Mareike Wiening - Future Memories (November 12, 2021 Greenleaf Music)

Future Memories is the new album from New York-based German drummer and composer Mareike Wiening, featuring her longstanding band that includes saxophonist Rich Perry, pianist Glenn Zaleski, guitarist Alex Goodman, and bassist Johannes Felscher. Recorded in one day in the midst of an extensive tour, the album captures the live group energy and cohesion that only comes from playing together regularly.

Featuring eight of Wiening’s originals inspired by her band members, the compositions are emotional, rhythmical and most importantly, always lyrical. The music was captured in January 2020, just before the first pandemic lockdown, and the album’s title encapsulates Mareike’s feelings: the unexpected value of our future interweaves with various levels of past experiences, memories and the unknown. Balancing great compositions with soaring solo explorations, this is exciting, thoughtful, and engaging creative jazz.

1. Northern Sail

2. El Escorial

3. An Idea is Unpredictable

4. RiChanges

5. Future Memories

6. The Other Soul

7. Seesaw March

8. Dance Into Ju

Mareike Wiening | Drums

Rich Perry | Tenor Saxophone

Glenn Zaleski | Piano

Alex Goodman | Guitar

Johannes Felscher | Double Bass

Produced by Mareike Wiening

Executive Producer: Dave Douglas

Recorded at Riverside Studios Cologne, Germany on January 17th, 2020

Recorded by David Brucklacher

Mixed and mastered by Johannes Felscher

Graphic Design by Frank Hoeger

Photography by Lukas Diller

All compositions and arrangements by Mareike Wiening (GEMA)

Mareike Wiening plays Meinl Cymbals and Meinl Stick & Brush

Rich Perry plays D’Addario reeds

Alex Goodman plays Collings Guitars

PREORDER

Mark Zaleski Band - Our Time Reimagining Dave Brubeck (Origin Records)

Our Time: Reimagining Dave Brubeck

Mark Zaleski Band

Origin Records

featuring Mark Zaleski (alto and soprano saxophone) Jon Bean (tenor saxophone), Glenn Zaleski (piano), Mark Cocheo (guitar), Danny Weller (bass), Oscar Suchanek (drums) + special guest Michael Mayo (vocals)

Zaleski, an early graduate of the prestigious Dave Brubeck Institute in California, credits Dave and Iola Brubeck for helping form him into the musician he is today. One particularly vibrant memory is from 2003, when Zaleski met the Brubecks, then in their 80’s, on only his second day on campus. “Regardless of Dave’s fame and stature, they welcomed us with open arms and big smiles. They couldn’t have been kinder, which calmed our nerves in a big way,” reflects Zaleski.  

Another standout moment from his time at the Brubeck Institute occurred at the Library of Congress, when Zaleski and bandmates were preparing for their first show with Dave and Christian McBride. “Dave listened to us play his “In Your Own Sweet Way” and we played it exactly the way it sounded on his recording.  We thought we were doing excellent work by studying the master doing things his way, but playing this tune like Dave did very much upset him. He insisted that if we were going to play his music, it’s imperative that we “find our own voice.” Only now, 16 years after I finished my time at the Brubeck Institute, I think I’m truly ready to take on that challenge.” 

Our Time: Reimagining Dave Brubeck goes far to celebrate Brubeck’s legacy and classic compositions with decidedly modern arrangements that reflect Zaleski’s singular, nuanced approach. Illuminating these selections is a seasoned ensemble with seamless interplay no doubt informed by the deep-rooted history between Zaleski and his musical compatriots. Mark and his brother Glenn Zaleski have played collaboratively for over twenty years while he and saxophonist Jon Bean have collaborated for ten. On Bean, Zaleski remarks that “we work together as if one mind is manipulating both of our musical voices.”

The album begins with the quintessential opening refrain of “Blue Rondo A La Turk” from Brubeck’s 1959 smash Time Out. “The first time I heard “Blue Rondo A La Turk”, it immediately opened up my ears to two distinctively “Brubeck-ian” ideals; the use of “odd” time signatures, and the fusion of American jazz with musical styles from other parts of the world,” shares Zaleski. In his take, he decided to use a variation on the original 9/8 meter under a cushion of electric guitar effects as a vehicle for improvisation before a brief, bright and classic 12-bar jazz blues form that Dave and Paul Desmond blow over in the original recording. Zaleski adds that in “true Mark Zaleski Band form, there is some harmonization on the melody as well.”

The album continues with “The Duke”, a 1955 Brubeck composition dedicated to Duke Ellington. Zaleski’s version honors the integrity of the composer’s brilliant melodies while featuring harmonies and solos that showcase the members of the ensemble. The piece features showstopping solos from both Zaleski brothers. “Softly, William, Softly” is a hidden gem from a lesser known album called Time In. The track features a sextet arrangement of a fugue-like introduction that Brubeck played with his trio while the solo sections showcase some of Zaleski’s blues and rock influences. The bandleader demonstrates his masterful facility on his instrument over a bluesy triple meter swing.

