The Jazz Mandolin Project

Mandolinist Jamie Masefield, formerly of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, directed the Jazz Mandolin Project. An improvisational outfit established in 1993, its first members comprised bassist Stacey Starkweather and drummer Gabe Jarrett in addition to the leader. The group put out a self-titled album in 1996 and then split up late the following year. Masefield subsequently formed a fresh incarnation of the Jazz Mandolin Project that incorporated drummer Jon Fishman, recognized primarily for his contributions to the celebrated jam band Phish, along with upright bassist Chris Dahlgren, and this edition cut the LP Tour de Flux. By 1999 Fishman had given way to drummer Ari Hoenig on the kit, leading to the release of Xenoblast one year afterward.