Glutenfree Trio - Farina del mio sacco (DODICILUNE / IRD March 20, 2018)

Prodotto dall'etichetta pugliese Dodicilune, martedì 20 marzo esce in Italia e all’estero distribuito da Ird e nei migliori store digitali, "Farina del mio sacco" il nuovo progetto discografico di brani originali del Glutenfree Trio, composto da Davide Di Camillo (basso elettrico), Christian Mascetta (chitarra elettrica) e Andrea Giovannoli (batteria), affiancati in quattro pezzi dal sassofonista Mattia Feliciani. Otto composizioni originali nelle quali il connubio tra funk, jazz, blues e rock genera melodie cantabili su un tappeto di energia e groove. Il disco sarà presentato ufficialmente in concerto sabato 7 aprile (ore 21 - ingresso libero) al Teatro Comunale di Città Sant' Angelo, in provincia di Pescara. 

"Se la musica è mia non può che essere senza glutine". Il Glutenfree Trio nasce nel 2016 dall'autoironica idea del bassista Davide Di Camillo che avverte l'esigenza di sviluppare le proprie idee musicali. Grazie a Christian Mascetta e Andrea Giovannoli, la band comincia a prendere forma partecipando a numerose rassegne ("Sabato in concerto jazz") e ottenendo i primi riconoscimenti (2016, primo premio al "Festival Nazionale dei Conservatori di musica Città di Frosinone"). A meno di un anno dalla sua nascita, il trio viene invitato a esibirsi a Instabul dal Comitato Nazionale Italiano Musica in collaborazione con l'Istituto Italiano di Cultura della metropoli turca. Il 2 maggio 2017 i tre musicisti entrano in studio per le registrazioni del primo disco. La scelta di suonare in trio (pur collaborando con con altri musicisti) non è casuale, anzi proprio dall'interplay e dallo scambio di idee tra i tre componenti nascono i brani originali di "Farina del mio sacco".

Classe 1991, il bassista e compositore Davide Di Camillo inizia a studiare chitarra moderna a 12 anni, sotto la guida del Maestro Paolo Giordano. Dopo un anno di lezioni, intraprende parallelamente lo studio della chitarra classica al conservatorio Luisa D'Annunzio di Pescara, sotto la guida del Maestro Michele De Angelis. A 16 anni forma la sua prima band (Mandal). A causa della mancanza del basso, ne acquista uno e comincia a suonarlo. Con i Mandal suona i classici del rock e brani originali in tutti i locali d'Abruzzo. La band apre il concerto dei Sud Sound System e il concerto del primo maggio a Pescara. La passione per il basso prende il sopravvento, così a 17 anni comincia a studiare con il Maestro Francesco Marranzino. A 21 anni comincia a frequentare il corso di basso elettrico popular music al conservatorio Luisa D'Annunzio di Pescara, sotto la guida del Maestro Maurizio Rolli. Durante questi anni intensifica la sua attività suonando in tanti progetti differenti: Orchestra giovanile Amadeus diretta dal Maestro Mike Applebaum, Luca Falsetti project feat. Francisco Morales, Adolfo Dececco Band col Maestro Vince Tempera e in svariate cover band. Partecipa alle masterclass di Alain Caron, Michael Manring, Gary Willis, Linley Marthe, Michael League, Jeff Berlin, Hadrien Feraud, Massimo Moriconi, Poalo Costa, Ciro Manna, Dean Brown e molti altri. Nel marzo 2016 consegue la laurea in basso elettrico popular music. In occasione della sua tesi di laurea sente il bisogno di tradurre in musica le sue idee e forma il Glutenfree Trio, col quale nel luglio del 2016 vince il primo premio al Festival nazionale dei conservatori città di Frosinone. Attualmente è iscritto al biennio di basso jazz al conservatorio Luisa D'Annunzio di Pescara sotto la guida del Maestro Maurizio Rolli. 

