Greg Abate & Phil Woods with Tim Ray Trio - Kindred Spirits (Live at Chan's) 2016 (2CD)

By DAN MCCLENAGHAN / allaboutjazz

The legendary alto saxophonist Phil Woods' (1931-2015) health was failing at the time Kindred Spirits: Live at Chan's was recorded, but you never know it by listening to the crisp delivery, the vitality of a hot bebop band playing in the mode of the iconic altoist Charlie Parker. Saxophonist Greg Abate joins Woods in the front line, and the Tim Ray Trio backs them up. 

It's not a first teaming for Abate and Woods. A student/mentor relationship exists there, and Greg Abate Quintet Featuring Phil Woods (Positone Records, 2012) is a testament to passion and energy the two saxophonists could conjure. So is Kindred Spirits: Live at Chan's. It's a two CD set, and the amount of the music presented is generous, the quality of the performance first rate all around. 

"Steeplechase," from the pen of Charlie Parker, opens the set. Another version of the tune closes the first disc, and CD 2 has the Bird's "Yardbird Suite." The pioneer's spirit looms with a smile over the proceedings. 

Abate and Woods truly prove themselves kindred souls. It takes a good ear to pick out who's doing the individual solos, though the personnel section in the accompanying booklet let's us know that Abate took the first turn on all but three numbers. Both altoists are steeped deep in the bebop tradition, and both play with passion. The Tim Ray Trio is impeccable, the pianist's solo slots full of fun and verve. 

This is a polished master class in straight ahead bebop, with it's lovingly rendered Parker tunes, and Standards like Harold Arlen's "A Sleepin' Bee," the classic "Angel Eyes," Horace Silver's "Strollin,'" a melancholy "I'll Remember April," and a spicy take of Kurt Weill's "Speak Low," with the sax guys sitting out and letting the trio shine. 

Phil Woods was a consistently joyful and inspired performer for more sixty years. Kindred Spirits: Live at Chan's is another gem in his discography.

CD 1

01. Steeplechase (Thriving on a Rif)

02. House Of Flowers A Sleepin' Bee

03. The End Of A Love Affair

04. Angel Eyes

05. Cedar's Blues

06. Willow Weep For Me

07. Steeplechase (Short Version)

08. Fried Clams With Bellies (Spoken)

09. Phil And Sequel (Spoken)

10. Emotionally Involved (Spoken)

11. Different Keys (Spoken)

CD 2

01. I'll Remember April

02. Moonlight In Vermont

03. One Touch Of Venus Speak Low

04. Strollin'

05. Yardbird Suite

06. Moonlight In Vermont (Short Version)

07. The First One's Free (Spoken)

Greg Abate: alto saxophone, soprano saxophone on "Willow"

Phil Woods: alto saxophone. all tracks except "Angel Eyes"

Tim Ray: piano

John Lockwood: bass

Mark Walker: drums

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Domi

Nicola Calgari Quartet (feat. Enrico Intra) - Ricordiamoci del Futuro (2016)

Die Musik des italienisch-schweizerischen Saxophon Spielers Nicola Calgari lässt sich am besten als lyrisch, fesselnd und zugleich als nicht zu bändigen, als eine Brücke zwischen der Schöpferkraft der Siebziger und eines gewissen zeitgenössischen Manierismus beschreiben; geformt aus heterogenen Elementen, aus Funky-Rythms bis hin zu lateinamerikanischen Einflüssen, aus Liedern in denen die Melodie eine absolut zentrale Rolle spielen, Momente in denen eine Pop-Jazz Ader, oder sogar postminimalistische Dimensionen zum Vorschein kommen, “bei dem nichtsdestotrotz ein Produkt bewundernswerter stilistischer Kohäsion zustande kommt." (Maurizio Franco). Mit Unterstützung des legendären Pianisten Enrico Intra als Gast und Mitverfasser, besteht Calgaris Quartett aus einigen der angesehensten Sidemen der italienischen Musikszene. Schweizer Jazz, italienisches Herz!

