On Thursday, October 31, Myra Melford’s Fire and Water Quintet will make its debut performance at the Outpost. Comprising five stellar improvisers—Melford (piano and melodica), Ingrid Laubrock (saxophones), Mary Halvorson (guitar), Tomeka Reid (cello), and Leslie Mok (drums)—the group plays vivid, life-affirming compositions by Melford, a sensitive synesthete, inspired by the paintings of Cy Twombly, specifically his Gaeta Set (For the Love of Fire and Water). Musically Speaking had the opportunity to speak with Melford, one of the brightest luminaries on the jazz scene.