”They Say I Look Like God” was originally written for Louis Armstrong to sing in the scarcely performed jazz musical The Real Ambassadors. The tune was written as a critical satire of the State Department tours of the 1950s on which Brubeck and Louis Armstrong were fixtures. While these tours intended to improve the public image of the US in the light of criticism from the Soviet Union around racial inequality and racial tension, this poignant song discredits the notion that racial inequality was a thing of the past. “Even though we are long past segregation, this song has a shocking relevance in 2021 in light of harrowing, cold-blooded, accounts of racist acts here in the United States caught on camera in just the last few years.  While I’m sure the Brubecks knew very well that the release of this musical in 1962 would create some tension and discomfort amongst a portion of their followers, using their platform to promote peace and equity for all human-kind was their top priority.  I hope I can use my small platform and privilege to do the same with my art,” Zaleski reflects. 

With Our Time: Reimagining Dave Brubeck, Mark Zaleski captures Brubeck’s unbridled ingenuity, bringing these heralded classics into the present. To quote Zaleski: “How do you give something back to people who changed your life forever? Follow in their footsteps, honor their legacy, and do what you can to make their legacy continue to future generations.” This new offering does just that. 

Zaleski has released three earlier recorded works as a bandleader, has lended his supple, singular instrumental stylings to dozens of acclaimed albums as a sideman, and has performed with a diverse group of notable artists including Christian McBride, Ian Anderson, Louis Cole, Lake Street Dive, and Dave Brubeck. Additionally, Zaleski is a faculty member at Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory. 

1. Blue Rondo à la Turk 6:30

2. The Duke 7:05

3. Softly, William, Softly 8:16

4. Unsquare Dance 5:24

5. They Say I Look Like God 5:40

6. The Golden Horn 6:44

7. Fujiyama 5:37

Mark Zaleski - alto/soprano saxophone

Jon Bean - tenor saxophone

Glenn Zaleski - piano

Mark Cocheo - guitar

Danny Weller - upright/electric bass

Oscar Suchanek - drums

Michael Mayo - vocals (5)

Produced by Mark Zaleski

Recorded, mixed & mastered by Eric Kilburn

at Wellspring Sound, Acton, MA

Recorded on Aug. 24, 2020

Assistant Engineer: Matt Hayes

Photography by Greta DiGiorgio

Painting by Clivewa

Cover design & layout by John Bishop

PREORDER

NEW RELEASE: Violinist Tomoko Omura to Release BRANCHES VOL. 2 on June 18, 2021 via Outside in Music

Outside In Music Announces Branches Vol. 2, The Eagerly-Awaited Second Installment of Celebrated Violinist Tomoko Omura’s Roots Series, Out June 18, 2021

“…a gifted composer and passionate instrumentalist.” – Strings Magazine

Outside in Music is thrilled to announce the release of Branches Vol. 2, the eagerly-awaited new installment in imaginative violinist-composer-arranger Tomoko Omura’s Roots series. A companion to last summer’s critically acclaimed Branches Vol. 1, this vibrant issue features six more of the Shizuoka-born artist’s original compositions inspired by Japanese folktales, and arrangements of Japanese popular songs. Accompanying Omura on this exploration of sound and culture is her working quintet made up of guitarist Jeff Miles, pianist Glenn Zaleski, bassist Pablo Menares and drummer Jay Sawyer.

In 2015, New York-based Tomoko Omura released Roots, a ten-track collection of well known Japanese songs rearranged for a modern jazz quintet. Since then, the violinist has made a concerted effort to intertwine her Japanese heritage with her virtuosic jazz artistry on each subsequent recording project. “There’s a promise inherent in contemporary music, and it goes something like this: with people from various backgrounds—culturally, ideologically, religiously, aesthetically—creating art, everyone can benefit from the exposure to new ideas,” remarked Downbeat Magazine’s Dave Cantor in his Editor’s Pick review of Omura’s initial Branches offering. On this riveting follow up, the synergy between the ensemble’s five members has been fortified by continual collaboration. Omura deepens her compelling tribute to Japan with evocative material that builds a causeway between deeply rooted tradition and contemporary invention.

Branches Vol. 2 is split evenly between Omura-penned compositions and folk songs, tallying three of each. The album begins with a stately march leading to a luscious passage of pizzicato violin, vocals and rhythmic underpinnings from Omura’s steadfast rhythm section. The piece is “Come Firefly”, a well known traditional Japanese folk tune.“Fireflies are magical creatures that have always fascinated me,” shared Omura. “My rendition of this folk song has a sci-fi element. I was imagining communication through lights by celestial beings.” Omura’s violin soars above overdriven guitar and discordant pianistic refrains on this surrealist celebration.

Omura’s original “Melancholy Of A Crane” offers a contrapuntal and wistful exploration inspired by the Japanese folktale “Tsuru no Ongaeshi” (The Crane’s Return of Favor) – a melancholy tale of a crane who returns a favor to a man. One can hear the flight of the swan in the gentle melodic musings of the violin over the rhythm section’s triple meter. “To-Ryan-Se” is another popular folk song that dates back to the Edo era (1603 – 1867). “Children sing this song like a game,” Omura described. “It is played by multiple children facing each other, and they form a bridge with their arms, while other children pass through the bridge while singing. At the end of the song, the bridge comes down and one child will be stuck inside the bridge. That’s the game!” Omura also hints at a haunting and yet wondrous meaning behind the song’s actual lyrics. This element is captured in Omura’s arrangement in the playfulness of the melody and the inherent sense of adventure it exudes. The melody features unison playing from Omura and Miles, which elicits a  response by Zaleski, echoing the game from which the material is derived. The piece features stunning solos from Omura, Zaleski and Miles.