Christian Mascetta, nato il 31 dicembre 1994 a Lanciano, vive a Chieti. Inizia gli studi di chitarra elettrica a sette anni che approfondisce (soprattutto nel campo del blues, jazz, rock) con il Maestro Roberto Di Virgilio, iniziando a suonare anche la chitarra acustica e a lavorare in studio. Frequenta il corso di chitarra jazz al conservatorio di musica Luisa D'Annunzio di Pescara con il Maestro Rocco Zifarelli. Ha partecipato anche a seminari con Steve Lukather, Stef Burns, Andy Timmons, Carl Verheyen. Nel luglio 2013 fonda insieme ad altri musicisti la band "RaiNotes" di cui è stato arrangiatore e compositore di alcuni brani. Dal 2014 inizia a collaborare con il batterista abruzzese Danny Manzo in un progetto jazz/rock. Dal gennaio 2015 collabora con la società di “Jamgle” e con Antonio Di Francesco (ideatore del sito), con il quale partecipa come dimostratore al NAMM di Los Angeles. Collabora con il bassista, compositore, arrangiatore Maurizio Rolli. Dal 2016 collabora con il Vocal Ensemble diretto dal maestro Angelo Valori. Nel luglio 2016 vince con il Glutenfree Trio il primo premio nazionale dei conservatori italiani. Nello stesso anno incide il suo primo disco inedito “istinto” con la Band dei SensAction. Nel Gennaio 2017 vince il concorso Chicco Bettinardi del Piacenza Jazz Festival con il quartetto dei Blackish, di cui è arrangiatore e compositore.

Andrea Giovannoli, classe 1992, a dieci anni inizia il suo primo approccio con la musica attraverso il pianoforte, ma è a tredici anni che segue la sua vera passione: la batteria. Studiandola diversi anni con il maestro Roberto Di Marco, matura un interesse tale e una voglia di fare musica che una volta finito il liceo decide di iniziare un nuovo percorso all’interno del conservatorio. Oggi è laureato con il massimo dei voti presso il Conservatorio Statale di Musica “Luisa d’Annunzio” di Pescara, al corso di Batteria e Percussioni per Popular Music. Grazie ai maestri Alessandro Svampa e Pierpaolo Bisogno ha approfondito ancor di più lo studio della batteria nei vari generi musicali. Ha partecipato a diverse Masterclass/concerto tenute in Conservatorio e non solo, con le scuole d’oltreoceano quali Berklee College of Music, Columbia College e alcuni dei principali batteristi italiani e internazionali. Ad oggi è batterista dei “Gluten free trio”, “Five years later”, “Dago Red”, con i quali ha preso parte alle registrazioni delle musiche che animano la graphic novel “Wrong Way Blues” di Colafella e Di Gregorio, “Project 7” e percussionista della “Mo’ Better Band”. Continua a maturare la sua esperienza in studio, collaborando, oltre che con i suoi progetti, con artisti e gruppi emergenti abruzzesi in qualità di session man. Matura anche la sua esperienza nei live: grazie ai progetti di cui fa parte ha suonato in teatri, rassegne e contest. Vince con i Back to Dust il “Mark world night”, concorso indetto da Marco De Virgiliis (fondatore della MarkBass), con i Profunk il “Teramo music fest” che lo porta a suonare sul palco di “Aspettando il primo maggio” e successivamente il premio Nino Dale. Vince, nel 2016, con il Gluten Free Trio il Festival nazionale dei conservatori italiani tenutosi a Frosinone. Con lo stesso Trio ha suonato presso l’istituto di Alta Cultura Italiana ad Istanbul. Attualmente collabora con diverse realtà musicali e con progetti propri, sia nei live sia in studio e alterna a queste l’attività di insegnante.