01. Time tai chi

02. Il coraggio è contagioso

03. Femen, femina, femen

04. Pieni poteri alla gente

05. Intraludes 2

06. La verità non può essere fermata

07. Free, condiviso, GNU

08. New's? Lewis!

09. Rivoluzione è donna

10. Se il clima fosse una banca...

Nicola Calgari: sax

Luca Dell'Anna: piano

Carmelo Isgrò: bass

Ivan Ciccarelli: drums, percussion

Enrico Intra: piano (Track 1/5)

Alessandro Melchiorre: electronics (Track 5)

Aufnahmestudio: Registrazioni da Nino, Varese IT

All compositions by Nicola Calgari (Winter Ticino Ed.), except 1, 8 by Enrico Intra (Alfa Music Ltd.) and 5 by Enrico Intra and Alessandro Melchiorre (Winter Ticino Ed.)

Recorded at Registrationi da Nino, Varese, Italy

Mastering: Newmastering Studio, Milan, Italy

Album artwork and graphic design: Filippo Sala

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JAVI

John Abercrombie, Richie Beirach, George Mraz, Peter Donald - The First Quartet (2015)

This 3-CD set with recordings from 1978 to 1980, issued in ECM’s acclaimed Old & New Masters series, returns some historically-important material to the catalogue, namely the albums Arcade, Abercrombie Quartet and M. The quartet with Richie Beirach, George Mraz and Peter Donald – John Abercrombie’s first touring band as a leader – was the group in which the guitarist defined some priorities, moving away from a jazz-rock period into a more spacious, impressionistic and original music. Abercrombie and pianist Beirach had a strong musical rapport as improvisers and wrote almost all of the band’s book between them. George Mraz and Peter Donald provided imaginative support. For this edition the recordings - made in Oslo and Ludwigsburg and produced by Manfred Eicher – were remastered from original analog sources.

John Abercrombie, Guitar, Mandolin Guitar

Richie Beirach, Piano

George Mraz, Double Bass

Peter Donald, Drums

CD 1

1. ARCADE (John Abercrombie) 09:43

2. NIGHTLAKE (Richie Beirach) 05:35

3. PARAMOUR (John Abercrombie) 05:09

4. NEPTUNE (Richie Beirach) 07:34

5. ALCHEMY (Richie Beirach) 11:34

CD 2

1. BLUE WOLF (John Abercrombie) 08:33

2. DEAR RAIN (John Abercrombie) 06:54

3. STRAY (Richie Beirach) 06:36

4. MADAGASCAR (Richie Beirach) 09:05

5. RIDDLES (Richie Beirach) 08:12

6. FOOLISH DOG (John Abercrombie) 06:18

CD 3

1. BOAT SONG (John Abercrombie) 09:57

2. M (John Abercrombie) 06:19

3. WHAT ARE THE RULES (Richie Beirach) 07:33

4. FLASHBACK (Richie Beirach) 06:17

5. TO BE (John Abercrombie) 05:17

6. VEILS (Richie Beirach) 05:44

7. PEBBLES (George Mraz) 04:45

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JAVI

Louis Pimentel - The Interstellar Group (2016)

Label: Self Released

Source: Louis Pimentel

This is my first recording project that I have decided to take up in the Summer of 2015. I had enough original music to create an album and great musicians that were available to record it, so I asked "Why not?". A lot of these compositions were written over the course of the two years when I first decided to take up composing. I am so proud on how these tracks have turned out! There are some great moments that have been recorded and I hope that you will enjoy listening as much as we had enjoyed playing it!

Most of these songs were written with an emotional connection that I would like to associate with them. I never felt that composing in its truest sense, should be an exercise but rather a catharsis for displaying a certain emotion.

"Level One" to me sounded like a fresh start where everything is open to interpretation. The piano hook reminds me of going to a temple and cleansing myself of past stresses.

"Searching" follows the same vibe where things are spread out. Shai Golan and Zach Ramacier take beautiful solos that really give the form shape!

"Always" sounds to me like a melancholy love song. It doesn't have the corny cheesing sound of most romantic songs yet retains an emotional connection to love. I always saw it as the end of a love story where things are eventually going to end and you have to accept that fact. I don't know, maybe thats just how I interpreted it based on life experiences. I found it very hard to gives this song a title, until I remember a specific quote from one of my favorite books I read as a kid.   Read more...