Next up is “Bow’s Dance”, a folksong of the Ainu people, the indigenous people of Japan’s northernmost island Hokkaido and some of its nearby Russian territories. A close friend of Omura who extensively researched the Ainu introduced her to the great Ainu singer Umeka Ando. Ando’s interpretation of this song left its mark on Omura, and so she decided to include it here. 

“Tomie’s Blues” is Omura’s composition dedicated to her grandmother, Tomie Omura, who passed away several years ago. The artist remarks, “I was very close to her and we lived together for 18 years of my life. This song is 12 bars long, just like the typical blues form, but the melody is repeated multiple times with changing note durations expressing the elasticity of time.” The contemplative ballad features wonderful solos from Menares and Zaleski. 

The concluding track is“Urashima Suite”, the fantastical tale of a young boy’s adventure that encapsulates the bittersweet nature of the passage of time. Omura and Zaleski lead us on this wondrous journey through multiple tonalities, conjuring an array of emotions and experiences including imagery of the ocean and a place called “Dragon Palace” referenced in the original tale.

In a 2021 feature in Strings Magazine, Omura shared that her Roots project is ongoing, and something that she plans to continue exploring. She told journalist Greg Cahill: “It’s developing in a few interesting directions. Just like branches. I like storytelling in music that takes us somewhere else while listening. Also, for me, re-discovering the Japanese musical elements and using them in new ways is a fun thing to do. It’s still an ongoing project, and I’m already thinking about where it can go next.” 

Label: Outside in Music OiM2116

Track listing: 

Come Firefly 5:41 (Japanese Traditional/Tomoko Omura)

Melancholy Of A Crane 7:11 (Tomoko Omura)

To Ryan Se 6:44 (Japanese Traditional/Tomoko Omura)

Bow’s Dance 6:47 (Ainu Traditional/Tomoko Omura)

Tomie’s Blues 5:40 (Tomoko Omura)

Urashima Suite 6:38 (Tomoko Omura)

Tomoko Omura Website

Gabriel Vicéns - The Way We Are Created (2021)

Gabriel Vicéns blends Jazz and Puerto Rican Rhythms in his New Album, “The Way We Are Created”

The guitarist expands his musical expression by mixing bomba and plena rhythms from his native Puerto Rico with his unique brand of Jazz.

“The Way We Are Created,” the third album from the brilliant New York City-based musician Gabriel Vicéns, offers a detailed picture of his multiple talents. It portrays the evolution of his own voice, not only as a guitarist but as a composer and conceptualist as well.

Vicéns has previously released two widely acclaimed albums, “Point In Time” and “Days.” He has blossomed into his signature sound on “The Way We Are Created;” a delicate sound that conveys robust, cleanly-articulated ideas, with solos that add depth to his melodic and thematic compositions.

The album becomes a part of the Inner Circle Music canon, a label established by influential saxophonist Greg Osby, which “provides a forum for some of the next generation’s most provocative composers and stylists.” Also behind the release of the album is the Puerto Rican non-profit organization 71 Associates, which was created by Jochi Dávila to help experimental musicians.

Vicéns’ music has arrived at a complex but sentimental soundscape, as this set of compositions live within the world of bomba and plena, which are folkloric Puerto Rican styles. This album enjoys a natural, organic blend of Jazz with fiery, propulsive rhythms, in his own original compositional style.​ ​The Afro-Puerto Rican percussion instruments barril de bomba and panderos de plena intertwine beautifully within the harmonic and melodic complexity of jazz, while Vicéns’ compositions utilize nostalgic yet challenging Afro-Carribean rhythms.

Thus, the album is an array of bold themes brimming with personality, including “It Doesn't Matter,” “The Upcoming,” and “A City of Many Mysteries,” which employ yubá, sicá, and rulé rhythms from the bomba tradition. “To The Unknown” is an energetic plena, and one of the many pieces on the record that stirs up your mind as well as your feet.

“This project is the result of my own investigation into the worlds of these traditions,” says Vicéns, a distinguished graduate from Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico (BM) and Queens College (MM), currently pursuing his Doctorate in Guitar Performance in New York. “When I begin a composition, I first establish a rhythmic foundation which comes from Afro-Puerto Rican folkloric traditions, and then I build the composition from that underlying structure. The music you’ll hear on this record is authentic to my roots and comes directly from my life.”

“The Way We Are Created” was co-produced by star Puerto Rican saxophonist Miguel Zenón, and confirms Vicéns’ gifts as a skilled bandleader. Several of the finest New York musicians give life to these compositions with Román Filiú on alto sax, Glenn Zaleski on piano, Rick Rosato on bass, E.J. Strickland on drums, and Víctor Pablo on percussion. Their solos shine with a cool, fluid mastery throughout the whole work. Three short interludes work as breathers while reinforcing the album’s coherence as a whole.

“Being able to release this album in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic has been an incredible and challenging experience for me,” explains Vicéns. “There were moments I asked myself if this was the right time, but I arrived at the idea that art is a relieving outlet for people, can build community, and can comfort pain. I feel good about it.”

“The Way We Are Created,”​ i​s an homage to the power of all artistic expressions, including painting. Vicéns is also an accomplished painter, and the cover of the album is a recent work of his. While discussing the thought process behind the album title, Vicéns says that “When I complete a work, sometimes it seems personified. It’s almost like the composition speaks in the first person, and is their own being. If compositions could speak for themselves, maybe they could explain to us how they were created.”