L’etichetta Dodicilune è attiva dal 1996. Dispone di un catalogo di oltre 220 produzioni di artisti italiani e stranieri ed è distribuita in Itali a e all'estero da IRD in circa 400 punti vendita tra negozi di dischi e store. I dischi Dodicilune possono essere acquistati anche online, ascoltati e scaricati su una cinquantina tra le maggiori piattaforme del mondo.

1 - Bruco Mela

2 - Un Passo alla Volta

3 - L’Ultimo Viaggio

4 - And So...

5 - Hey Repression!

6 - Arabiasaurita

7 - Life

8 - Mickey Mais

Compositions by Davide Di Camillo, Christian Mascetta, Andrea Giovannoli (1); 

Davide Di Camillo (2, 4, 6, 7, 8); Christian Mascetta (3, 5); (Dodicilune edizioni).

Davide Di Camillo - electric bass

Christian Mascetta - electric guitar

Andrea Giovannoli - drums

Mattia Feliciani - saxophone (4, 6, 7, 8)

Susan Krebs Chamber Band - Spring: Light out of Darkness (March 21, 2018)

SUSAN KREBS CHAMBER BAND RELEASES SPRING ~ LIGHT OUT OF DARKNESS AVAILABLE MARCH 21, 2018 

SPRING ~ Light Out of Darkness is SUSAN KREBS’ sixth album as a leader and the second recording project for the SUSAN KREBS CHAMBER BAND. SPRING is the follow-up to the Chamber Band’s 2015 acclaimed release, SIMPLE GIFTS, taking the chamber band concept even further on this new project. 

Chamber music is defined as “music composed for small instrumental ensembles and performed without a conductor. Traditionally intended for performance in a room or reception hall, often solely for the performers’ own pleasure.”  The idea for the jazz chamber band grew from salons hosted by jazz vocalist Krebs at her home. She calls these salons “ThemeScenes,” in which she and a small group of her close friends get together in front of an invited audience to explore various motifs through wide-ranging music, poetry and improvisation.   

Performing in an intimate space to a small audience of music lovers required Krebs to make creative choices about the instrumentation. There is no drum kit or bass on this project. Rather, the band, which is made up of some of the finest jazz musicians in Southern California, creates a full, rich and stirring sound with just piano, percussion, woodwinds, and violin. RICH EAMES, the versatile pianist, composer and arranger, who is Krebs’ longtime friend and musical collaborator, plays on this disc and arranged six of the seven tunes. ROB LOCKART, on woodwinds, is a busy sideman, who has performed with the Woody Herman Orchestra, Tom Harrell Big Band, Doc Severinsen Big Band, and Kurt Elling, among others, as well as appearing on numerous scores for TV and film. Master percussionist SCOTT BREADMAN has performed with Jose Feliciano, Lindsey Buckingham, and The Rippingtons, among many top music acts. LUIS MASCARO is the newest member of the Chamber Band. The Brazilian violinist, who is part of a new generation of creative string players, was one of the few musicians to perform live at the 50th Grammy Awards with the Foo Fighters.  

Although Krebs has created the central vision for the Chamber Band, the music they make is a conversation between kindred spirits who have an engaging synergy that comes from a deep familiarity and a shared musical vision.   

The overarching concept that binds the seven tunes on this CD is renewal. Like many people, Krebs is concerned about the problems that beset our country and, indeed, the whole world. For Krebs, change has to begin on a personal level. She connects to the world both as a musical artist and as a serious gardener, attuned to the rhythms of the natural world. Each of her previous CDs reflects her closeness to nature and her philosophical outlook. 

The compositions that Krebs chose comprise a mix of musical genres imbued with a jazz sensibility. Two classical pieces, “Spring,” one of the concertos from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, and Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring,” are instrumentals. “The work we do in our salons is truly collaborative,” according to Krebs, “and most of the music grew organically out of the theme Awakening – Spring & Otherwise. The classical pieces just fit perfectly. I don’t sing every tune during a salon performance, and I didn’t have to sing on every track on the CD. I wanted this recording to really reflect the feeling of the salons.”  