1. Level One 06:58
2. Searching 05:45
3. Always (For You) 07:56
4. Stream Of Consciousness 07:40
5. Cosmic Undulation 10:06
6. Pandemonium (Bonus Track) 07:25
   

Louis Pimentel (Tenor Sax, Compositions)
Shai Golan (Alto)
Zach Ramacier (Trumpet)
Adam Hersh (Piano)
Andy McCauley (Bass)
Kirk Portuguez (Drums)

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Ben Monder - Amorphae (2015)

Guitarist Ben Monder first recorded for ECM as a member of the Paul Motian Band on “Garden of Eden” in 2004, and Amorphae was originally conceived as a series of duets for Ben and Paul. A first exploratory duo session was recorded in 2010. After Motian’s death the following year it was decided to expand and complete the project with another highly influential and innovative drummer, Andrew Cyrille, adding also Pete Rende on synthesizer on two pieces. So here we hear Monder solo, in duo with Motian, in duo with Cyrille, and in trio with Cyrille and Rende. This range of expressive options casts light upon Monder’s musical concepts and their adaptability. A guitarist’s guitarist, Monder’s also a master of texture and unusual voicings, creating what one reviewer has called “detailed sonic landscapes of mystery and power”. All the music on Amorphae is his, apart from “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’”, the Rodgers & Hammerstein chestnut from the musical Oklahoma!, performed here by Monder and Motian.

Ben Monder, Electric Guitar, Electric Baritone Guitar

Pete Rende, Synthesizer

Andrew Cyrille, Drums

Paul Motian, Drums

1. TENDRILS 05:21

2. OH, WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MORNING 05:22

3. TUMID CENOBITE 04:49

4. GAMMA CRUCIS 05:15

5. ZYTHUM 07:06

6. TRIFFIDS 02:55

7. HEMATOPHAGY 06:57

8. DINOSAUR SKIES 07:05

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JAVI

Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah - Stretch Music (Introducing Elena Pinderhughes) 2015

Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah plays three different horns on his new album, Stretch Music (Introducing Elena Pinderhughes)-- the siren, the sirenette, and the reverse flugelhorn. They're horns by his own design. They are somewhat more difficult to play than the typical trumpet. They are as attuned to his style of play-- crafted, beaten and broken and lovingly bent to make music likely only he can make. They are as crafted and designed as his band, a group that has gone through a certain degree of molding over the years as well, and has been through its own loving process of craft together to make this music. They function as tools for expression, specialized as if for a surgeon forging new roads through medicine. Only this man can wield these horns, like John Henry's hammer. It's careful craft and attention to detail and design that to this same degree is the essence of Stretch Music, another in a fine line of Christian Scott albums that always seem to arrive at just the perfect times.

Stretch Music feels nimbler than Scott aTunde Adjuah's last self-titled outing back in 2012. The construction feels the same, the song elements of Scott's model for album construction over the years are still there-- the plucky interludes from Lawrence Fields' augmented piano, Matt Stevens rocking out on the guitar in a few touches, Kris Funn holding down the bassline as usual. Yet the largess of Scott's last release is pared back here. The ever-constant artistic philosophy of doing what works is what guides what appears to be trimming the fat to make a lean, agile album that can be as intense as it is intensely enjoyable.

This new band is fantastic. Kris Funn remains a longstanding member of Scott's group, holding down the pocket in such a signature way he's like a butt groove in your favorite recliner, and how one can be so intimately aware of every contour in said butt groove-- its hills and valleys, the way one can lean in the recliner a certain way for added comfort when days are more trying or find the crest of the groove when excitement peaks and one finds oneself and the edge of one's seat. Funn is a rock, yet he is a rock who is by no means immune to erosion, and he finds this erosion as a constant refinement. Corey King is the sound of consistency on the trombone, making greatness happen in accents and accompaniment. He has always been brilliant as an arranger and it's that structural sense on the trombone that fits so well alongside Scott's horns. Lawrence Fields remains a constant lyrical presence on the keys-- innovative, expressive, workman-like in his supportive comping and able to soar like a bird in his soloing. Lawrence Fields never fails to impress.

The trade off on guitars between longstanding member Matthew Stevens on four songs here and New Orleans fixture Cliff Hines throughout the rest of the album speaks to its crafting. Both certainly rock, but Hines' more electronic influences and filtering of his instrument make for a more layered, cerebral sound that blurs the musical lines here. Contrasted with Stevens' more upfront guitar on songs like "West of the West" or "The Last Chieftain" indicate an album with a varied vibe that speaks not only to where this band has been before and what it is in this iteration, but also once again to the pains taken to the album's crafting. In a similar sense, the dual percussion from Corey Fonville on drums and electronic pads and Joe Dyson, Jr. on Pan-African drums and electronic pads on dueling left and right audio channels speaks to the interplay in this music and with this group. This is a pair of spectacular percussionists and they both sound great together here.