To the listener, it’s a testimony to Gabriel Vicéns’ constant evolution as a musical thinker and leader, able to show new paths of expression for others to follow. Above all, “The Way We Are Created” is a great listen for jazz aficionados, and bomba and plena lovers alike. “When I came up with this title, it had two meanings. It’s a reflection on the way that all living beings are created to be naturally inventive and imaginative. It is a tribute to how we are all born to be creative.”

2. It Doesn't Matter 06:45

3. Caribeño Pensador 01:51 video

4. The Upcoming 06:12

5. A City of Many Mysteries 06:40

6. Fuera de mi Cuerpo 01:38

7. Definite Purpose 05:28

8. To the Unknown 07:24

9. Retorno 01:47

10. The Mystery of S.T. 07:21

Gabriel Vicéns: guitar

Roman Filiú: alto saxophone

Glenn Zaleski: piano

Rick Rosato: bass

E.J. Strickland: drums

Victor Pablo: percussion

Recorded by Chris Benham at Big Orange Sheep, New York, May 2019.

Mixed and Mastered by David Darlington

Editing Engineer: Danilo Pichardo

Produced by Gabriel Vicéns

Co-produced by Miguel Zenón

Associate producer: Greg Osby

Executive producer: Jochi Dávila & 71 Associates

Pre-order

Rafal Sarnecki's new CD Climbing Trees, due out July 27, 2018 via Outside In Music

Polish-Born, NY-Based Guitarist/Composer Rafal Sarnecki Faces and Embraces His Fears on Exhilarating New Album

Climbing Trees, out July 27 on Outside In Music, features Sarnecki's stellar sextet with

Lucas Pino, Bogna Kicinska, Glenn Zaleski, Rick Rosato and Colin Stranahan

"Sarnecki ventures far beyond the bebop and post-bop idioms of the past and into a freer - though still chordal - musical language [that] already shows originality and daring. - Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

"Sarnecki is a composer with a skillful touch at dramatic tension and pacing within his involved but highly melodic tunesŠ they're laden with dense arrangements, but the underpinning is a light touch of single-note guitar lines that vibe like a piano." - Michael J. West, Washington City Paper

CD Release Concert August 27 at Smalls, NYC

As a young child, Polish-born guitarist/composer Rafal Sarnecki suffered from an intense fear of heights and watched with envy as other kids climbed trees. Eventually he gathered the courage to face his fears, ascending branch by branch until he reached the top. That early triumph was the first of several fears that Sarnecki has faced down throughout his life, some of them directly impinging on his passion for music - stage fright, most pointedly, but also a more nebulous trepidation about pushing his music into ever more challenging territory. On his latest album, Climbing Trees, Sarnecki celebrates the ability to overcome one's most deep-seated anxieties and the exhilaration that can come from those confrontations.

"Once I challenged myself to climb to the top of one tree I felt an urge to climb a higher tree," Sarnecki recalls. "The satisfaction from fighting the fear was very strong and addictive. This memory from childhood resembles many situations in my adult life."

On Climbing Trees (due out July 27, 2018 via Outside In Music), Sarnecki takes his cue from that formative experience, crafting a set of risk-taking original compositions that dare him and his remarkable sextet to scale daunting heights. The stellar group - saxophonist Lucas Pino, vocalist Bogna Kicinska, pianist Glenn Zaleski, bassist Rick Rosato, and drummer Colin Stranhan - not only manages to deftly navigate the composition's knotty turns but finds exhilarating inspiration in its surprising branchings. The result is music that combines attentive focus on fine detail with the euphoria of an adrenaline rush.

What's clear from the chemistry and complexity displayed by the sextet is that this is a true working band, a relative rarity on the modern jazz landscape. In its present form the band has played together for nearly seven years, though many of the relationships stretch back even further. Pino and Zaleski have been a part of Sarnecki's band for the better part of a decade; Rosato and Stranahan joined the band in 2011. Since 2009 the guitarist and Zaleski have been members of Pino's acclaimed No Net Nonet, enjoying a monthly residency at Smalls Jazz Club for the past five years.

The sextet originally featured a trumpet as part of the frontline, until Sarnecki acceded to a Brooklyn club owner's request to add a singer to the band. Rather than hiring a standards-crooning chanteuse, Sarnecki enlisted Kicinska - a fellow native of Poland who uses her versatile voice and gift for improvisation like an instrumentalist. The addition gave the band's sound an ethereal but urgent quality, and the line-up fell into place.

"It took me a few years to learn how to take advantage of the potential of the musicians," Sarnecki says. "I have absolutely incredible players in my group that do things that are very unique, so as a composer I feel a responsibility to feature their individuality in my music. That can be a little risky, because sometimes I can push it a little too hard, but fortunately, we're a working band so I don't have to be afraid of that. This allows me to come up with ideas that sound really surprising, not the same as every other modern jazz song."