Krebs opens with a joyful rendition of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Oh, What A Beautiful Morning,” awakening to greet the dawn of another day, the song overflows with optimism that sets the tone for the rest of the CD.  

“Spring,” the title tune, arranged by violinist Harry Scorzo, is highlighted by Lockart’s flute and Mascaro’s violin in synchronized harmonic lines, and the steady driving pulse of Breadman’s percussion. 

Krebs’ voice is sometimes sweet and sometimes throaty, but always suffused with emotion. She and the band put their own bluesy spin on Ray Charles’ “Light Out of Darkness,” the subtitle of the CD. Mascaro and Eames’ soulful solos highlight the song’s gospel-inflected provenance. 

Stravinsky described “The Rite of Spring” as "a musical-choreographic work, [representing] pagan Russia ... unified by a single idea: the mystery and great surge of the creative power of Spring." Although Stravinsky wrote it for an orchestra, Eames’ distilled arrangement captures its early 20th century modernistic essence overlaid with a contemporary jazz texture. 

Krebs was attracted to the innocence and droll metaphor of “Whispering Grass,” a song about lost love, which imagines Nature - its grass, trees, bees, et al - actively witnessing lovers kissing. Written in 1940 by Fred Fisher and his daughter Doris Fisher, the song was made popular by the Ink Spots when it was first released.  

“Some Other Time,” the bittersweet song by Leonard Bernstein with lyrics by Comden & Green, is given an atmospheric arrangement by Eames, with the passing of time implied in its rhythmic structure.

Krebs wanted to include “You Must Believe In Spring” because of its message of hope. The song opens with the lyrics, “When lonely feelings chill / The meadows of your mind / Just think if winter comes / Can spring be far behind.” For Krebs, the avid gardener, bird lover, performing artist and awakened citizen, you must believe in Spring and in the return of the Light Out of Darkness - especially in the troubled and challenging times in which we live. 

SPRING ~ Light Out of Darkness is infused with a reverence for nature, and, as with all of Krebs’ recordings and live performances, it is also imbued with her hopeful vision and generous soul.

SPRING ~ Light Out of Darkness will be available in stores and online everywhere on March 21, 2018.

1. Oh, What a Beautiful Morning (6:36)

2. Whispering Grass (4:48)

3. Some Other Time (5:33)

4. Spring (4:04)

5. You Must Believe in Spring (5:12)

6. Light Out of Darkness (4:50)

7. Rite of Spring (7:32)

The Chamber Band

Susan Krebs  vocals

Rich Eames piano

Rob Lockart  woodwinds

Scott Breadman  percussion

Luis Mascaro  violin 

arranged by Rich Eames Harry Scorzo (4)

produced by Rich Eames, Jerry Kalaf, Susan Krebs

Joshua Redman Pre-Order | David Byrne, Brad Mehldau, Laurie Anderson, Kronos Quartet News

Joshua Redman, Ron Miles, Scott Colley, Brian Blade

Still Dreaming

Release date: May 25

Joshua Redman is joined by drummer Brian Blade, bassist Scott Colley, and trumpeter Ron Miles for Still Dreaming, an album inspired by his father Dewey Redman's band Old and New Dreams. That band had an all-star lineup of Ornette Coleman collaborators: Don Cherry, Charlie Haden, and Ed Blackwell. Still Dreaming features six new compositions by the new band plus one tune by Haden, one by Coleman. "Consistently riveting," says the Washington Post.

Pre-order to download the track "Unanimity" now.

Watch: David Byrne Performs on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

David Byrne was on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to discuss his new album, American Utopia, and give an immersive performance of "Everybody's Coming To My House," with a special assist from Colbert.

Watch the performance plus web exclusive ...

David Byrne Releases "Everybody's Coming To My House" Video Performed by Detroit Students

David Byrne has shared a video for "Everybody's Coming To My House" featuring a performance by Detroit School of Arts Vocal Jazz Ensemble students.

