Possibilities

Possibilities is a trio that developed out of the close kinship of three musicians, Tim Bennett, Peter Manheim, and Dan Stein. After meeting as 18 year olds in 2007, they became integral in each other's musical and personal development.  They sought wisdom from the older generation of jazz musicians, but also learned from each other,  personalizing and implementing the knowledge passed down to them from their mentors in rehearsals and performances. Possibilities soon developed their own musical language, and after a few years of playing realized that there was something unique and passionate that occurred every time they performed. Years later, after individually pursuing professional careers in music, they found that although they were playing with notable musicians in many different contexts, nothing felt quite like the music they made as a trio. Possibilities started performing again and recorded their debut full length album, "Get 'Em",  which is due out in April 2017.  With an effortless approach to group improvisation, every performance is completely different than the last, and always results in an intensely soulful dialogue between the musicians and the audience. 

Members

Tim Bennett is a saxophonist, composer, and educator currently based in Chicago, Illinois. He is a graduate of the highly esteemed Masters of Music Teaching program at Oberlin Conservatory as well as an alum of Oberlin’s double-degree bachelor program, where he majored in Jazz Saxophone Performance and Religion. Originally from Chicago, Tim was introduced to the saxophone in elementary school. With the help of teachers like Jacques Slaiher, Ari Brown, Pharez Whitted, Jarrard Harris, and Ron Carter, Tim eventually decided to pursue a career in music. By the end of high school, he was enrolled in music programs at the Thelonious Monk Institute at Gallery 37, Merit School of Music, the Jazz Institute of Chicago, and After School Matters. Amongst Tim’s most noticeable mentors are saxophonist Gary Bartz, saxophonist James Kalyn, Oberlin Jazz Studies founder and former director Wendell Logan, former Oberlin English Professor John Hobbs, and drummer Paul Samuels. Throughout his musical journey, Tim has been privileged to be the recipient of the Questbridge Scholarship, the Wendell Logan Conservatory Jazz Studies Scholarship, and the Presser Music Award. Tim currently teaches middle school band on the southwest side of Chicago while maintaing an active role as a composer and performer in the Chicago-land area.
 

Daniel Stein is a versatile and exciting young bassist and native New Yorker. He recently completed his masters at The Juilliard School, where he studied with Ray Drummond and Ron Carter. He is an honors graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Peter Dominguez and was a member of the Oberlin Jazz Septet, a small jazz ensemble comprised of outstanding student performers nominated by the jazz faculty at Oberlin. At Oberlin, Daniel had the opportunity to study and perform with Gary Bartz, Billy Hart, Robin Eubanks Marcus Belgrave, Dan Wall, and others. While living in Cleveland, Daniel performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, Jamey Haddad, Alicia Weilerstein, Dominick Farinacci, and others. Daniel is now an active performer in New York, with recent appearances at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Smalls, Dizzy's Club, Mercury Lounge and many other venues, including appearances with Billy Hart, Kenny Rampton, Donny McCaslin, Sherman Irby, Paquito D'Rivera, and others. Dan regularly performs and composes in a variety of styles besides jazz, and composed and performed the film score for the short film, Serenity. This past summer he had the honor of performing on the Queen Mary 2's 200th crossing, at the Bumbershoot festival in Seattle, and at the Costa Rica jazz festival. He received a Juilliard Alumni Scholarship, the Calhoun School Music Award, a Conservatory Dean’s Award, the Margaret V.H. Jones Conservatory Scholarship, and the Elizabeth Davies Scholarship at Oberlin, and is a member of Pi Kappa Lambda, a national honor society for excellence in music and academic achievement.
 

Peter Manheim is a drummer and percussionist from Evanston, Illinois. In 2012, he completed his bachelors degree in music at Oberlin Conservatory. While at school, he was fortunate to study with drumming masters Billy Hart and Jamey Haddad, both of whom became extremely important mentors to him. Upon completing school, Peter moved to Brazil, where he spent six months traveling, performing, and studying Brazilian drums and percussion. Peter is currently based in Chicago where he performs regularly in a variety of music styles. Peter tours nationally and internationally with bands including The New Samuel Mösching Trio, CECIL, and Maggie Brown.