10:30am Workshop
Bassist Hamish Smith and saxophonist Nicola Caminiti will lead a free 90-minute workshop at Berlin on Saturday, May 9. This session offers valuable insights for musicians of all skill levels. Space is limited, so be sure to reserve your spot early. Coffee and sodas will be provided courtesy of Blue Fox Arts.
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Hamish Smith is an award-winning jazz bassist and composer from New Zealand, now based in New York City. With a reputation for rhythmic inventiveness, groove-driven feel, and lyrical sensibility, he has quickly established himself as one of the most in-demand bassists on the international jazz scene. Smith has worked with a remarkable roster of artists, including Paquito D’Rivera, Miguel Zenón, Jonathan Kreisberg, Yosvany Terry, Alex Sipiagin, Henry Hey, Zach Brock, Magos Herrera, and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. NEA Jazz Master Todd Barkan has described him as “a modern marvel—one of the great young bassists in the world.”
After making a significant impact on the New Zealand jazz community, Smith was awarded a full tuition scholarship to the Manhattan School of Music, prompting his move to New York in 2018. Following his first year of study, he was recruited by 15-time Grammy Award winner Paquito D’Rivera to join his touring quintet on acoustic bass at 21 years of age. Since then, Smith has performed widely with ensembles including D’Rivera’s quintet, the Manuel Valera Trio, the Jochen Rueckert Quartet, and Dayna Stephens’s Custom Deluxe. Smith is now the leader of his own ensemble and a founding member of the collaborative quartet Immigrantet, a group committed to exploring themes of migration, identity, and intercultural dialogue through contemporary jazz.
In addition to performing, Smith is an active educator and author. He has served as a guest clinician in the United States, Mexico, Germany, Belgium, and New Zealand. His e-book Notes on the Move offers practical guidance for aspiring jazz musicians navigating the transition to the U.S. scene. He is an endorsing artist for Aguilar Amplification.
Nicola Caminiti is a New York-based Italian saxophonist, composer, arranger, and educator. Praised as “clearly a name to watch” by All About Jazz, Caminiti is considered one of the leading musical figures of his generation for intensely creative modern concepts based on interplay and rhythmic mastery, still embracing a sense of musical tradition. As a leader, sideman, or guest, he has played in several of the most acclaimed international jazz festivals and venues in the world, including Birdland, The Jazz Gallery, Dizzy’s Club, LunÀtico, Jamboree, Jimmy Glass, the Umbria Jazz Festival, Vicenza Jazz, Piacenza Jazz, and Veneto Jazz. In 2024, he received The Jazz Gallery Residency Commission.
Caminiti has shared the stage and recorded with famed musicians such as Seamus Blake, Pedrito Martinez, Jon Cowherd, Gilad Hekselman, the Manuel Valera New Cuban Express Big Band, and the Bobby Sanabria & Multiverse Big Band. In the United States, he is part of Dayna Stephens’ Custom Deluxe, the world-inspired collective Immigrantet, and many other working ensembles.
This event is made possible by support from Blue Fox Arts.
