The name of the group comes from the musicians' names: Gil (Lionel Gilles Loueke), Fe (Ferenc Nemeth), Ma (Massimo Biolcati). Founded in 2001 while the three were attending the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz under the musical direction of Terence Blanchard and Herbie Hancock, Gilfema recorded two albums and toured the world during the early 2000’s and later morphed into the Lionel Loueke Trio for a decade of music together on the Blue Note label. After 20 years of playing together, the band is coming out with a fresh new recording titled ’Three’ which is both a testament to the band’s progress and an expression of the core principles that made Gilfema so buzzed-about when they premiered over a decade ago. It is the trio’s most vibrant, groove-heavy meld of jazz and world influences yet.