to movement, change, rhythm & surprise in both music & human consciousness, alongside an interest in how people synchronize themselves with all of this keeps him at it. He's recorded eight albums of original music as a leader. The most recent is sonic openings under pressure's muhheankuntuk on Clean Feed with David Pleasant - densemetriX! and Hilliard Greene - bass.

Lisle Ellis is a multifaceted creator whose work reflects his interests in music, visual art, computers/technology, and community. As a composer and improvisor-bassist his oeuvre spans three decades and two countries and has brought him international recognition as an artist with an exceptional vision. Ellis's distinct instrumental voice has been heard in a multitude of concerts on the world stage in the company of legends of the avant-garde such as Paul Bley, Peter Brotzmann, Andrew Cyrille, Joe Mcphee, and Cecil Taylor; leading contemporary players Marilyn Crispell, Dave Douglas, Fred Frith, and John Zorn, and on more than 40 recordings for international labels such as Black Saint, DIW, and Hat Art, and New World. Currently, Ellis's principal interest is in developing an electro-acoustic architecture he calls string-circuitry-confluence. Secondary to that are projects such as his long standing trio with Larry Ochs and Donald Robinson called What We Live, Di Terra, an Italy based trio with Alberto Braida and Fabrizio Spera, and duos with pianists Paul Plimley and Mike Wofford. http://www.lisleellis.com/

Bern Nix has played the guitar since the age of 11. Bern studied music and graduated with a degree in music education from the Berklee College of Music. Since 1985, he has led The Bern Nix Trio. Before leading his Trio, Bern performed and recorded with Ornette Coleman from 1975 to 1987 as an original member of the Prime Time Band. The Prime Time Band recorded six albums including Dancing in Your Head, Of Human Feelings and Body Meta and performed hundreds of concerts around the world. The Bern Nix Trio's first recording, Alarms and Excursions (New World Records) was released in 1993, making many top ten critics lists. Bern has performed with artists such as, Ornette Coleman, John Zorn, Marc Ribot, Elliott Sharp, Jemeel Moondoc, Ronald Shannon Jackson, James Chance, Jayne Cortez and Kip Hanrahan. Hailed as one of the greatest jazz guitarists of our time, Bern was voted among the top ten jazz guitarists poll by Down Beat magazine. Most recently, Bern composed and recorded the score for the feature length documentary, A James Lord Portrait. Bern has a new solo album on Tompkins Square Records. http://www.myspace.com/bernnix