Ari Hoenig is a jazz drummer, composer, and educator known for his unusual and intense approach to drumming emphasizing complex rhythms in direct harmony with other group members. Ari is widely noted particularly for his drumming not being relegated to just keeping tempo, or being a side issue to the music he plays in, but rather for elevating drumming as an indispensable part of the performance.

BIOgraphy

Born on November 13, 1973 in Philadelphia, Ari Hoenig, was exposed at an early age to a variety of musical experiences. His father is a conductor and classical singer, his mother a violinist and pianist. Accordingly, at 4 years of age, Ari began studying the violin and piano. He began playing drums at age twelve, and by age fourteen he was honing his skills with other young jazz musicians at Philly clubs such as Ortlieb’s JazzHaus.

Ari attended the prestigious University of North Texas for three years, where he studied with Ed Soph while playing with the “One O’Clock” Lab Band. Wanting to be closer to New York City, in 1995 Ari transferred to William Patterson College in northern New Jersey. He soon found himself playing for legendary Philadelphia organist Shirley Scott and working regularly in New York City.

Shortly thereafter, Ari moved into Brooklyn and found himself playing extensively with a variety of groups, including Jean Michel Pilc Trio, Kenny Werner Trio, Chris Potter Underground, Kurt Rosenwinkel Group, Joshua Redman Elastic band, Jazz Mandolin Project and bands led by Wayne Krantz, Mike Stern, Richard Bona and Pat Martino. He has also shared the stage with such artists as Herbie Hancock, Ivan Linz, Wynton Marsalis, Toots Thielemans, Dave Holland, Joe Lovano, and Gerry Mulligan, although he got kicked off the stage by security shortly thereafter.

Both of Ari’s self-produced solo drum CDs, “Time Travels” (2000) and “The Life Of A Day” (2002), document his exploratory nature and they represent an ambitious tribute to the melodic possibilities of the drum set. Today, Ari continues to build on the concepts of these two records by playing largely improvised solo concerts using a simple four piece drum kit without help from extraneous percussion instruments.

The Ari Hoenig Quartet was formed at the end of 2002 while playing every Monday night at the New York Village jazz club Fat Cat. The band featured Jacques Schwarz-Bart on tenor sax, Jean Michel Pilc on piano, and Matt Penman on bass. They released two records on the Smalls Records label: “The Painter” (2004) and the DVD “Kinetic Hues” (2005)

In 2006 Ari signed a multi-record deal with Dreyfus Records and released his first record for them called “Inversations” (2006) which features the trio of Jean Michel Pilc and Johannes Weidenmueller. “Bert’s Playground” (2008), Ari’s second record for Dreyfus, features Ari’s Punk Bop Band joined by Chris Potter. Highlights of this record include Chris’s solo on Moments Notice and Ari jumping around in red pants on the cover. Jonathan Kreisberg, Matt Penman, Will Vinson, Gilad Hekselman and Orlando le Fleming also represent on this one.

The next record project was for “Smalls Live”, a record label set up in 2009 to document some of the music being performed at the “Smalls Jazz Club” in New York where Ari has had a residency since 2003. Ari chose his Punk Bop Band to make this live record “Punk Bop Live at Smalls (2010)”. The Punk Bop Band features Will Vinson on alto, Jonathan Kreisberg on guitar and fellow Jazz Mandolin Project alumni, Danton Boller on bass. Tigran Hamasyan is a special guest on 4 tracks as well.

Ari’s Quartet with Tigran Hamasyan, Gilad Hekselman, Orlando le Fleming and Chris Tordini released “Lines of Oppression” (2011) on the Naïve label. This record represents a culmination of Ari’s bandleading, composing and accounting skills.

In 2013 Ari and his Quartet won the prestigious BMW Welt (World) award in Munich, an international competition for best band led by a drummer.

In 2016, Ari Released The Pauper and the Magician on AH-HA Records. It features the quintet of Shai Maestro on piano, Gilad Hekselman on guitar, Tivon Pennicott on Sax and Orlando Le Fleming on bass. On this record, Ari explores the link between story telling and jazz by creating a soundtrack to the improvised and sometimes twisted stories he tells his two small children.

In 2018, Ari released a standards record called NY Standard (a tribute to playing standards in New York and in 2019 Conners Days (his first trio record) which features his current trio of Nitai Hershkovits and Or Bareket. Both of these are on the Fresh Sound label. Both of these records have received the highest possible acclaim including glowing endorsements from his grandmother.

In the summer of 2020 Ari was confirmed to record an album of his compositions with a full big band sponsored by University of Wyoming. The compositions have been arranged by Ben Markley. This project will pushed and done sometime in 2021.

Besides the quintet, Ari leads 2 other groups which play his original music. Ari Hoenig Nonet and Trio. The Nonet performs Ari’s original compositions arranged by Noam Wiesenberg and features various high-caliber players in the New York area. The trio is with Gilad Hekselman and Orlando le Fleming and has toured extensively in Europe, Japan and South America.

