This month, baritone saxophonist Alex Harding & pianist Lucian Ban released the latest album in their 20+ year collaboration, BLUTOPIA (Sunnyside). As a followup to their 2019 duo release Dark Blue, this record expands their color palette with electronic sounds and an unconventional ensemble of tuba, viola, and drums.

While the pair have fostered an exploratory improvisational approach over the last two decades, their music has firm blues roots. In a previous interview with Jazz Speaks, the pair spoke about how they negotiate their relationship to this music:

Alex Harding: You know, the blues is not mutually exclusive, you dig? Just being a human being means you’re able to articulate something. Just because you can’t do like Muddy Waters did, who the hell cares? The important thing is your sincerity. Being a human being gives you the ability to tap into that, to access your own experience.

Lucian Ban: [Laughs] Here’s a quick story, a bit unexpected, but deep, in a way. Alex and I played at Cecil Brooks’s club in Montclair, which has since closed, with Brad Jones and Nasheet Waits. There was a break between the sets, and there were a fair amount of black folks at the place, because it was a mostly black neighborhood. There was this older lady, dressed like she was going to church. I was at the bar, the only white dude there, and she came up and said to me, “I really like how you play the blues. Where are you from? You must be from the south.” Alex passes by, and was visibly infuriated: “He’s not even from the States, he’s from Transylvania, Romania!” The lady clearly doesn’t know where Romania is: She turns around and says, “Well, you must be from the south of Romania!"

AH: Man, I laugh every time I hear that story [laughs].

LB: [Laughs] It was so sweet and funny, I’ll never forget it.

This Wednesday, Harding and Ban celebrate the release of BLUTOPIA with two sets at The Jazz Gallery alongside the full band from the album. This is a special night to join in Harding and Ban’s continuing musical journey.

Alex Harding & Lucian Ban celebrate the release of BLUTOPIA (Sunnyside) at The Jazz Gallery on Wednesday, May 29, 2024. The group features Mr. Harding on baritone saxophone, Mr. Ban on piano & Fender Rhodes, Mat Maneri on viola, Bob Stewart on Tuba, and Brandon Lee Lewis on drums. Sets are at 7:30 and 9:30 P.M. E.D.T. $25 general admission (FREE for members), $35 reserved cabaret seating ($20 for members), $20 livestream access (FREE for members) for each set. Purchase tickets here.