MURMURATIOn

ARTIST STATEMENT

“Murmuration” began when I became aware of this phenomenon - the gathering of thousands, even tens or hundreds of thousands, of starlings forming undulating patterns in the sky.

HEAR THE MUSIC

“Murmuration” is a twelve song celebration of life as reflected in the annual life cycle of birds. The style of music is a thrilling cross between jazz and classical in which passages of notated music, often including harmonic improvisation, are interspersed with passages of pure improvisation.

MEET THE MUSICIANS

The musicians on this project include Ada Bird Wolfe, Jamieson Trotter, Dan Lutz, Peter Buck, Katisse Buckingham, Scott Mayo, John Tegmeyer, and four incredible guest vocalists.

“Murmuration” began when I became aware of this mysterious and awe-inspiring phenomenon - the gathering of thousands, even tens or hundreds of thousands, of starlings forming undulating patterns in the sky. From this inspiration came this album of songs, both vocal and instrumental, which tracks the annual life cycle of birds - from spring mating to migration in the fall. A companion project, involving more instruments and focusing on the murmuration itself, is scheduled for release in the Winter 2026.

I began my career as a singer. During the pandemic, when I could no longer meet with musicians in person, I began to write music. Drawing upon my work as a poet and fiction writer, I began with writing lyrics and drew melodies from the cadences of the words. Weekly, I met on Zoom with my musical director, Jamieson Trotter. Jamieson’s impeccable and wide-ranging knowledge of complex jazz harmonies allowed us together to define the harmonies that the melodies implied.

As time passed, my writing became more complex, evolving into purely instrumental pieces as well as songs with lyrics, and drawing more explicitly on shows in my Giant Shoulders series - the work of Monk, Mingus, Miles and Coltrane — and on classical elements. For “Murmuration”, I also wrote songs for voice types other than my own deep alto - tenor, baritone, and high alto - and began to add additional lines for flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, bass and piano while continuing to leave ample space for improvisation by the magnificent jazz musicians I have had the privilege of working with. These include my longtime musical director Jamieson Trotter, my core rhythm section - bassist Dan Lutz and drummer Peter Buck - together with Katisse Buckingham (flute / alto flute), Scott Mayo (bass clarinet / clarinet / alto saxophone) and John Tegmeyer (clarinet). In addition to myself, singers are Maya Proulx (alto), Fletcher Sheridan (tenor), David Loucks (baritone) and Baraka May (high alto). Together with the upcoming companion work, a visual component of this project, consisting of projections or videos, is still in the works.

“Brilliant crossover jazz songs about birds and nature, most with fabulous vocals, including two by up-and-coming artist Maya Proulx, and two with Wolfe herself. The melodies and rhythms are so interesting! Favorite track: Spring Is.”
— Riegelstamm | Bandcamp Review

MUSIC: ADA BIRD WOLFE AND JAMIESON TROTTER
LYRICS: ADA BIRD WOLFE

1. Green and Gold 5:54
   (Trotter, Buckingham, Tegmeyer, Mayo, Lutz, Buck)

2. Spring Is 3:55
   (Trotter, Proulx)

3. A Puff of Air 6:19
   (Trotter, Buckingham, Tegmeyer, Mayo (cl), Lutz, Buck)

4. Sky Waltz 3:19
   (Trotter, Sheridan, Buckingham)

5. Leaf, Grass, Feather 5:06
   (Trotter, Proulx, Tegmeyer)

6. Fledgling 4:38
   (Trotter, May, Buckingham, Lutz)

7. First Flight 6:21
   (Trotter, Buckingham)

8. Red Tail 4:11
   (Trotter, Loucks, Buckingham (alto fl), Mayo, Buck)

9. Mobbing 5:31
   (Trotter, Buckingham, Tegmeyer, Mayo, Lutz, Buck)

10. Cornucopia of Dances 3:57
    (Trotter, May, Wolfe, Buckingham, Tegmeyer, Mayo (sax), Lutz, Buck)

11. I Dream 4:25
    (Trotter, Wolfe, Mayo)

12. Time to Fly 2:47
    (Trotter, Sheridan, Tegmeyer, Lutz, Buck) 

© 2026 Ada Birdie Music & Shkamofle Music, All Rights Reserved

ADA BIRD WOLFE

Ada Bird Wolfe is a jazz singer, lyricist and composer living in Los Angeles, California. After many years in other professions, Ms. Wolfe returned to singing, her first love, in 2010. She has performed at venues throughout Southern California including Bar Fedora at Au Lac, Hollywood Studio Bar & Grill, Gardenia Supper Club, Upstairs at Vitello’s and the G Spot.

Critics have called her: a “potent jazz singer,” “brilliant” and “magical,” with “stories to tell.”

In addition to sets in clubs and restaurants, she has created a number of major shows: The French Show: Vol 1, Jazzography, Chanteuse, Soliloquy and Blues-A-Licious.

In 2015 she created Giant Shoulders, a multi-show series exploring jazz musicians and composers, which so far has included: Monk-O-Sphere, And the Word Was Mingus, and The Saint and the Sinner Man: Miles Davis and John Coltrane.

Her debut CD Birdie, won critical praise including “Best Releases of 2018” from C. Michael Bailey at All About Jazz. Her followup album He and Me was released October 2020 and was also named “Best Releases of 2020” by C. Michael Bailey at All About Jazz. Her third album, Odd Bird (2022), showcases all original material written by Wolfe and her frequent writing partner Jamieson Trotter. Jazz Blues said: “A remarkable jazz vocal album… intriguing songs that are superbly sung and backed, whose performances will linger in one’s head after listening.”

“The deep, decades-long partnership between Los Angeles-based vocalist Ada Bird Wolfe and pianist Jamieson Trotter reaches a natural pinnacle on their June 2026 album, Murmuration. The duo has spent years cultivating a distinct musical language characterized by Wolfe’s sensitive and informed composing coupled with her keenly realized lyrics. Trotter proves a vocal accompanist in the same class as Tommy Flanagan, Jimmy Rowles, Hank Jones, and Ralph Sharon. The two artists have something greater than mere symbiosis; they share a deeply empathic and nuanced understanding of one another that few‌ other duet partners can boast.”

C. Michael Bailey | Wild Mercury Rhythms

JAMIESON TROTTER

When Jamieson Trotter was four years old, he went into the den where his father (acclaimed jazz pianist, Terry Trotter) had been practicing the piano and began playing what his dad had just finished working on. As the story goes, his father peeked into the room and just said, “I’m in deep trouble.” He started lessons for Jamieson the next day.

Jamieson Trotter attended school at California Institute of the Arts, learning from the great bass player Charlie Haden. He has also studied with Joe LaBarbera, Larry Koonse, and even the harmonically challenging Waddada Leo Smith (formerly of the Chicago Art Ensemble).

Jamieson's hands have played small roles in a few movies. He was Val Kilmer's piano hands in "The Salton Sea," and Debra Winger's coach for "Eulogy" with Ray Romano. He currently teaches jazz piano to Selena Gomez and Danny Devito. In addition to teaching private piano lessons, Jamieson teaches and works at the non-profit music school, The Lalo Guerrero School of Music for at-risk youth in Highland Park.

Jamieson has been performing professionally with a multitude of top musicians and bands in the Los Angeles area for the last 26 years including Sergio Mendes and Brazil 66 and saxophonist Kenny G. He has a wide palate for the type of music he plays ranging from latin to rock to jazz. Jamieson has also written, arranged, produced and engineered for many of the artists he has worked with.

As of late, Jamieson has licensed several of his compositions for TV and radio spots for Honda and Visa, and he is also enjoying scoring and writing music for independent films.