Ken Haebich on Bass
With stellar talents like pianist Joe Hurt and the great drummer Redd Holt,the third man in a trio must be able to bring a lot to the table.
Ken Haebich is a feast.
You can docket that line along with what Playboy said about Ken: "...modern big phat acoustic bass...". Or the Chicago Reader:"...plays both stand-up and electric bass with cool fervor and a terrific ear for harmonies...". And the Chicago Tribune said: "...provides especially strong harmonic underpinnings...".
"Underpinnings" is a bit square even for the Trib-suffice it to say that when greats like Ray Charles, Woody Herman, Diane Schurr, and the 'Velvet Fog' himself Mel Torme give you the call, your playing speaks for itself. This is the fruit of Ken's studies with acclaimed composer Roque Codero and his Master of Music Theory and Composition from Illinois State University.
A tall, lean, gent playing a 150 year old German-Made Bass..they seem to blend as one. Where do the fingers end and the strings begin? Here’s a better thought-maybe the 100+ years of soul in that bass somehow mesh with Ken’s. No matter, whatever the explanation-there’s magic afoot in Ken’s playing.
As if Ken doesn't have enough to do, he helms an art-rock/jazz ensemble called Numbers, plays in the duo The Ken and Jim Show (Jim being saxist/composer Jim Gailloreto), holds down the bass seat in the swaggering City Lights Orchestra (and all its permutations), and somehow finds time to teach Bass, Jazz Improv and Composition at Elmhurst College in Suburban Chicago.