Jorge Sylvester Spontaneous Expressions - Mayhem At Large / The Last Baha'i Session (May 2021)

Jorge Sylvester's distinctive alto saxophone sound is imbued with the volatility of Caribbean basin's complex mosaic, transformed and focused by the probing musical linguistics pioneered by the great saxophonists of modern jazz. Jorge's composer's imagination is the matchless structural coherence of his improvisational work.

Spontaneous Expressions

A Live Performance for the Jazz Tuesdays Series at the Baha'i Center, NYC, on March 3, 2020

" Music is the language of spirit. It opens the secret of life bringing peace, abolishing strife"

Khalil Gibran

The Musicians in the order they appear in duet performance.

(1) Jorge Sylvester (2) Nora McCarthy (3) Vincent Chancey

(4) Jose' Davila (5) Kuba Cichocki (6) Marvin Sewell

(7) Waldron Mahadi Ricks (8) Tony Moreno

IN DEDICATION:

"Blue Abstract" - (CD1 #2) Pianist, Composer and founder of Jazz Tuesdays at NYC Baha'i Center, Mike Longo

"Improvisation I" - (CD1 #3) Violinist, Composer, Mathematician, Ramsey Ameen

"Is Over" - (CD2 #1) - In loving memory of my father, George H. Sylvester

*Solo Improvisation Reference information for No.1 on CD1 First Set: "Stella by Starlight", Victor Young; Nos. 1&2 on CD2 Second Set: "Well You Needn't," Thelonious Monk; "The Masquerade Is Over," Herb Magidson and Allie Wrubel.

(CD1)

FIRST SET:

1. By Starlight (Alto Saxophone solo) 4:50

2. Blue Abstract (Alto Saxophone solo) 10:55

3. Improvisation I (Alto Saxophone and Voice Duet) 8:02 

4. Improvisation II (Alto Saxophone and French Horn Duet) 4:57

5. Improvisation III (Alto Saxophone and Tuba) 4:20

6.Improvisation IV (Alto Saxophone and Piano) 2:50

7. Improvisation V (Alto Saxophone and Electric guitar) 4:13

8. Sketch No.One (Octet) 11:54

(CD 2)

SECOND SET:

1. Is Over (Alto Saxophone solo) 6:072.

2. You Needn't (Alto Saxophone solo) 3:51

3. Improvisation VI (Alto Saxophone and Trumpet) 1:18

4. Improvisation VII (Alto Saxophone and Drums) 4:11

5. Sketch No.Two (Octet) 15:24

Jorge Sylvester - Alto Saxophone, Improvisations, Sketches

Nora McCarthy - Voice, Improvisations, Poetry

Vincent Chansey - French Horn, Improvisations

Jose' Davila - Tuba, Improvisations

Kuba Cichocki - Piano, Improvisations

Marvin Sewell - Electric Guitar, Improvisations

Waldron Mahadi Ricks - Trumpet, Improvisations

Tony Moreno - Drums, Improvisations

Pre-order

Jorge Sylvester ACE Collective - Spirit Driven (2018)

Trying to hear this music in terms of metrical beats would be like traveling along Arizona’s magnificent Red Rock Scenic Road and only counting the mile markers rather than taking in the breathtaking scenery.” 

Jorge Sylvester ACE Collective is “an all-star jazz band that knows how to swing, to improvise with spontaneity and poise, and to respond to one another with telepathic immediacy and profound respect. 

Their new double CD release Spirit Driven, is the result of a lifetime of spirit driven preparation by each musician – Jorge Sylvester: brilliant composer and arranger, virtuoso alto saxophonist; Nora McCarthy: daringly original, versatile, and fearlessly honest singer, composer, and poet; Waldron Mahdi Ricks: impeccably artful trumpet player, a jazz master in his own right; Pablo Vergara: astoundingly imaginative pianist, musically fluent on an encyclopedic, global scale; Donald Nicks: journeyman artisan of the bass, unfailingly, and always tastefully, providing the musical foundation; Kenny Grohowski: uncannily precise and inventive drummer and percussionist…” 

Dedicated to the people of Haiti, Spirit Driven is a highly rhythmic and spiritually motivated compositional journey through the various cultures that make up the Caribbean Islands encompassing their significance and contribution to the present day advanced musical concepts in jazz and avant-garde/free music. It uses the “word” in the form of poetry and lyrics to convey each song’s spiritual and historical message. “The music continuously flows and develops with a lithe bodily grace and expressive range, transfiguring its structural complexity and technical virtuosity into an intimate and honest gesture of oneness with each listener, only possible by virtue of consummate musicianship.” (All quoted material by: Ramsey Ameen, 2012)

1. Construction No. 2 14:16

2. Masouc 11:51

3. Paulina's Prayer 09:14

4. The Light Of Truth's High Noon Is Not For Tender Leaves 08:34

5. Obeahman 07:04

6. Construction No. 1 09:47

7. To Be With You 08:13

8. Remember Haiti 09:01

9. Cycle of Life 08:50

MEMBERS OF THE ACE COLLECTIVE:

Jorge Sylvester: Bandleader/Founder, Alto-Saxophone, Compositions, Arrangements

Nora McCarthy - Voice, Compositions, Lyrics, Poetry

Waldron Mahdi Ricks - trumpet

Pablo Vergara - Piano

Donald Nicks - electric bass

Kenny Grohowski - drums