Zaleski's foreboding chords open the album on "Solar Eclipse," which contrasts Kicinska's airy vocal line with Sarnecki's gnarled lines. The leader's probing solo is a standout, exploring every hidden corner and skewed angle of the tune. The title comes not from the recent astronomical phenomenon but from the unusual way the piece was composed: it originated with a particularly tricky bass line, which eventually was dropped as the tune progressed, essentially eclipsing what was once the core idea of the piece. The growling lurch of "Dadaism" doesn't immediately suggest the subversive art movement that gives the piece its title, but it comes from a time when Sarnecki was studying Dada while working on his PhD in Music Composition at the Fryderyk Chopin Music University in Warsaw. Pino and Kicinska take a tandem soar into their upper registers, launching Zaleski into an intricately focused turn.

Sarnecki's shimmering arpeggios open the three-part "Little Dolphin" suite, which, like the elegant, Rachmaninoff-inspired "Zhongguo," reflects on the guitarist's travels to China. He first visited the country in 2013 at the prompting of saxophonist Nathaniel Gao, and has since returned annually to perform and teach. "I just fell in love with the culture," Sarnecki says. "Jazz was banned in China for about 30 years and in smaller towns people have no idea how to react to this music. But in bigger cities like Beijing or Shanghai there's a huge jazz audience and wherever you go, you feel more appreciated. In New York there's so much music that it's hard to impress people, so when you come to a place like China you feel like someone actually needs what you're doing." ("Little Dolphin" is the translation of "Xi_o h_itún" - the nickname given to Sarnecki by his Chinese fans.)

The heartfelt "Write a Letter to Yourself" was inspired by a friend's self-directed missive on Facebook, while "Disappointing Fresh Peach" takes its title from an anecdote in Kenny Werner's influential book Effortless Mastery. The dizzying "Hydrodynamics" is highlighted by a taut tug-of-war between Sarnecki and Stranahan, while closing track "Homo Sapiens" straddles the line between meditative jazz and chamber music, with Pino and Rosato steering through winding curves in perfect synchronicity.

Originally from Warsaw, Poland, Rafal Sarnecki is a jazz guitarist and composer currently living in New York. As a leader of his own projects Rafa_ has toured China, Malaysia, South Korea, Chile, Israel, the East and West Coasts of the U.S. and many European countries. He has shared the stage with top musicians from the U.S. jazz scene including Joel Frahm, Ben Wendel, Ron Blake, Ingrid Jensen, Alex Sipiagin, Willie Jones III and Gary Thomas, to name a few. Rafa_'s debut album, Song From a New Place (2008), was nominated for the 2009 Fryderyk Award, the Polish equivalent of a Grammy.

Rafal's second album, The Madman Rambles Again, was released in 2011 by Fresh Sound New Talent. Dave Sumner from All About Jazz selected the album as among the 12 most interesting jazz releases of 2011. In August 2014 Rafal's third CD, Cat's Dream, was released by Brooklyn Jazz Underground Records. In 2015 a group of jazz musicians in Kyiv, Ukraine started a sextet project dedicated to his music, performing compositions from all of his albums. In addition to his career as a bandleader Sarnecki is performs in a variety of New York based groups and projects such as the Lucas Pino No-Net Nonet, Annie Chen Group and David Bertrand Quartet.

rafalsarnecki.com

www.outsideinmusic.com

Davy Mooney & Ko Omura - Benign Strangers (July 27, 2018 SUNNYSIDE RECORDS)

The world is remarkable in that people from far off places and different walks of life can have an immediate, dramatic impact on each other after meeting just once. The notion of meeting a newcomer who embraces new people and ideas but also freely puts forth his own ideas is the theme of guitarist Davy Mooney and drummer Ko Omura’s new recording, Benign Strangers. 

Originally from New Orleans, Mooney is a longtime regular on the New York scene and, for the past year, he has been teaching at his alma mater, the University of North Texas in Denton. Mooney’s two Sunnyside releases, Perrier Street and Hope of Home, highlight his fantastic playing and composing with an incredible cast of musicians graced with the New Orleans magic, including saxophonist John Ellis, pianist Jon Cowherd and drummer Brian Blade. 

Intrigued by the culture after his first visit in 2008, Mooney has been a regular visitor to Japan. After the 2012 release of Perrier Street, he reached out to a Japan based UNT friend for help getting a tour and ensemble together. It was then that Mooney met Ko Omura. 

Omura was born in Tokyo but grew up in the United States and Australia. After graduating from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and a stint in Sydney, Omura returned to Tokyo where he has made his name as a top-notch drummer and organizer and influencer in the local scene. 

Mooney returned to Japan to tour over the next two years. The initial tours mainly featured Mooney’s pieces but a fluid dynamic was enforced as Omura’s influence began to shape the sound of the collaboration by introducing his own music into the touring ensembles. Mooney and Omura’s composing styles are well suited, as they both are melodists of high degree. It wasn’t long before the duo began making plans for further endeavors, including a recording. 

During the brutal cold of January 2018, Mooney and Omura met in New York City to record with a small ensemble. It was a warm, reunion-like atmosphere in the studio, as Mooney had long friendships with all involved. But apart from pianist Glenn Zaleski, it was the first time Omura had met the assembled cast, which included John Ellis, bassist Matt Clohesy and engineer Michael Perez-Cisneros. 

The recording was a true collaboration with Mooney and Omura both providing compositions, which were finely tuned in the studio. The resulting recording is a stirring collection of original pieces that prove that jazz is a language that spans the globe. 