Ari also co-leads a variety of projects. Pilc, Moutin, Hoenig (the three headed monster) released Threedom in 2011 on the Motema label. He has had various projects with partner Gael Horellou including the jazz electronica project “Nasty Factorz” with a self titled record released in 2016 and Live with the quartet released in 2019. Ari has also co-led various duo’s with Chris Potter, Edmar Casteneda, JD Walter or Dan Weiss.

As an educator, Ari teaches privately and is on faculty at New York University and the New School for Social Research in New York. He gives clinics and lectures at music schools and universities worldwide, and writes a regular educational column for Modern Drummer magazine. In collaboration with bassist Johannes Weidenmueller, Ari released “Intro to Polyrhythms Vol 1”, and “Metric Modulations, Expanding and Contracting Time within Form Vol 2. (Mel Bay 2009, 2012)

In 2011, Ari released two more educational products dedicated specifically to drumming. “Systems Book 1, Drumming Technique and Melodic Jazz Independence” (Alfred Publishing), and DVD “Melodic Drumming” (2011) on www.jazzheaven.com.

In 2014, Ari released the 3 part video entitled “Rhythm Training” geared for all musicians who want to improve their time and rhythmic vocabulary. It offers a clear step by step approach and is available through www.mymusicmasterclass.com

Since 2014, Ari has released many other educational videos on mymusicmasterclass.com. He started an online members-only club at Patreon.com to talk about musical concepts and to share video lessons. “The Ari Hoenig Songbook” (a book with the lead sheets of all of Ari’s compositions (not just the easy ones) is available for download at www.arihoenig.bandcamp.com )

Ari currently resides in Brooklyn with his wife and 2 kids.

Photos

 

Latest releases

Tea For Three

Ari Hoenig (drums)
Gadi Lehavi (piano)
Ben Tiberio (bass)

Enchanted

Ari Hoenig (drums)
Tom Ollendorff (guitar)
Conor Chaplin (bass)

Golden Treasures

Ari Hoenig (drums)
Gadi Lehavi (piano)
Ben Tiberio (bass)

Conner’s Days

Ari Hoenig (drums)
Nitai Herhskovits (piano)
Or Bareket (drums)

NY Standard

Ari Hoenig (drums), Tivon Pennicott (tenor sax), Gilad Hekselman (guitar), Tigran Hamasyan (piano on #2), Shai Maestro (piano on #4,6), Eden Ladin (piano on #3,5), Orlando Le Fleming (bass).

The Pauper and the Magician

Ari Hoenig (drums)
Tivon Pennicott (tenor sax)
Shai Maestro (piano)
Gilad Hekselman (guitar)
Orlando le Fleming (bass)

 

Videos

 

What people are saying

He's got Rhythm of every variety" " trickles of rhythm seeping into all the cracks and at regular intervals he changes the rhythm, pouring it out or stoppering it, turning its emphasis around, subdividing or refocusing it and making it follow the melody."
- Ben Ratliff New York Times

"Ari Hoenig is one of the most maniacally obsessive, spasmodic and musical drummers in jazz."
- JAZZ TIMES

“Rhythm is a contact sport for Ari Hoenig”
“expansive technique, propulsive time and deep musicality" "his style is characterized by a crisp attack and quick attentive reflexes.
- Nate Chinen, NEW YORK TIMES

"Ari Hoenig is a Magician!"
- BATTEUR MAGAZINE

"Ari Hoenig, a disconcerting phenomenon of the drums"
- JAZZMAN MAGAZINE"

Postbop daredevil Ari Hoenig turns jazz drumming into a thrilling high-wire act.
- Time Out New York

Ari Hoenig likes to get physical. He rubs saliva on his drums, jabs his elbows into them and pokes them like a mad genie. His albums (Time Travels, The Life of a Day) show a drummer in love with his instrument's sound, a man who has an ingenious ability to make music with anything he touches"
- PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY

"Ari Hoenig combines jaw-dropping intensity, phenomenal technique, and visionary perspective, making him a major force in jazz's evolution through the 21st century"
- Rick Mason Minneapolis/St Paul City Pages

From the physical mayhem of Ari Hoenig’s drumming — limbs flailing, face contorted in agonized delight — comes music of unsurpassed depth and control.
- David Adler-Philadelphia Weekly

Ari Hoenig’s Punk Bop is an altogether different take on jazz.
- Downbeat Magazine

"Drummer Ari Hoenig is an unalloyed pleasure, matching rhythmic verve with a keen ear for melody"
- Steve Smith, JAZZIZ MAGAZINE

"The worldwide brotherhood of the drums is hereby kicked in the pants! Ari Hoenig's work in the ensembles of Jean-Michel Pilc, Seamus Blake, Jonathan Kreisberg, Pat Martino, and Wayne Krantz has extended the art of jazz drumming into the future. He's done this via telepathic interaction with soloists, forging his own brand of swing and exerting an absolutely uncanny ability to mine melodicism from the kit"
- ALL ABOUT JAZZ (About "Life of a Day")

