Interplay is a meeting of minds and spirits, one that embraces virtuosity, spontaneity, and lyricism through a repertoire of standards and original music adapted to the unique instrumentation of acoustic bass and voice. It features 11 tracks recorded at Sear Sound Studios in New York and Studio le Meudon in Paris, and is due for release in January 2018. Shah and Moutin are also joined by their octogenarian mentors–NEA Jazz Master Sheila Jordan on vocals, considered by many as the pioneer of bass-and-voice duets, and legendary pianist Marital Solal–on two tracks each. The result is an improvisational journey across lyric-driven and wordless pieces alike.
FRANÇOIS MOUTIN (www.moutin.com), a virtuosic bassist, was born in Paris, and received a doctorate in physics at the age of 24 before choosing to become a professional musician. He has been a member of the legendary Martial Solal Trio for three decades, and since age 29, he has co-led the Quintet Moutin with his twin brother Louis, a project which later evolved into the Moutin Reunion Quartet. He regularly composes and tours extensively with this group around the world. In addition, François has worked with such musicians as: Antoine Hervé, André Ceccarelli, Jean-Michel Pilc, Randy Brecker, Dave Liebman, Toots Thielemans and Michel Legrand just to name a few.
KAVITA SHAH (www.kavitashahmusic.com) is an award-winning vocalist, composer, and lifelong New Yorker who makes work in deep engagement with the jazz idiom while addressing and advancing its global sensibilities. Hailed by NPR for possessing an “amazing dexterity for musical languages,” Kavita incorporates strands of Latin American, West African, and South Asian traditions into her original music. Not unlike François, Kavita studied Romance Languages & Literatures at Harvard before pursuing a Master’s in jazz voice at Manhattan School of Music. In 2012, she was named Downbeat’s Best Graduate Jazz Vocalist; in 2013, she won ASCAP’s Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composers Award. Her debut album, VISIONS, co-produced by Lionel Loueke, was released in 2014 to great critical acclaim. Kavita regularly brings her music to world-class stages such as the Kennedy Center, Duc des Lombards, Blue Note and numerous jazz festivals across the Americas, Europe, and Australia.
“I started the concept of doing bass and voice in the early 1950’s, so to be a guest on a wonderful young singer and swinging bass player’s recording some 60 years later is a fantastic feeling.” – Sheila Jordan, NEA Jazz Master
1. You Go To My Head 4:28
2. La Vie En Rose 3:46
3. Coming Yesterday 6:48
4. Bliss 3:31
5. Falling In Love With Love 6:24
6. Aigue Marine 3:32
7. Blah Blah (4:49)
8. Utopian Vision 3:38
9. Interplay 6:05
10. The Provider’s Gone 3:06
11. Peace 6:00
Kavita Shah : voice, ukelele (track 10)
Francois Moutin : acoustic bass
Martial Solal : piano (tracks 3, 6)
Sheila Jordan : voice (tracks 5, 11)