The recording begins with Omura’s sweeping “Benign Strangers,” an homage to individuals, now friends, from all over the globe who have helped him along his musical path. Mooney’s “In This Balance of Time” is a beauty with interesting form and shifting meters, while his “Dim” is an intriguing experiment with the diminished chords. Omura’s “Subconscious Partner” is a breezy tune that shares gratitude to the inner voice that pushes us on our way. Omura has traveled to India to study the tabla over the past four years and his talent on the twin drums is evident on his “Unimagined Virtues,” which is performed in a trio with Mooney and Ellis. 

Named for a street sign he sees on his way to work each day, Mooney’s “Shady Shores” is a bright and inspiring piece, which features solos from Zaleski and Mooney. The title for Omura’s quietly stoic “Hiraeth” comes from a Welsh word meaning nostalgia or longing and provides a perfect vehicle for Clohesy’s bass feature. Mooney’s angular “Polly Pulse” is a tricky, polyrhythmic piece and a departure from the guitarist’s usual compositional style. “The Heights” is another from Mooney’s book that shows his talent at writing catchy material in service to improvisation. The recording concludes with Omura’s “29th Road,” a lilting composition named for a street in a Mumbai suburb that had a spiritual feel and the most jovial stray dogs on the planet. 

Bright things can happen when worlds collide. Two individuals of diverse backgrounds can come together to create beautiful music, as is the case with Davy Mooney and Ko Omura on their lovely new Benign Strangers.

1. Benign Strangers 06:27

2. In This Balance of Time

3. DIM

4. Subconscious Partner

5. Unimagined Virtues

6. Shady Shores 06:25

7. Hiraeth

8. Polly Pulse

9. The Heights

10. 29th Road

Davy Mooney - guitar

John Ellis - soprano, tenor sax, bass clarinet, clarinet

Glenn Zaleski - piano

Matt Clohesy - acoustic bass

Ko Omura - drums, tabla

Fabio Marziali Quintet - Windows and Light (2018)

Fabio Marziali is an Italian Alto Sax player currently living in Amsterdam. Named one of the most promising Italian jazz musicians on the scene at the moment. His new release “Windows and Light” is his fifth album as a leader and presents nine original tracks composed by Marziali.

Windows and Light features a quintet with Jonathan Kreisberg on guitar and a rhythm section comprising of Glenn Zaleski – piano,  Matt Clohesy – double bass and Colin Stranahan on drums.

The first thing that comes to mind when you press play is the exceptional sound that Marziali has developed on the Alto,  sweet where need be and growling where appropriate.  Marziali provides the perfect counterbalance for Jonathan Kreisberg, who in my mind,  is equally the star of this show.

While there is no solo room to speak of provided to the rhythm section they are omnipresent and consistently tight throughout the album providing a solid basis for Marziali and Kreisberg. The third track on the album, “October”,  is a prime example of how this quintet functions as fully integrated whole.

This album is largely a high energy affair with the exception of tracks like “Ancient Ruins” and “A safe place” providing a quiet resting place. The albums opening track, “Underground Tale” sets the tone for the album with it’s unisono theme giving way to a superbly constructed solo by Kreisberg before passing the ball to Marziali. On this track and indeed the entire album,  Marziali shows his command of the instrument while exploring the full range that the Alto sax provides.

Closing out the album is “True friend”,  a slightly more pop oriented track featuring an interesting rhythm track with piano and acoustic guitar fitting seamlessly together. On top of this we have once again the melody played in unison giving way to solo’s by guest guitarist Marcel Liu and Marziali.

Personal highlights of this album include Kreisberg’s solo on ‘October’ and Marziali’s solo on the lilting ballad “Ancient Ruins’. The arrangements are strong ensuring a great balance between the arranged and improvised sections.

This album is not produced to be put on as background music, it commands your attention from start to finish. The performances are exceptional as is the quality of the recording. This album is highly recommended.

1. Underground tale

2. Ancient Ruins

3. October Seven

4. Windows and lights

5. A safe place

6. Unexpected Event

7. Illusionary Event

8. Falling Spirit

9. True friend (Marcel Liu on solo guitar)

Fabio Marziali, Alto Sax

Jonathan Kreisberg, Guitar

Glenn Zaleski, Piano

Matt Clohesy, Double Bass

Colin Stranahan Drums

Perry Smith Quintet - New Angel (2018)

Guitarist Perry Smith Makes

Quintet Recording Debut with New Angel

Album Available March 2 on Smith Tone Records

At the core of everything that guitarist/composer Perry Smith does is the desire to create personal and musical connections with the artistic community. That’s true of the community he’s built around his inclusive weekly series in Brooklyn, “The Nest Session;” it’s behind his decision to use social media as a means of reaching out, not cutting off. And it lies at the very heart of his third album as a leader, New Angel — both in the close relationships he shares with his bandmates and in his desire to make the sometimes heady concepts of modern jazz something accessible and deeply personal.

New Angel (due out March 2 via Smith’s own Smith Tone Records imprint) marks the debut of the gifted guitarist’s stellar new quintet, which features saxophonist Jon Irabagon, pianist Glenn Zaleski, bassist Matt Aronoff and drummer Allan Mednard. While they’ve all played together in a variety of contexts, Smith’s decision to bring together this particular group stems directly from their shared experiences at Nest Sessions jams, which he and Aronoff have co-led for more than three years.

“It’s been a really wonderful experience,” Smith says. “I’ve been able to play with so many incredible musicians each and every week, so I’ve formed a lot of strong musical relationships. Beyond my own quintet, though, it’s really about bringing the community together and trying to create a diverse and inclusive space for every jazz artist in the city to feel welcome.”

