The Ari Roland Quartet has toured through Central Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, China, and India, but this will be their first visit to Uzbekistan. They play a repertoire that includes jazz classics from Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Cole Porter and others, along with original compositions by each of the musicians in the quartet.

Their 5-day tour of Uzbekistan is sponsored by the US Embassy in Tashkent, which has brought other “jazz ambassadors” such as the Brian Horton Quartet in the past year. The Ari Roland Quartet has visited more than 20 countries in recent years on US State Department-sponsored tours.

“Jazz has always been a music that brings people together,” said bassist Ari Roland, who noted that jazz groups and audiences have always included people from every ethnic background, religion and social group. He said it is also a musical form for all ages of people. “It is a perfect place for the older generation to pass along their knowledge and experience, and for the younger generation to find their own voices and to contribute something new, which brings new life to the tradition.”

The quartet starts its tour in Uzbekistan on 2 December with a master class at 12:30 at the Music College in Urgench.

They will conduct a master class at 13:00 on 3 December at the H. Niyaziy Music College in Tashkent, and at 19:00 they will participate in the concert dedicating International Disabilities Day at the Istiqlol Concert Hall.

They will hold another master class at 12:00 on 4 December at the RASML Uspensky Music School in Tashkent, and at 19:00 play in the next International Disabilities Day concert at the Istiqlol Concert Hall.

They travel to Bukhara to hold a master class at 12:00 on 5 December at the Music College.

The quartet will then return to Tashkent for a concert at 16:00 on 6 December at the Turkiston Hall. Their tour wraps up with a concert at 15:00 on 7 December at the Jazz Club of the Photography House in Tashkent.

Entrance is free of charge to all the concerts and classes except the International Disabilities Day concerts, which require tickets.

Roland studied music at the world-renowned Julliard School in New York, but he also began playing jazz professionally by the time he was 16. He would leave school and play jazz at home with his friends, then go out to listen to gigs at night. After the gigs, they would stick around to play in jam sessions all night long, he said.

“All we did was jazz,” he said in an interview with the magazine “Jazz Times.” Unlike many jazz bassists, Roland almost always uses a bow when he solos in what is known as the “arco” style.

Chris Byars plays tenor saxophone and is in demand as a composer and arranger. Zaid Nasser, on alto saxophone, has made CDs that have received critical acclaim. Drummer Keith Balla also has recorded his own CD and works regularly with other young jazz musicians in New York.