Sten Hostfalt was introduced on the mid-90s New York City's Jazz scene as a guitarist, featured soloist and member of the first, formative edition of Argentine composer Guillermo Klein's large NYC ensemble 'Big Van'. Appearing at Mitch Borden's Smalls Jazz Club from fall 1994 and June 1995, the band held a Sunday residency throughout '95, during the inception of the venue since deemed a formative key community for Jazz of our time. During this time the band also appeared at the Knitting Factory (74 Leonard St. location), and at The Jazz Gallery, during the early Hudson St. era.
Regular members of the Big Van at this time were Mark Turner, Chris Cheek, Seamus Blake and Melvin Butler saxophones, Diego Urcola, David Boato, Juan Cruz de Urquiza, Richard Nant and Ingrid Jensen trumpets. Sandro Tomasi, Matt Pavolka and Masa Ikeda on trombones, Sten Hostfalt guitar, Aaron Goldberg, Johannes Wiedenmueller, Jeff Ballard or Marc Miralta on drums, and Guillermo Klein director/composer + voice and keyboard.
This early edition of Klein's band recorded the CD 'Big Van' at Mastersound Astoria in 1994, an album that initially released on the italian label Beat, and distributed in the U.S. by Pentaflower, then was re-released under Klein's name in 1997 as 'Big Van/El Minotauro' on Candid (U.K.) and in Japan on Teichiku Records. Tenor saxophonist George Garzone who sat in with the band at Smalls a few times, wrote the Candid edition's CD liner notes.
Enthusiastic press of the Big Van's live concerts and recorded media included The New York Times, All Music Guide, Jazz Times, and Cadence. Klein and his following, somewhat smaller more recent to current lineup of the band, called 'Los Guachos' have since, for the past + 30 years been widely recognized as an influential, creative new millennium force in Jazz of New York City, and The Americas as well as Internationally.
Guillermo Klein Biography from Massachussetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences https://mta.mit.edu/people/visiting-artists/guillermo-klein A composer, arranger, pianist and occasional singer, Klein began his craft in childhood in Argentina. When his father gave him a piano at age 11, he promptly began writing songs, inspired by the legendary Argentinean composer Astor Piazzolla. Klein attended Berklee College of Music, where his intention to study classical music gave way to his passion for jazz. His colleagues at Berklee—many of whom came from South America—provided the framework for what would eventually become Klein’s main musical voice, the Big Van large ensemble (later called Los Guachos). After graduating from Berklee, Klein moved to New York City and quickly became associated with Smalls, a jazz club where he established a weekly engagement with his 17-piece Big Van band. Smalls was critical in fostering young artists that would ultimately be some of the most influential voices of modern jazz. Klein scaled the band down to a more streamlined 11-piece unit, known as Los Guachos (roughly translated, the bastards). The band developed in residencies at Smalls and, later, the Jazz Standard. Sunnyside Records soon released two CDs by Los Guachos: Los Guachos II (1999) and Los Guachos III (2002), and Klein is still with this label. Since moving back to Argentina in 2000 with his wife, Klein has recorded with local musicians and has released a series of critically-acclaimed CDs with Los Guachos including: Live in Barcelona (Sunnyside, 2005), Filtros (Sunnyside, 2008) and his latest, Carrera (Sunnyside, 2012). Other important recordings include his work as a composer and/or arranger on Solar Return Suite (with the MIT Wind Ensemble), Domador de Huellas (Sunnyside, 2010), Bienestan (Sunnyside 2011) with Aaron Goldberg and Miguel Zenon’s Grammy-nominated, Alma Aldentro. Klein plays regularly with some of the most outstanding musicians in the jazz community, like Chris Cheek, Miguel Zenón, Bill McHenry, Jeff Ballard, Ben Monder, Aaron Goldberg, Carmen Canela or Jorge Rossy. In addition to teaching composition in Buenos Aires, Klein has given master classes and seminars throughout Europe, including the Jazz Institut Berlin, Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Jazz Schule Basel, and Le Mirail in Toulouse.