In a long line of constant realizations on my part, like Phil Connors making an interminable trip to Punxsutawney, PA, I'm reminded once again to never sleep on vibraphonist Warren Wolf. And it must be said that newcomer flutist Elena Pinderhughes is so bright and airy and technical a voice on her instrument, it makes all the fanfare of including her name in the album title all the more apt. She fits in this group quite well and adds an extra texture wholly welcome.

We're fans of Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah here at Nextbop, this much is clear. He has been a constant support for us and an incredible energy. Disclosing this fact is necessary for the sake of journalistic integrity, but also because it goes to state the kind of person Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah is to make this kind of music, to pull these musicians together, to grow as an artist in such a way with an understanding of melding old legacies with new inclinations, of looking forward at what art can make in album and in app format (IT'S NOT ON ANDROID YET, THO!), of taking pains about craft to such an extent that the physical form of things thought to be common and convention just won't suffice sometimes when the task calls to make something new. The conventions of technology had to stretch. The conventions of composition had to stretch. The conventions of Scott's band had to stretch. The conventions of how he made an album had to stretch. The conventions of this music had to stretch. The conventions are still there, not contorted beyond recognition and could be appreciated still for being conventions -- the wheel is certainly not reinvented here and that's certainly still a good thing -- but this is certainly a shifting of those conventions. For an album called Stretch Music, it is certainly an apt title. This is something new from Christian Scott-- he who is stretching the genre of jazz into something more, and the rest of us continue to stretch our minds and ears to contain it.

01. Sunrise in Beijing (Feat. Elena Pinderhughes) 05:04

02. TWIN 04:15

03. Perspectives 04:22

04. West of the West 08:07

05. Liberation over Gangsterism (Feat. Elena Pinderhughes) 04:09

06. The Corner (Feat. Braxton Cook) 01:34

07. Of a New Cool 07:34

08. Runnin 7's 02:07

09. Tantric 04:24

10. The Last Chieftain (Feat. Matthew Stevens) 07:11

11. The Horizon 02:10

Released September 18, 2015 

Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah - Trumpet, Sirenette and Reverse Flugelhorn

Elena Pinderhughes - Flute 

Braxton Cook - Alto, Straight Alto 

Corey King - Trombone 

Cliff Hines - Guitar 

Lawrence Fields – Piano, Fender Rhodes 

Kris Funn – Bass 

Corey Fonville ‒ Drums, SPD-SX pad (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10) 

Joe Dyson Jr. - Pan African Drums, SPD-SX (tracks 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11) 

Special Guests: 

Matthew Stevens - Guitar (tracks 4, 5, 7, 10) 

Warren Wolf - Vibes (tracks 3, 7)

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SONIA

Shoko Igarashi Organ Trio - Alarm Call (2016)

Label: Self Released

Source: Skopemag

Irresistibly smooth “Alarm Call” shows off the Shoko Igarashi Organ Trio’s impressive chops. From the nimble drumming of Kazuhiro Odagiri to the playful work of Takafumi Suenaga on organ, everything comes together. By far the heart and soul of the album pours out of Shoko Igarashi’s tenor saxophone. Remarkably expressive Shoko Igarashi’s work on the tenor saxophone is an absolute thrill. Throughout the album all three have ample space in which to display their ample talent whether it is showing off the drumming flourishes on “Afro Centric” or the gleaming organ work on the title track. Impeccable fidelity helps capture all of this as the songs feel so positively intimate.
On the aptly named “Tune One” things begin with crystal clarity. Shoko Igarashi’s saxophone effortlessly blends with the light brushes of the drum and the shimmering melodies that emanate from the organ. Going for a more mysterious and shadowy approach is the subdued work of “All of You”. Here the light night vibe works wonders as the mellowed groove guides the song along. Slowly but surely the entire band plays the song as if waking from a dream as the song becomes increasingly more active towards the end. With a languid tempo “Vanity” serves as the most introspective song in the album. Ending things on an ambitious note is the album highlight “Pons”. Right from the beginning the whole band comes together to create an sprawling immersive piece.
The Shoko Igarashi Organ Trio’s “Alarm Call” proves that modern jazz can be full of life and vigor. Joyful, elegant, and full of bright colors “Alarm Call” simply astounds.