Watch the video ...

Brad Mehldau's After Bach on BBC Radio 2's Jamie Cullum

Brad Mehldau's new album, After Bach, was featured on BBC Radio 2's Jamie Cullum show. "Absolutely beautiful," says Cullum. "It's one of those records you listen to from beginning to end and it leaves something behind in your heart afterwards." 

Listen to the episode ...

Listen: Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet's Landfall on NPR's Fresh Air

Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet's first album together, Landfall, results "from years of practicing, performing, refining and tweaking the collaborations," says NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross. "You can hear how the time and care have paid off."

Hear the review ...

Joshua Redman

Still Dreaming

John Adams

Violin Concerto

Lake Street Dive

Free Yourself Up

David Byrne

American Utopia

Brad Mehldau

After Bach

Laurie Anderson &

Kronos Quartet

Landfall

Dave Soldier Appearing With William Hooker Thu, April 5th 8:00 PM @ Roulette + New CD Brainwave

Dave Soldier Appearing With William Hooker 
Thursday, April 5th 8:00-11:00 pm  
@ Roulette 
509 Atlantic Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11217

Tickets & Info

William Hooker: The Great Migration

Company:
Ras Moshe – Reeds, Flute
Eriq Robinson – Electronics, Images
Mark Hennen – Piano
Goussy Celestin – Narrator, Dance

Guests:
William Parker – Bass
David Soldier – Violin, Banjo
Ava Mendoza – Guitar

Alton Brooks and Nannie Lampkin – Primary Narratives

NEW CD

What's Going On Inside A Musicians Brain

Musican/Neuroscientist Dave Soldier and Composer/Computer-Musician Brad Garton

Have An Idea On Their New CD

Dave Soldier and Brad Garton at 

Red Bull Music Academy

talk about their Brainwave Music Project, and try our hand at making music with our brainwaves.

Click on image to listen

Artist: BRAD GARTON & DAVE SOLDER

Title: THE BRAINWAVE MUSIC PROJECT

Label: Mulatta 038

Release Date: JANUARY 5, 2018

UPC Code: 19192489586

Website Links

Brad Garton

Dave Soldier

mulatta.org

Featured Artists

Margaret Lancaster

Dan Trueman

Terry Pender

William Hooker

Tracks

1 Bible School Vacation (feat. Margaret Lancaster, flute & EEG)

2 Taco Tuesday (feat. Margaret Lancaster, flute & EEG)

3 Harajuku Hiccup (feat. Margaret Lancaster, flute & EEG)

4 Serotonin (feat. Dan Trueman, Hardanger fiddle & EEG

5 Adrenaline (feat. Dan Trueman, Hardanger fiddle & EEG)

6 Dopamine (feat. Dan Trueman, Hardanger fiddle & EEG)

7 Histamine (feat. Dan Trueman, Hardanger fiddle & EEG)

8 Amygdala (feat. Terry Pender, mandolin & EEG)

9 Insula (feat. Terry Pender, mandolin & EEG)

10 Cerebellum (feat. Terry Pender, mandolin & EEG)

11 The Wheels (feat. William Hooker, drums & EEG)

12 Initiates (feat. William Hooker, drums & EEG)

13 Rational Entities (feat. William Hooker, drums & EEG)

14 The Wild (feat. William Hooker, drums & EEG)

In 2008, musican/neuroscientist Dave Soldier approached composer/computer-musician Brad Garton with an idea.  Dave had become aware of fairly inexpensive EEG (electroencephalograph) sensors that could measure the electrical output of the brain ("brainwaves").  Working with these sensors over the past ten years, Brad and Dave developed a set of software tools that could generate music using this brainwave data. 

As they worked out the system, they have played concerts at rock festivals (Red Bull Festival), radio stations (WFMU), the New York City Opera, colleges (City College, Cornell University), museums (the Guggenheim and Rubin Museums) and even an hour long PBS TV special produced by WHYY. In addition to concerts at City College and Cornell University, they are probably the only avant garde music act to be invited to perform at the National Institutes of Health, where they were invited by the graduate students.

