Established in 2014, MetaQuorum is a ground-breaking international music project by composer/keyboardist Dmitry Ermakov playing Meld, a fusion of Rock, Prog, Funk, Jazz, Electronica and more.
Dmitry Ermakov – composer, keyboardist, arranger, producer:
Ermakov was trained in classical music and jazz from the age of six. Before immigrating to the UK, he gigged and recorded with his own bands Panika and FoxBox and with various musicians in the Soviet/Russian underground scene such as Yury Morozov, Vyacheslav Guyvoronsky etc., as well as composing/recording for Lenfilm cinema studios and theatre.
Koos van der Velde – drums, audio engineering:
Koos van der Velde took to drums at the age of six. In the early years he played with Frisian metal group Lunacy, later going on to join jazz-core band Megakronkel, with whom he toured extensively. Over the last 25 years, Koos has gigged and recorded for a variety of bands and artists from all over the world.
St. Petersburg-born Viktor Mikheyev joined his first band at 17 and is still playing bass today.
Flying in the face of persistent Soviet state control, throughout the late 80’s and early 90’s Mikheyev played in several underground bands, as well as joining Ermakov in punk rock band Panika, avant-garde jazz rock fusion outfit FoxBox and the eight piece group Komnata 118. Mikheyev has recorded numerous songs and albums, both as a soloist and for the many groups with whom he has played including his own music project The CyBear.
In 1982 Mikheyev embarked on a long-standing collaboration with Lenfilm Studios as screen-writer, actor and deputy director. He currently lives in Bulgaria where he is active in the music and cinema scene.
Featured Musicians
Carol Ermakova inherited her voice from her mother, who won several singing competitions. Despite being singled out for a select school choir at the age of 11, Ermakova never developed this talent. In 2015, MetaQuorum persuaded her to join the project as a second vocalist, and she has since been described as ‘the voice from fairyland.’
Markus ‘Bluesharp’ Bossert Born in New York, Markus ‘Bluesharp’ Bossert began playing the bluesharp at 16 when he struck up a friendship with a street musician who taught him the basics. Since the late 90’s, he’s played with a plethora of bands all over the globe, including The Strings in Kathmandu, Nepal. He is a popular guest in Ermakov’s native land, gigging at several venues in Arkhangelsk, notably the Arkhangelsk Blues and Jazz Festivals organised by Timothey Dorofeev.
Now living in Switzerland, Bossert joined the Basel-based R Major Power Blues band in 2013, and is a regular feature at jam sessions in the city, often joining bands as a guest player. In recent months he has made a couple of studio recordings.
Andrew Guerin – trumpet.
George Mikheyev – cello.
Andrew Guerin – trumpet.
Christopher Longwood – mastering.
RELEASES
SIMPLE MINDS – is a hard-hitting alt-rock protest song calling out complacent apathy in a society flooded with fake news, as the planet slips into chaos. Release Date: Bandcamp/YouTube – 09/10/22; Other Streaming Platforms – 04/11/22.
WITCHCRAFT JAZZ – a 12 track DIGITAL/CD album from ground-breaking international music project MetaQuorum, an upbeat ride through prog, rock, funk, fusion, electronica, acid jazz and more.
Creatively composed, with original scores, grooves and riffs infused with spontaneous improvisation and funk jams, fused into a seamless meld polished with state-of-the-art production techniques, and skilfully mastered at SugarHill Studios, Houston, to bring you an album full of cool swing, hot funk and spicy rhythm. Released 22 Feb 2018.
Previous releases include the six singles from 2016, five of which are gathered into a compilation EP Cream of the Summer 2016 which includes:
The sixth single Chicken & Egg stands on its own and is a ‘cunning preview’ of what is to come in Witchcraft Jazz, the next album.
MetaQuorum’s début album, Midnight Sun, (produced and mixed at Loft Music Studios, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK), is a journey through progressive fusion, an organic blend of jazz, funk, rock, reggae, baroque, electronica and more, with a cool, foot-tapping swing which makes the room buzz. The complex polyphony, riffs, quirky piano and synth solos, upbeat drums and occasional roaring guitar reflect Ermakov’s joie de vivre as well as his influences, which include: Miles Davies, Marcus Miller, George Duke, Herbie Hancock, Oscar Peterson, Weather Report, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Peter Gabriel, Kraftwerk, Yello, King Crimson, Chicago, Vivaldi, Frescobaldi, Mozart and Rachmaninoff.
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