1. Tune One
2. Afro Centric
3. Alarm Call
4. All of You
5. Vanity
6. Pons

Shoko Igarashi - tenor sax
Kazuhiro Odagiri - drums
Takafumi Suenaga - organ

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Malson - Bzzz (2016)

 

Label: Sintoma Records

Source: Malson

This story begins with a she-weasel saving and suckling three twin brothers abandoned at the edge
of a city in the South.
The four of them spoke different languages.
Very soon they developed a dialogue system based on deep, visceral sounds produced out of heavy,
rusty pipes and rhythms performed on high voltage wires and forsaken industrial silos.
“It is the daily rite of breaching the darkness of the routine with the shiniest of the blades:
creativity” said once the weasel during a press conference, in Portuguese, “it is the shaker of the
finest cocktails like dreams and nightmares”.
“Creativity” is the key-word to walk in and out the music of Malson, whose roots dig deep in a
hundred years of jazz history to provide sap to the new-colored, exploding buds.
With a symmetrical feeling of sound, two dark tenor saxophone voices melt in unison, interlace
melodies and state shapes of harmonic intervals, in the complete freedom allowed by the solid
sustain of the groovy, actively interacting doublebass&drums rhythm section.
It's a game for four players only, whose musical discourse constantly moves in space visiting from
fields of detailed composition to seas of freely improvised music.

1. Bolo Do Caco

2. Entropia

3. The Old Rusty Machine

4. Agost 3r 1a

5.  Einekleinenfuggen

6. Blue Echoes

7. Migranya

8. Ostia

9. Intentat Ser Famos

10. Tenor Cocek

Albert Cirera – Tenor and soprano sax

Federico Pascucci – Tenor sax

André Rosinha – Doublebass

Vasco Furtado – Drums 

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Kerem Görsev Trio & Ernie Watts - Four Days (2015)

Label: Recbysaatchi

Source: Cdbaby 

All the tracks in this album are my originals composed between 1994 - 1997 and have been published in my previous albums in those years. In 2014, we have recorded “Emirgan” with Ernie Watts, Kağan Yıldız and Ferit Odman. Following the release of the album, in May 2015, we had a series of concerts and after the tour, we got into the studio and we recorded a new album, “Four Days” for these selected compositions with a new interpretation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Eddie Trujillo - Under the Influence (2015)

Label: Truarts

Source: Cdbaby

I thank God for the gift of music and for this great opportunity i had to record this album not only with friends but with talented musicians. Under The Influence was recorded live in Miami with Kemuel Roig on rhodes, Michael Piolet on drums, and Gary Thomas on bass. It is comprised of eight original songs written by myself and influenced by my love for jazz music. The songs are in many different jazz styles and feature outstanding performances by all musicians. Hope you enjoy this album as much as i enjoyed recording it.

Thanks

Eddie Trujillo 5/4/2015

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Mark Soskin - Live at Smalls (2015)

Label: Smalls Live

Source: Dusty Groove

Pianist Mark Soskin's been making music for the past few decades, but emerges here with a wonderfully fresh sound in the setting of the Live At Smalls series – working in this open, unbridled way that seems to bring forth some of his best solos in years, and show off some wonderful group energy too! Mark balances between lyrical, introspective passages and some more dynamic flights on the piano – and works here with a combo that features Jay Anderson on bass and Anthony Pinciotti on drums, plus some bolder tenor from Rich Perry, whose presence really gives the album a deeper current of soul! The choice of material is compelling, too – tunes by Monk, Stanley Cowell, Wayne Shorter, and Miles Davis – often introduced by Soskin in this gentle way, then set fire by the rest of the group. Titles include "Lonely Town", "Cal Massey", "Blackberry Winter", "In A Silent Way", "Miyako", and "Think Of One". 