In shows, typically Dave gives a lecture with slides on the brain’s cortical activity and how it senses and produces rhythm, and Brad explains how the waves recorded from the cortex are translated to music. Then they use their own brainwaves or those of guest musicians to “compose” in real time, generally with the musicians improvising on their instruments. An interesting question is if the music is “composed” if it is not done intentionally: the brain always controls music making, but in this case it can create music even when asleep or unconcious.

The latest version of these tools were used to produce this CD and the software used will soon be freely avaialable. This uses a process of "data sonification”, or the translation of a stream of numbers into musical production and control.  The raw data is used to trigger and modify synthetic digital musical instruments.  

The EEG signal is made by the neural activity detected by the sensors, but does not reveal any high-level concepts or ideas that are being *thought* (although the brain activity responds to sensory inputs like the touch of the drumhead and sound and activates movements, and is modulated by mental states).  Dave and Brad decided to exploit this feature by creating a feedback loop of sorts, with musicians being invited to play along 'with themselves', generating music with brainwaves resulting from the process of generating that music.

For this first complete recording of “The Brainwave Music Project”, four soloists were invited to take part in the sessions. Each plays a solo instrument, and the instruments themselves each come laden with a rich musical tradition.  The hardanger fiddle (Dan Trueman), the solo flute (Margaret Lancaster), the mandolin (Terry Pender) and the trap drums (William Hooker) all represent long social and cultural histories.  This awareness, as well as the awareness of what and how the musicians are playing, is certainly a part of the brainwave data used to build the synthetic accompaniment for each piece.

Available from:

mulatta.org • Amazon • CDBaby • iTunes

Listen on Spotify

Contact

Jim Eigo

Jazz Promo Services

272 State Route 94 South #1

Warwick, NY 10990-3363

Ph: 845-986-1677 

Cell / text: 917-755-8960

Skype: jazzpromo

jim@jazzpromoservices.com

www.jazzpromoservices.com

"Specializing in Media Campaigns for the music community, artists, labels, venues and events.”

Hiro Honshuku's Racha Fora - Happy Fire (New Kind Of Jazz) JAZZ TOKYO 2018

New release from Racha Fora led by Hiro Honshuku. Stylish and thrilling arrangements of carefully selected standard jazz tunes. Racha Fora s hybrid sound of jazz improvisation and native Brazilian grooves has moved to a new phase.

After 2 years, Hiro Honshuku, a flutist and a composer who lives in Boston, released Racha Fora s 3rd album. Except Rika Ikeda, the featured violinist and the original member since the beginning of Racha Fora, new members has joined. Andre Vasconcelos on guitar and Sebastian Cbass Chiroboga on cajon.

Honshuku gave a very unique and refreshing arrangements to well known jazz standards such as All The Things You Are , In A Sentimental Mood , Summertime , Someday My Prince Will Come , Blues In The Closet and A Foggy Day .

From 1987, Honshuku worked with composer and orchestra leader, George Russell, the creator of the Lydian Chromatic Concept, assisting and performing in Russell s Living Time Orchestra.

In 2010, Honshuku formed Racha Fora with Rika Ikeda (violin), Mauricio Andrade (guitar), Rafael Russi (bass) and Fernando Saci (pandeiro), a Japanese-Brazilian mixed band. The following year, they recorded their debut CD, Racha Fora . Most of the material was written by Honshuku with a taste of Brazilian rhythms. Their 2nd album, Racha S Miles was a tribute to Miles Davis and showcased Honshuku s unique arranging skills. It featured guest artist Dave Liebman on sax, while Benhur Oliviera (pandeiro) replaced Saci.

On this 3rd album. Andre Vasconcelos replaced Andrade on guitar, pandeiro has been replaced with cajon now played by Harvey Wirht and Sebastian C-bass Chiliboga, and is focused on jazz standards.