The creative and the activist stem from the same instincts in Smith’s work. Though he insists that he didn’t set out to make a “social justice” record per se, his response to our current divisive political moment comes through in meditative solo “vignettes” interspersed throughout the album. Titles like “Lullaby for Freedom” and “Hope for Peace” tell the (ultimately optimistic) story.

“I wanted a few of the tracks to represent the message that I wanted to get across,” Smith explains. “One of the challenges you face as an artist is to figure out how you can make a difference with your art — especially in jazz, which can be so theoretical and complex. How you can go beyond that to create work that has a deeper, greater meaning is something that I’ve been passionate about for a long time.”

Translating similar instincts from the social to the musical lies behind Smith’s decision to assemble his quintet. Following his two earlier quartet recordings, Stars and Cars (2009) and Street Sense (2013), he became drawn to composing for more voices, so the versatility offered by the combination of a guitar, piano and saxophone frontline became especially compelling. He found the specific possibilities offered by weaving his own voice with those of Irabagon and Zaleski, paired with the rhythmic imaginations of Aronoff and Mednard, especially thrilling. The album was co-produced by Sam Minaie, who played bass on both of Smith’s previous releases and provided the unique insight of a sharp listener with a deep knowledge of Smith and his music.

In addition, the entire session was filmed and will be released as a series of videos through Smith’s social media outlets. Seeing the shift in the way that listeners take in music, the guitarist wanted to be sure his music reached the widest possible audience in the most easily accessible form. While the full album will be available in more traditional forms, he hopes these videos will make a more immediate connection.

The band’s thrilling chemistry is vividly apparent from the opening moments of “Rise and Fall,” whose title makes the tune’s shifting moods and tempos sound deceptively simple. The gentle, memorable melody is prime evidence of Smith’s gift for crafting compositions that embrace the listener while providing plenty of spark for improvisation.

“Deep Water” is a much knottier outing; its title, in fact, reflects the challenge that confronts the quintet in its harmonic complexity and sharp, treacherous angles. “Playing this song can feel like, ‘We’re in deep water right now,'” Smith admits. “That’s always been a tradition in jazz: the idea that you’re pushing yourself to try to explore something new while still trying to create something musical.”

If the title track seems to hang in the air like an unanswered question, that may be due to the fact that it’s the earliest piece on the album, one that Smith started working on as he turned 30, met the woman who would become his wife, and found himself facing many of the larger “what ifs” in life. “New Angel” may be a reference to his now-wife, but more broadly it’s a reference to a spirit of freshness and change.

The spikiness of “Monk’s World” immediately evokes the keen-edged genius and eyebrow-arched joy of the great Thelonious Monk. Smith wrote the piece on the chord changes of Monk’s classic “Epistrophy” as a way of paying homage to the legendary pianist’s outsized influence. “In my experience on the jazz scene in New York,” Smith says, “musicians are always more excited about playing Monk’s tunes than anybody else’s — more than even Coltrane or Wayne Shorter or Herbie. I think it has to do with the playful nature of his songs and the cool, creative melodies that he wrote, which open a lot of freedom in the landscape.”

Presaged by Smith’s introspective, soulful “Notes for Nostalgia,” “The Old Road” is a wistful rumination on the composer’s early days growing up in the California Bay Area. A similarly reflective spirit pervades “Lucid Night,” where the incisive melody suggests a certain brooding clarity.

“Graceful Spirit” returns the album to the theme of connection and community. It was specifically inspired by the eloquence and example of former President Barack Obama, but more generally muses on the idea of grace and empathy as powerful and necessary qualities in a leader — whether of the free world or of a scintillating and passionate jazz quintet.

1. Rise and Fall 07:01

2. Deep Water 06:45

3. New Angel 07:30

4. Lullaby for Freedom 01:20

5. Monk's World 06:23

6. Notes for Nostalgia 00:45

7. The Old Road 08:41

8. Graceful Spirit 06:37

9. Lucid Night 07:16

10. Hope for Peace 01:22

Perry Smith, guitar

Jon Irabagon, sax

Glenn Zaleski, piano

Matt Aronoff, bass

Allan Mednard, drums

All compositions written by Perry Smith

Recorded on February 5th, 2017 at the Bunker Studio in Brooklyn, NY

Co-Produced, Engineered, Mixed and Mastered by Sam Minaie

About Perry Smith

Guitarist Perry Smith combines the tradition of jazz with broad influences from R&B, rock and folk to create his indelible signature style. Originally from California, Smith is now based in Brooklyn where he leads his own groups and is a sideman for several jazz and contemporary artists. He is also a founding member of the critically acclaimed New West Guitar Group, which has been performing internationally for 10 years and has been recognized as one of the premier guitar ensembles in the country. Smith received his Bachelor of Music degree from the Flora L. Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California and completed his Masters in Music at New York University, studying with the great John Scofield. His extensive performance resume includes notable venues and festivals such as the Blue Note Jazz Club, The Village Vanguard, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola at Lincoln Center, the Montreal Jazz Festival, Java Jazz Festival in Indonesia, and the Philippine International Jazz Festival. Smith hosts a weekly series in Brooklyn called “The Nest Session”, performing with a different group of NYC’s finest jazz musicians every Wednesday, generously supported by a grant from KeyedUp.org in conjunction with the Jazz Foundation of America.

