The Arboreal Quartet, from Montréal, Québec, is an instrumental, acoustic ensemble performing original compositions by John Wrinch Williams, who founded the group in 2008. John's musical background includes formal training in Hindustani music, jazz instruction, apprenticeships in traditional music in Ontario and Québec, teaching, and much experience in performance and composition for a variety of instruments and ensembles.
John plays the sarod, the 25-stringed relative of the sitar. Back in 1998, John immersed himself in two months of daily study with Rajeesh Chandra Moitra, an All-India Radio veteran sarod player and disciple of Allaudin Khan, in Benares, India. He has kept up with practice ever since. In 2008 he received further instruction from the late Ustad Ali Akbar Khan in San Rafael, California.
Acoustic guitarist Tom Eliosoff cites his major influences to be his teacher, Lorne Lofsky, and renowned guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel. Tom is very active in the Montréal jazz scene, performing with the Chet Doxas Quartet, teaching, and hosting jazz nights at noted jazz clubs such as Grumpy's and Upstairs.
Eric Thibodeau – drums – graduated from McGill University in December 2006 in jazz performance, and has played alongside noted musicians in Montreal such as Michel Donato, Joel Miller, John Roney, Kevin Dean, Steve Amirault and others.
Sage Reynolds – upright bass. The bulk of Sage’s musical training occurred while completing his Bachelor of Music Degree, Majoring in Jazz Performance, at McGill University (2000). Other training has included several years of private study (with Jordan O'Connor, Michel Donato, Alec Walkington, John Hebert, and others) as well as participation in numerous master classes and seminars, including a bass master class with Mark Dresser and participation in The International Jazz Workshop at The Banff Centre for the Arts (1999), where he played and studied with Dave Holland, Joe Lovano, Dave Douglas, and Kenny Werner. Sage was awarded the “Prix Étoiles Galaxie de Radio-Canada” at the 2005 Montréal International Jazz Festival for his compositions “Saturday Afternoon” and “On the Wall”.
The Arboreal Quartet's music draws from folk/roots, jazz and North Indian classical music in a style that crosses borders.