"Hoenig is a wild card as a drummer, always listening hard, shading and tweaking his responses as if running a department of sound effects."
- PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

"Pliability is the outfits calling card-any one of the drummers elaborate constructions has the capability of morphing east or west. The specifics of the interplay are just as intriguing as the music's larger personality. A great example of an utterly vital NYC jazz band."
- VILLAGE VOICE

"The city's hottest young jazz drummer delivers such a powerful message that drums may never be the same." "Ari Hoenig is an underground sensation"
- John McCormick, FLAVORPILL

"A remarkable player with an uncommon penchant for melodicism on the kit, Hoenig has already put out two amazing solo drum recordings in which he plays the heads to familiar jazz standards by playing strictly skins, shells and cymbals with nothing more than sticks, brushes, mallets, hands and elbows.."
- Bill Milkowski JAZZ TIMES

"Among the young jazz drummers recently on the jazz scene Ari Hoenig is the most original and inventive."
- Ferid Bonnour, DRUMMER MAGAZINE

"Pure Melodicism on the kit" "Musicians like Ari make jazz viewing the pleasure that it is"
- Phil Dipietro, ALL ABOUT JAZZ

"Ari Hoenig is surprising many with his playing, listening and Virtuosity. A name to remember"
- Anne Legrand, CITIZEN JAZZ

"Ari Hoenig is drumming's newest resourceful shining light, especially on bop forms-his drums dance and flirt with the soloist like few you'll hear. Sweet and Lovely has him coaxing melody out of every available surface on the kit in subtle comfortable ways"
- Phil Dipietro , ALL ABOUT JAZZ

(about Pat Martino group)
"I loved it with the electrifying combination of Ari Hoenig's ferocious drums with Pat Martino's electric leaps across octaves and tempos. Hoenig crashed his drums, in warlike fashion, his drums and cymbals, with versatility and daring aggression."
- Dr. Roberta E. Zlokower, exploredance.com

Ari Hoenig is always where he should be, but never where you expect him.
- Bruce Pulver, Jazz Review.com

Hoenig is one of the bright new lights on the New York scene
- Norman Provizer, ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS

Mr. Hoenig looked like a man whose drums were trying to climb up his chest to tear off his head, and only by flailing with a pair of sticks was he able to keep them off him.
- gooseyard.com

Ari Hoenig, 33, is one of the most accomplished drummers of his generation
- David Adler, PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

Hoenig is a jazz drummer for purists and adventurers alike.
- Ken Micallef, PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY

"An album of exceptional quality performed by a close-knit group of phenomenally talented, deeply passionate musicians, The Painter is a must. See them live to experience the intensity, listen at home to discover the subtlety"
- ALL ABOUT JAZZ (about "the Painter")

(about kinetic hues) "Ari Hoenig and Jean Michel Pilc throw ideas around the room like rockets and missiles, as they work out in the intimate performance space at Fat Cat with a live audience to spur them on. Their music rains fire all night long& Ari Hoenig and his musical partners forge a seamless bridge that is designed to carry Jazz's modern mainstream away from the ordinary and forward to new horizons."
- ALL ABOUT JAZZ

(about kinetic hues) "An intimate view of contemporary jazz in the process of coming to life."
- LOS ANGELES TIMES

This composite band displayed an awe-inspiring level of cohesion, enabling Hoenig to leap from one rhythmic idea to another with exhilarating unpredictability. The drummer's rendition of Moanin' was a tour de force, as Hoenig used mallets and bare hands to play the melody on his drum kit.
- Jessica Nicholas- theage.com

"The next day the concert hall barely set all who came - Americans Rory Stuart and Ari Hoenig were performing. Chamber, intimate style of guitarist and unique style of the drummer had a special effect. Uniqueness of the Ari Hoenig's style is in his skill to work not only on the rhythmical diversity but sonic as well. All percussion instruments are divided into instruments with no pitch (drums), and to instruments with pitch (xylophone, cembalo etc.). So when Ari performed on drums solo from the favorite Kazakh song "Kozemnin Karasy" ("The apple of my eye") written on poetry of the famous Kazakh poet Abai, without any exaggeration the audience was overwhelmed! a fine, delicate masterpiece, the pearl of the festival."
- Translated (badly) from the newspaper
"Novoye Pokoleniye," the national newspaper of Kazakhstan
(May 2, 2008)

"Hoenig wowed jazz fans when he came here with Kenny Werner", "Hoenig keeps pushing the limits"
- Barry Davis, JERSALEM POST

"American Drummer steals the show at the Chivas Jazz Festival" "alternates between delicacy and fury on the drums"
- Jotabe Medeiros, SAN PAULO PRESS

"Ari Hoenig's drumming is wonderfully creative, his solos are impressive more for musicality and invention than for the chops on display"
- David Wayne, JAZZ WEEKLY REVIEWS