01. Think Of One   8:16
02. Sometime Ago   7:04
03. Lonely Town   5:56
04. Crazy She Calls Me   9:35
05. Miyako   9:31
06. Cal Massey   8:24
07. Blackberry Winter   6:42
08. In A Silent Way   6:50
Total Plying Time   62:22

MARK SOSKIN, piano
RICH PERRY, tenor sax
JAY ANDERSON, bass
ANTHONY PINCIOTTI, drums 

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Sputnik - Parallax Vol. I (2016)

Label: Self Released

Source: Sputnik 

Genre: Jazz-fusion

Sputnik is a fusion jazz project which brings the talents of Leigh Fischer (Bass), Doug Northcott (Drums), Barry G. Player (Guitar), and Tristan Rivers (Guitar) together to create sounds that, though often out of this world, are always highly inventive and very fun to listen to.

Upon the release of its debut album "Space Junk" in 2012 Sputnik would find a strong voice that borrows from the Jazz world but is rooted heavily in funk and fusion. The band takes songs such as Billy Cobham's Red Barron, or Herbie Hancock's Watermelon man and plays them with passion and intensity while remaining honest and paying homage to the originals. On the flip side they can also take tunes like Stratus, and The Theme from fletch and send them spinning into sonic cascades that will leaving you reeling for more.

The band is also focused on creating a repertoire of original pieces that really showcase the talent level of these Winnipeg artists. While creating music that creates a very pleasing aura for the audience is key, they clearly also strive to push themselves as players. As amazing to watch in a small club or bistro as on a large stage, Sputnik puts on a show that simply must be seen!

Sputnik's new album, Parallax Vol. I, is comprised of all original material and set to be released Jan 09, 2016.

1. Atomic Biscuit 07:42
2. Milky Way 04:17
3. Flat Earth 00:54
4. Rooftop Garden 04:53
5. Extra Terrestrial Technology 08:02
6. Dark Matter 01:28
7. Critical Mass 08:11
8. Mars Atlas 08:05
   

Barry G. Player - guitar
Tristan Rivers - guitar
Leigh Fischer - bass
Doug Northcott - drums  

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Konrad Wiszniewski & Euan Stevenson - New Focus (2011)

Source & Label: Whirlwind Recordings

Glasgow-based saxophonist Konrad Wiszniewski joins forces with fellow Scottish compatriot, pianist & arranger Euan Stevenson in launching their genre-bending adventure New Focus on Whirlwind Recordings. Featuring an amalgamation of classical string quartet meets jazz quartet plus harp, New Focus showcases a cinematic soundscape of through-composed melodies meeting cutting edge improvisation, drawing upon influences from across the musical spectrum.

This nine-piece ensemble features The Glasgow String Quartet (comprising some of the finest virtuosos from The Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and Scotland's leading string quartet), alongside Stevenson on piano fronting the first call drum and bass team of Alyn Cosker (drums) and Michael Janisch (bass), Wiszniewski at the helm on saxophones and Alina Bzhezhinska on harp.

Stevenson's tight knit arrangements offer concise, pleasing trajectories, preserving the original sentiment of each composition, enriching them with ever changing soundscapes of strings and harp. Wiszniewski's tone tells parables of Polish ancestry while the arranger's own crystalline piano laments for pit closures in a northern mining town. A powerhouse rhythm team provides a counterfoil, never allowing the music to become sentimental.

This is music at its resourceful best; borrowing the harmonies and sonorities of the classical world, the tone poetry of Scottish Folk, the directness of pop and all mixed with the bustling edginess of jazz rhythms and improvisation. Duke Ellington famously quipped that there were only two categories of music - good and bad. New Focus most definitely belongs to the former.

"Outstanding original compositions by Wiszniewski and Stevenson. Wiszniewski brings world-class fire and spontaneous creativity." 5 Stars, The Herald.

"The most memorable concert of the 2011 Edinburgh International Jazz Festival. A real triumph." Jazzwise

1. Nicola’s Piece
2. Intro
3. El Paraiso
4. For Ray
5. Interlude
6. Music for a Northern Mining Town
7. Illuminate
8. Dziadzio
9. Leonard’s Lament

Konrad Wiszniewski - saxophones & compositions
Euan Stevenson - piano, compositions & arrangements

The Glasgow String Quartet:
William Chandler - violin
Jacqueline Speirs - violin
Ian Budd - viola
Betsy Taylor - cello

Alina Bzhezhinska - harp
Michael Janisch - double bass

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Dean Johnson - Triology (2016)

