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Combining the vibrancy of modern jazz and popular music with the sophistication of a classical chamber group, The Four Bags feature a captivating blend of Trombone, Accordion, Guitar and Woodwinds. With mature improvisation and a wide array of tonal colors, The Four Bags approach music from Schoenberg to the Beastie Boys in a way that is "wonderfully difficult to define, easy to enjoy." (David Garland, WNYC “Spinning on Air”)
Based in New York City since 1999, The Four Bags have been featured at Symphony Space’s Thalia Theatre Music Series, the "Next Next" festival at BAM Café, the "Celebrate Brooklyn!" festival in Prospect Park, The Wall to Wall Joni Mitchell Marathon at Symphony Space, A Tribute to Burt Bacharach in the Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Konnichiwa Festa! (Japan), The Friends of Alec Wilder Concert at St. Peter's Church, The Greenwich House Concert Series, the “Almost Mozart” Festival, and numerous live features on NPR.
Michael McGinnis performs regularly with The Four Bags, OK|OK, the Lonnie Plaxico Group, DDYGG and the Loser's Lounge. He also has recorded under his own name with Ravi Coltrane's RKM Music.
Jacob Garchik's 2008 album, Romance, was hailed by the New York Times as "odd and excellent...taut with paradox...slow and beautiful art songs." Jacob is an arranger for the Kronos Quartet and is a member of the Lee Konitz New Nonet and the John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble.
Sean Moran has worked with artists such as Steve Wilson, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Teo Macero, Andrew Thompson, and One Ring Zero. Sean is also a faculty member at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music and recently completed a piece for the Soundclock contemporary music ensemble for a Merkin Hall performance.
Brian Drye plays trombone and piano and lives in Brooklyn, NY. Brian has toured Japan, Europe, and throughout the US. He keeps a busy performance schedule in NYC and has performed with Frank London of the Klezmatics, John Hollenbeck, ABC Television’s Hit Series “My Kind of Town”, The Brooklyn Qawwali Party, Slavic Soul Party, Brazilian Forro, Matt Darriau and Clark Terry.
"There's always action...and something sweet and tender at work."
- Downbeat
"The instrumental palette of this collaborative quartet - trombone, accordion, guitar and reeds - creates the impression of a contemporary chamber jazz; so does the repertory, which includes arrangements of Chopin and Brian Wilson, along with thoughtful original compositions."
- The New York Times
“The group’s music is intelligent and challenging without alienating the listener or
being anything less than fun.”
– Casco Bay Weekly, Portland, ME
“The Four Bags maintain nice melodic lines, strong compositional direction and stay
on purpose without becoming predictable.”
– Ben Monaghan, Portland Press Herald, Portland, ME
“. . . smart without being stuffy, fun without being crass,
and highly listenable.”
– Richard Kamins, The Hartford Courant
“Using material with a melodic center, the four artists spin a sensitive weave as
they intertwine the instruments in close interplay…” “…delightfully lyrical set with
solid playing and occasional humor. It all seems to work just fine.”
– Cadence Magazine
“. . . cinematic, textured jazz with a heavy dose of humor. . . ”
– Seven Days, Burlington, VT
“The band's music derives from humanity's never-ending efforts to make weirder
and weirder music. The Four Bags stretches jazz to its limits...”
– Casco Bay Weekly, Portland, ME
“. . . a wonderful little band indeed.
These four gentlemen create some absolutely wonderful mind-bending music that is
provocative and intriguing.”
- LMNOP.com
“The Four Bags take an unusual lineup and make the result sound smooth”
– ourmaine.com