Throttle Elevator Music IV reunites with tenor saxophonist Kamasi Washington for a fourth album, atop eleven original new compositions by the Throttle writing team (Matt Montgomery and Gregory Howe).
Kamasi's horn soars alongside virtuoso trumpet player Erik Jekabson. Also joining the band for a third record is emerging talented drummer Mike Hughes.
Befitting his sixty years as a professional jazz drummer, Albert “Tootie” Heath holds strong core aesthetic principles. He expressed some of them to me in July 2013, while participating in one of the most profane, amusing DownBeat Blindfold Tests ever conducted.
A key dictum is that drummers should never lose sight of their instrument’s functional role. “You’re playing for people,” Heath said at one point. “Drums have a rhythm. Where’s the feeling? Where’s the beat?”
He emphasized, too, that compositions should communicate, not obfuscate. “Don’t allow a theme to go so quickly that you can’t sing it,” he said. “Then what good is it? It’s a song. You need repeats in your music, to allow people to follow you.” Heath also advocated collective imperatives. “You should try to capture a group sound,” he said. “It’s not about the drums and the bass accompanying a horn. It’s about all of them having the same presence.” Three months after those remarks, Heath played the debut performance of the well-wrought suite, documented two years later—two weeks after his eightieth birthday—on this CD. Composed by California-born pianist Richard Sears, then 26, for a hand-picked sextet, it’s a sort of “Concerto for Tootie,” intended, Sears says, to illuminate Heath’s abilities as “an interpreter of new music.” That Sears so felicitously embodies Heath’s m.o. of embracing functionality and imagination, of interweaving the Tradition and the Freedom Principle, may stem in part from his periodic social calls to Heath’s house in Altadena, California, on the northern outskirts of Los Angeles County.
“We’d have lunch, listen to music, and I’d ask him about all the people he played with,” says Sears. Raised in Los Gatos, California, he matriculated at USC in 2005, and moved to Brooklyn last year. “Tootie’s stories are incredible, and I would ache from laughter after every hang.” In point of fact, Sears writes music that is—to quote the title of British writer Valerie Wilmer’s first-hand account of the protagonists of the 1960s New York avant-garde—as serious as your life.
“As a teen, avant-garde jazz was my punk rock,” Sears says. “I heard this transcendent cacophony—catharsis, passion, uninhibited self-expression, angst, anger and joy at the same time—in the music of McCoy Tyner, Coltrane, Cecil Taylor and Ornette Coleman.”
Sears conceived each of Altadena’s five parts from a particular groove or texture he’d heard Heath play. The ebullient first section, a swinging refraction of the first part of the melody of Faure’s Piano Nocturne No. 4 in Eb-Major, showcases Heath’s driving, resilient swing feel; the second has a rubato, quasi-African texture, with long, open chords under which Heath improvises. The Old and New Dreams-like freebop refraction on the third track acknowledges Heath’s close association with Ornette Coleman collaborators Don Cherry, Edward Blackwell, and Billy Higgins, while part four, a gorgeous ballad with Ducal hints that features solos by Steven Lugener on bass clarinet and Kirk Knuffke on cornet, offers Heath space to sound-paint the drumkit with characteristic sensitivity. Sears thought that the polyrhythms embedded in the melody of the track five, propelled by bassist Garrett Long’s mighty vamp and animated by outer partials solos by tenor saxophonist Patrick Wolff and Knuffke, might pull Heath “a bit outside his comfort zone,” but the master rises—as expected—to the occasion. Sears, who is nothing if not self-critical, is satisfied with the LP-length 35-minute performance (“a sort of golden ratio of the listening attention span”) that mirrors its ’60s antecedents. “I owed it to Tootie to make this happen,” he says. “It was a gift to him in the first place.” Ted Panken 2016 recipient of Lifetime Acheivement in Jazz Journalisim Jazz Journalists Assosciation
1. Part One 06:32
2. Part Two 06:48
3. Part Three 08:25
4. Part Four 05:46
5. Part Five 08:13
Kurk Knuffke - Cornet
Steven Lugerner - Alto Saxophone / Bass Clarinet
Patrick Wolff - Tenor Saxophone
Garret Lang - Bass
Richard Sears - Piano / Compositions
Albert "Tootie" Heath - Drums
The recording of this music was funded in part by a grant from the Aaron Copland Fund For Recording.
Imagine the diverse collaboration of Grant Calvin Weston (Ornette Coleman, James Blood Ulmer, Lounge Lizards), Jonathan Saxon (Armored Saint, Grant Calvin Weston, Vogel/Saxon Duo), Steuart Liebig (Julius Hemphill, Les McCann, Nels Cline), and Wayne Peet (Nels Cline, John Rapson, Alex Cline). At the center of this dream is a deep sense of groove, improvisation, and experimentation.
