Line-up

Stanley Jordan | Guitar and voice
Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Phil Lesh, Dave Matthews Band, Kenny Rogers, Dionne Warwick, Carmen McRae, Les Paul, Stanley Clarke, Art Blakey, Quincy Jones, The String Cheese Incident, Umphrey’s McGee, moe.

Laurence Cottle | Bass
Eric Clapton, Brian Eno, Bill Bruford, Buddy Rich Big Band, Alan Parsons Project, Black Sabbath, Mike Oldfield, Tony Iommi, Cozy Powell, Don Airey, Claire Martin

Kornel Horvath | Percussion
Al Di Meola, Chick Corea, Steve Gadd, John Patitucci, Ferenc Snétberger, László Dés, Gábor Dörnyei, Stanley Jordan, Dom Famularo

Gábor Dörnyei | Drums
Stanley Jordan, Kornel Horvath, Dom Famularo, Pete Lockett, Terry Bozzio, Jojo Mayer, Billy Cobham, Gavin Harrison, Ian Paice, Steve Smith, Chris Coleman

OR

Kenwood Dennard | Drums
Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Dizzy Gillespie, Pat Martino, Jaco Pastorius, Sting, Maceo Parker, Marcus Miller, Vernon Reid, John Scofield, The Allman Brothers Band, Phish

Style

A front-row view of Stanley Jordan’s two-handed “touch technique” as both a harmonic engine and a singing voice, powered by a drummer’s drummer and a bassist with prog-jazz precision. The trio moves fluently between modern jazz, groove-driven fusion, and song-form reinventions—keeping the pulse elastic while the harmony opens wide.

Profile

Stanley Jordan Trio frames Jordan’s celebrated touch technique—two-handed tapping applied with piano-like independence—as a complete band language, and the addition of Kornel Horvath opens a new spectrum of rhythmic color. Guitar and voice operate as intertwined narratives: chordal counterpoint, melodic lead lines, and sung phrasing share the same breath. Laurence Cottle brings a deep, articulate low-end that can lock into big-band punch or shift into lyrical, compositional bass lines; Kenwood Dennard answers with a polyrhythmic, colorist approach that turns time into texture without losing drive. With Horvath, the rhythm architecture becomes truly three-dimensional: hand drums, shakers and resonant percussion add micro-dynamics, breath, and timbral “hooks,” creating a live sound that can feel orchestral at conversational volume—virtuosic, never clinical, and built for the immediacy of the room.

Details

• Jordan’s touch-driven language has inspired superlatives for decades. “Genius is a word often tossed around in musical circles, but it has been rightfully applied to Stanley Jordan.” (Leonard Feather, Los Angeles Times, via stanleyjordan.com, 2019-07-30)

• Cottle is celebrated for his feel and leadership in large-ensemble contexts. “Special plaudits to bassist Laurence Cottle…” (Frank Griffith, London Jazz News, 2017-05-25)

• Dennard’s drumming is praised for both drive and imagination. “…a rare kind of joyous abandon… his drums play an integral role…” (Timothy J. O’Keefe, All About Jazz, 2009-03-23)

Stanley Jordan — guitar & voice

American guitarist and vocalist Stanley Jordan is a landmark innovator of the two‑handed “touch technique,” applying piano-like independence to harmony and melody on the fretboard. His 1985 breakthrough Magic Touch reached the top of Billboard’s jazz chart for a record 51 weeks and helped define a new mainstream for modern guitar. A relentless touring artist, he has performed in over 60 countries and moves fluently between straight-ahead jazz, pop/rock reinterpretations, and solo, orchestral-style guitar sets. Alongside his band work, Jordan has collaborated widely—appearing with artists from Les Paul to major jam-band stages—and has increasingly connected performance with music-therapy-oriented outreach.

Laurence Cottle — bass

Welsh bassist, composer, arranger, and bandleader Laurence Cottle is a high-level force across jazz, fusion, and rock—valued equally for deep pocket, clean articulation, and a distinctly “compositional” approach to the bass line. Based in London since his formative years, he has worked with major names on both sides of the spectrum: jazz collaborations include Wayne Shorter, Al Jarreau, Peter Erskine and the Buddy Rich Big Band, while rock credits include Black Sabbath, Ian Gillan, Cozy Powell, and Ginger Baker. He has recorded with artists such as Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, Brian Eno, and Mike Oldfield, leads his own Big Band (active since 1998), and is also active in education, including a professorship in jazz bass.

Kenwood Dennard — drums

New York–born drummer, composer, and educator Kenwood “Woody” Dennard is celebrated for a rare blend of deep funk feel, jazz vocabulary, and polyrhythmic imagination—driving a band hard while coloring every bar. His performance and recording history spans modern jazz, fusion, and pop, with credits including Miles Davis and Quincy Jones (Live at Montreux), Sting (Nothing Like the Sun), and work alongside artists such as Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and George Clinton. A key figure in the Brand X story, he is also recognized for simultaneous multi-instrument performance concepts and for his long-standing educational impact: he served as a Berklee College of Music professor, teaching specialist ensembles including the music of Jimi Hendrix and James Brown.

Kornel Horvath — percussion

Hungary-born percussionist Kornel Horvath is widely recognized for a distinctive blend of traditional hand-percussion craft and modern, high-impact groove language. Best known internationally as one half of the electrifying duo tHUNder Duo with drummer Gábor Dörnyei, he was highlighted as the 2016 “Best Percussionist” winner in MusicRadar’s overview of the world’s leading players. His palette centers on resonant hand drums and uncommon percussion colors—designed to add depth, motion, and air around the beat rather than simply doubling it. Horvath’s work spans contemporary jazz and fusion contexts, including recording credits on Al Di Meola’s Consequence of Chaos, and long-running European collaborations such as Trio Stendhal with Ferenc Snétberger and László Dés. Onstage, his role is equal parts engine and orchestrator: micro-dynamics, timbral hooks, and quick, musical responses that turn the rhythm section into a living arrangement.

Selected discography highlights

• Stanley Jordan — Magic Touch (1985), Stolen Moments (1985), Cornucopia (1990), Friends (2014)

• Kenwood Dennard — Show No Fear (2018)

• Brand X (Kenwood Dennard) — Livestock (1977)