FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Nicolas Simion Jazz Trio to perform at Bates

LEWISTON, Maine -- The Nicolas Simion Jazz Trio, composed of Transylvanian saxophonist and composer Simion, bassist James Singleton and drummer Peter Perfido, will perform at Bates College Sunday, Sept. 20, at 8 p.m. in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall. The public is invited to attend free of charge.

Critically acclaimed, Simion has recorded several albums, including his first, "Black Sea" (1991), a collection of original compositions, featuring modern jazz, Transylvanian folk and avant garde music. "Like his models BŽla Bartok and George Enescu, he draws on the inexhaustible reservoir of his Transylvanian native country for his compositions, without neglecting the connecting points to bebop and hardbop," said critic Walter Schätzlein.

Simion released his second album, "Dinner for Don Carlos," in 1991, followed by a third recording, "Transylvanian Dance," in 1995. That same year, he also received the Theodor Körner Förderungspreis for his composition "The Unfinished Square," a performance for dance, music and light first performed by Radio Symphony Orchestra Bratislava and Ensemble Mosaic.

In 1997, with bassist Glen Fisher and drummer Peter Perfido, he released his first Nicolas Simion Trio album, "Back to the Roots." The recording features a piece by Ornette Coleman and one by Romanian composer George Enescu. His latest CDs include "Luca's Dream" (1998) by the Nicolas Simion Trio and "The Big Rochade" (1998), recorded by Simion with pianist Mal Waldron.

Educated at the Conservatory of Music in Bucharest, the Romanian jazz musician, now based in Vienna, has toured internationally with appearances at the Festival of Contemporary Music in Bucharest and the Miles Davis Jazz Festival in Krakow.

The concert is part of a series sponsored by the Bates College Concert Committee. For more information, call the Olin Arts Center at 207-786-6135.