Perry Smith Website

Glenn Zaleski - Fellowship (SUNNYSIDE RECORDS 2017)

Through the act of improvisation, the jazz musician is continually composing. When it comes to formal composing of pieces for a jazz ensemble, the jazz musician must be able to not only write a good melody but also to provide a “springboard” for the ensemble to communicate and improvise. Pianist Glenn Zaleski’s second recording for Sunnyside, Fellowship, reconvenes his trio, featuring bassist Dezron Douglas and drummer Craig Weinrib, to play a program of original compositions and a couple of insightfully arranged standards. 

Zaleski’s first trio recording for Sunnyside, My Ideal, came out in 2015 and was a collection of standards and cover songs performed in a highly individual and energetic manner. For Fellowship, Zaleski wanted to bring the same musical approach to compositions from his own pen, challenging his trio mates to new creative heights on new, unfamiliar pieces. 

In writing these new pieces, Zaleski paid special attention in crafting compositions that walked a fine line, as he says: “Overwriting can stifle improvisation, but underwriting can result in monotony or chaos.” His ideal composition being one that is both tuneful and a good harmonic/rhythmic vehicle for inspired solos from him and his band mates. The program is accentuated by two pieces by legendary jazz composers, Duke Pearson and John Coltrane, that help illustrate the continuum in the development of jazz composition and improvisation from the 1950s until now. 

The recording begins with the highly interactive and inventive “Table Talk,” named for the pie company based near his hometown of Boylston, Massachusetts. The ruminative “Westinghouse” is a poetic tribute to composer Billy Strayhorn, while Duke Pearson’s toe tapping “Is That So?” is played to a quietly stirring effect. The title track is a wonderfully composed (both in form and esthetic), a true meditation in music. 

Douglas’s tremendous intro bass solo on “Out Front” leads to the harmonic underpinning of the cyclic and longingly propulsive “Homestead,” a song about the frustrations of being on the road. Zaleski’s dynamic blues piece “Lifetime” is dedicated to a club in Shizuoka, Japan of the same name, the piece as joyful and warmhearted as his recollections of the club. The wonderful take on John Coltrane’s “Central Park West” puts the trio’s sensitive artistry on full display. The program concludes with the abstractly grooving “P.S.,” a knotty dedication to friend, vibraphonist and composer Peter Schlamb. 

Pianist Glenn Zaleski continues to show his maturity and expertise as an instrumentalist and bandleader. On Fellowship, he proves his meddle as a composer of note, one who is capable of bending ears toward beautiful melodies and intriguing compositional ideas.

1. Table Talk - (G. Zaleski)

2. Westinghouse - (G. Zaleski)

3. Is That So? - (Duke Pearson)

4. Fellowship - (G. Zaleski) 

5. Out Front - (G. Zaleski)

6. Homestead - (G. Zaleski)

7. Lifetime - (G. Zaleski)

8. Central Park West - (John Coltrane)

9. P.S. - (G. Zaleski)

Glenn Zaleski - piano

Dezron Douglas - bass

Craig Weinrib - drums

Michael Dease - Decisions (2015)

BY S. VICTOR AARON / somethingelsereviews

I’ve might have said this before: Michael Dease is the rightful heir to the trombone legacy of Curtis Fuller, and even Fuller himself might agree. Rare is the trombonist who can match the technical proficiency, inventive phrasing and genuine feel that seems to come easily to Dease.

After making a triumphant foray into big band for his Posi-Tone debut Relentless, Dease gets back to small ensemble business for Decisions (August 28, 2015). Heading a five-piece band with Tim Green on alto sax, Glenn Zaleski on piano, Rodney Whitaker on bass and Ulysses Owens behind the drum kit, Dease makes good use of the talent he’s assembled using mostly his own compositions with a couple of standards tossed in for good measure.

Dease serves up prime post-bop in all sorts of flavors. “Grove’s Groove” has a nice shuffling groove courtesy of Owens’ precise drumming, but Zaleski’s spry solo is the high point of a series of fine solos by nearly everyone. The rhythm section forges a crisp, contemporary groove for “Jason’s Gonna Get Ya” that the horns nimbly syncopate around, but Dease composed a complexity to the song that goes well beyond being just a riff. He does the same for “Right Place Wrong Time,” a track where Green’s expressive alto steals the show. Whitaker’s taut bass work anchors a lilting swing for “Decisions,” again a highlight for Zaleski. And Owens gets to show off on the blues based “The Big D.”

Take those stellar individual performances away and you can still be blown be dazzled by Dease’s trombone. He makes it sing on “Gorgeous Gwen” and on ballads like “Everything Must Change” he knows just how much emotion to invest in his trombone to make it believable.

A model of consistency, style and grace, Michael Dease stays at the head of the class among jazz trombonists with his seventh album, Decisions.

01. Grove's Groove

02. Jason's Gonna Get Ya

03. Trayvon

04. Gorgeous Gwen

05. Decisions

06. Right Place Wrong Time

07. Everything Must Change

08. Three And One

09. You're My Everything

10. The Big D

Michael Dease: trombone

Tim Green: saxophone

Glenn Zaleski: piano

Rodney Whitaker: bass

Ulysses Owens Jr.: drums

BUY THIS ALBUM!!!

VÍCTOR