Dr. Mark Lomax, II

“Lomax envisions what Coltrane might have ascribed to if he had lived beyond age 40. ” - Mark Corroto

“The charismatic Dr. Mark Lomax II, composer of the opening work Ubuntu (2023), was the first to come onstage, spoke about the need for humanity to connect, and the music itself supported his words with seemingly disjunct, but infectiously energetic, rhythmic motives all interacting to find one another, eventually uniting as the quartet played in harmony and unison (with a nice final touch of F major, like the Prokofiev, which would close the program). It was a sensational start to the program.” - Rorianne Schrade

“Lomax’s melodious and moving drumming—which conjures Elvin Jones’ riveting, Afro-polyrhythmic pulsations, Max Roach’s bopping brilliance, and Tony Williams’ volcanic power—is supported by Hulett’s bone-deep baselines, Menefield’s McCoy Tyler-indebted pianism, and Bayard’s own takes on Coltrane’s “sheets of sound”.” - Eugene Holley, Jr

“There is no hyperbole in the title 400: An Afrikan Epic; it is work of significant importance, a spiritual fact-finding mission that plays out as an impressive, multilayered historical soundtrack.” - Karl Ackerman