Takashi Tannaka: intoxicate Magazine

Led by Hiro Honshuku who is a resident of Boston, a NYC based band “Racha Fora” released their 3rd album, which is a second Japanese release preceded by “Racha S’Miles”. It opens with Miles Davis’ “Nardis”, an aggressive arrangement and A powerful performance. It is followed by Jazz standards such as “All The Things You Are” and “In A Sentimental Mood”. Honshuku’s original, the title song, “Happy Fire” showcases his unique music style.

Racha Fora is a unique 2+2 format, 2 front lines are formed by Honshuku on flute/EWI and Rika Ikeda on violin, and the second line , the rhythm section is formed by Andre Vasconcelos on guitar and Sebastian “Cbass” Chiriboga or Harvey Wirht on cajon and percussion. There is no bass player nor drummer. The continuously driving cajon and percussion produce varieties of Brazilian rhythms. When the guitar that suggests Miles’ Agharta era faces Honshuku’s and Ikeda’s front line, a surreal sound image is produced and gives a totally new sound to the familiar standard songs. A beautiful sound of “Nem Um Talvez” composed by Hermeto Pascoal on track 9 seems to be the key to this album. Hermeto joined Miles’ “Live-Evil” (1970) and wrote this piece as well as “Little Church” for Miles. A box set of this session was released later and 4 more tracks by Hermeto were released. Honshuku has published an insightful analysis of this piece (jazztokyo.org). It shows Honshuku’s, as a performer as well as a scholar, deep understanding of and love for the genius Hermeto who does not belong to any genre. The article is well beyond an ordinal jazz study article.

When Honshuku was enrolled to New England Conservatory of Music, he became an assistant to George Russell. Later he became an assistant director as well as a member of Russell’s Living Time Orchestra. Honshuku is probably the one and only Japanese artist who practices Russell’s Lydian Chromatic Concept in the real world. Racha Fora successfully blends abstract elements of Brazilian rhythms and Russell, Miles, Hermeto and Dave Liebman.

This album is a full of excitement and discovery of new sound. Racha Fora gave an amazing show on Tokyo Jazz Festival in 2015. We all look for their 2017 tour with the recording members this October.

Midwest Record

Still showing his love for Miles, still showing his love for finding creativity where you d least expect it and still going for broke on multi faceted mash ups, Honshuku s third outing with this ensemble gives you the jolt you had when discovering the world sides of McLaughlin and Zappa, among others, but the jolt you feel is all his own. A skilled writer, player and interpreter, his music knows no walls and almost knows no bounds. A tasty, wild and restless release that totally has it all on the ball, as you would expect from a one time George Russell sidekick.

rachafora.com

Azar Lawrence - Elementals (HighNote Records 2018)

It will come as no surprise to fans of Azar Lawrence that his life's work is to bridge the gap between his listeners and the Elementals (the spiritual essences of the four elements earth, air, fire and water). For over four decades he has unstintingly explored music as a healing force, and the mystical connections between past and future, myth and fact, the physical world and that which is beyond. . Lawrence hopes that in a holistic sense, Elementals encourages a spiritual awakening. "All of this music is healing music; that's our whole concept is to heal and uplift," he explains. "If it's delivered and received on the right level, it will raise our own vibrations and bring us in touch with those higher spirits that respond when the music is pure with love and joy." It also happens to be an intensely powerful and swinging recording.

La Bossa

Eye of the Needle

Elementals

Brazilian Girls

Solar Winds

Koko

African Chant

Sing to the World

It's Easy to Remember

Karma Sutra

Azar Lawrence, soprano & tenor saxophones

Benito Gonzales, keyboards

Jeff Littleton, bass

Marvin "Smitty" Smith, drums

Munyungo Jackson, percussion

with

Oren Waters

John Barnes

Greg Poree

Mayuto Correa & Joe Blocker