In the last few years Dean has performed with numerous groups including the New York Voices, and in special concerts with jazz artists Fred Hirsch, Jane Ira Bloom and Art Lande. He also performs regularly with pipa virtuoso Min Xioa-Fen and guitarist Steve Salerno in the Blue Pipa Trio, performing their eclectic combination of jazz, bluegrass and Chinese folk songs. As bassist for vocalist Roseanna Vitro, Dean has performed as a U.S. Jazz Ambassador in the Balkans, Kazahkstan and Kyrgystan, as well as a live recording at the Kennedy Center featuring pianist Kenny Werner, and a recording project celebrating the music of Randy Newman featuring Mark Soskin. He has performed, recorded and toured for over six years with vibraphonist Mark Sherman and a quartet including drummer Tim Horner and pianist Allen Farnham. Dean performed over the last eleven years with vocalist Kendra Shank along with pianist Frank Kimbrough and drummer Tony Moreno. Dean has an ongoing collaborative relationship with saxophonists Bob Kindred & Hayes Greenfield, guitarists Jay Azzolina & Bruce Arnold.

Born in Seattle, Washington, in 1956, Dean studied Bass Violin with a number of bassists, including the renowned Gary Peacock. Dean also studied piano and composition at the Cornish Institute, in Seattle, with James Knapp and from 1974 to 1976, attended the Berklee College of Music, in Boston, studying with bassists Rich Appleman, John Neves, and studying theory, composition, and arranging with John LaPorta and Herb Pomeroy.

Since arriving in New York, in 1980, Dean has been busy freelancing with a wide variety of artists in the Northeast, and has had the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the United States, Canada, and numerous tours of Europe, Japan, Brazil, Australia, Mexico, and Israel. Some of the eclectic array of artists Dean has been and continues to be involved with over that time include: Dave Liebman, Lee Konitz, Bob Brookmeyer, Randy Brecker, Joe Lovano, Phil Woods, Grover Washington, Dave Grusin, Lew Tabackin, Wynton Marsalis, Steve Kuhn, Dave Samuels, Ron Afiff, Dave Douglas, Paul McCandless, Nguyen Le, Art Lande, Ray Anderson, Walter Norris, Maurizio Giammarco, Bill Mays, Vic Juris, Billy Harper, Art Farmer, Nick Brignola, Ronny Cuber, Rob McConnell, Dave Kikoski, Bill Frisell, Albert Dailey, Mike Metheny, John McNeil, Hayes Greenfield, and Vocalists Sheila Jordan, Jackie and Roy, Mark Murphy, Carol Sloane and Helen Merrill.

Gerry Mulligan however is Dean's most prominent association. Dean spent over 10 years with Mr. Mulligan until his passing in 1996 in a variety of musical situations including the Quartet, Nonet, Big Band, and with symphony orchestras, including the Israel Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Dean performed in these Mulligan ensembles in concerts and jazz festivals all over the world as well as numerous recordings along with a number of well-known pianists that were in the group over that time including Harold Danko, Bill Mays, Bill Charlap, and Ted Rosenthal.

Dean has also taught privately for years and has conducted clinics at the Berklee College of Music, New York University, New Mexico State University, University of Northern Colorado, Ithaca College, and at the Rotterdam Conservatory of Music.

Prior to coming to New York, Dean lived in Seattle, Washington. On the West coast he worked with a number of different musicians including, Sonny Stitt, Milt Jackson, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Clifford Jordan, Barry Harris, Ted Curson, Richie Cole, Clark Terry, Buddy Tate, Arnett Cobb, Herb Ellis, Barney Kessel, Tete Montelieu, Terry Gibbs, Bill Mays, Art Lande, Julian Priester, and singers Ernestine Anderson and Mark Murphy.

Dean Johnson's premier CD "TRIOLOGY", 'Study of the Trio' is released January 1st, 2016.

Mostly 'standards' featuring 4 different trios including:

Jim Ridl piano - Rogerio Bocatto drums

Dave Ballou trumpet - Matt Wilson drums

Art Lande piano - Tony Moreno drums

Frank Kimbrough piano - Tony Moreno drums

01. I Wished On the Moon

02. Beautiful Love

03. It Might as Well Be Spring

04. Triology, #1

05. Beija-Flor

06. For Heaven's Sake

07. #5

08. Body & Soul

09. Au Privave

10. Triology, #2

11. Black Narcissus

12. Gentle Rain

BUY THIS ALBUM!!!

Domi