“Hip backbeats and polyrhythms, spacey/street cool vibes, and yes, Acceleration keeps moving.” Howard Mandel
The Weston / Saxon Groove Assembly’s sound is a cross country beats collaboration built upon a myriad of grooves, psychedelic sounds, ambient landscapes, and jazz inspired compositions fueled with improvisation. Equally at home at a jazz festival, blues festival, or desert rock festival, the Groove Assembly’s sound is open, driving, and melodic.
Legendary drummer Grant Calvin Weston and percussionist Jonathan Saxon first collaborated in August 2014 when they recorded the drum and percussion duet, "Road Trip to Downey" (track #5 on the CD).
The chemistry and deep grooves of "Road Trip" inspired Weston to suggest bringing in a few more musicians to record a full length album. With great enthusiasm, Saxon invited keyboardist Wayne Peet and bassist Steuart Liebig to participate in the project. Along with their brilliant performances, Liebig and Peet's compositions were an immense contribution to the album, as were
Peet's remarkable skills as an engineer and producer.
Released as a Compact Disc in a 6-panel digipak covered in original artwork by Eron Rauch, with a 12-page booklet with original poetry by Steve Shelton, this album is a
beautiful collector's item, as well as an incredible listening experience.
Orenda Records is all about artistic vision. We release boutique style albums, limited edition pressings, with high quality printing and high fidelity sound.
We believe that listening to music is all about an immersive artistic experience, both auditory and tactile.
This is a label for those who care about and collect beautiful music and beautiful presentation.
"A distance from here
to there is where I am.
Acceleration."
Grant Calvin Weston - Drums
Jonathan Saxon - Congas, Mbira, Electric Mbira, Clave, Bells, Rainstick, Orchestral Bells, Bowed Cymbal, Cowbell, Berimbau, Shakers
Wayne Peet - Piano, Hammond B-3 Organ, Synthesizer, Clavinet
Steuart Liebig - Basses, Electronics, Loops
Drums recorded by Grant Calvin Weston at The Third Floor in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, February 2015; "Road Trip to Downey" recorded August 2014.
All other instruments recorded by Wayne Peet at Newzone Studio in Los Angeles, California, March 2015; "Road Trip to Downey" recorded August 2014. www.newzonestudio.com
Edited, mixed, and mastered by Wayne Peet
Produced by Wayne Peet
Translation Meditation Music (BMI) - Jonathan Saxon
Sisong Music (ASCAP) - Steuart Liebig
Apocalypse Vision (BMI) - Grant Calvin Weston
Killzone Music (BMI) - Wayne Peet
Poem by Steve Shelton
Design and photography by Eron Rauch
Photos of Jonathan Saxon & Wayne Peet by Stephanie Cabral
Photo of Grant Calvin Weston by Jessica Kourkounis
Beekman is a Brooklyn-based collective comprising pianist Yago Vazquez (Spain), saxophonist Kyle Nasser (U.S), bassist Pablo Menares (Chile), and drummer Rodrigo Recabarren (Chile). These musicians met in 2012 at the 5th Estate sessions in Brooklyn and formed Beekman shortly thereafter. The quartet couples eclectic original compositions (steeped in jazz, rock, latin, and classical) with dynamic group interplay into a sound that is international while remaining squarely in the realm of modern jazz. With members from three different continents, Beekman brings a plethora of influences to bear on its compositional and improvisational aesthetics, lending a unique sound.
The group celebrated the release of Vol.1 (on the Chilean label Discos Pendiente) with a 10-day tour of South America in January 2015. Critics have praised this album as “vital new music” (Donald Elfman, New York City Jazz Record) and “a joyful and continued speculation flowing in almost all facets with surprising ease.” (Jazz, ese ruido). It even earned the group a nomination for “Best Jazz/Fusion Artist” in the Chilean Music Awards (Premios Pulsar). Since its release, Beekman been a staple on the NYC jazz scene and toured around New England.
In October 2015, Beekman went into the studio to record Vol.2. Scheduled for release in October 2016 on Ropeadope Records, the new album features three compositions by Nasser, two each by Menares and Vazquez, and one by Recabarren. Having had the opportunity to play a great deal since the release of Vol.1, the quartet really sharpens its aesthetic on Vol.2. while exploring on new sounds and textures for the future.
Saxophonist/Composer Rudresh Mahanthappa performs music from Bird Calls on tour
September 16–October 23 in the US and November 4–18 in Europe
Bird Calls examines the influence of Charlie Parker through a 21st century jazz lens
“The concept here is so inspired, the playing so incendiary that five stars might not be enough... Breathtakingly brilliant.” – Bill Milkowski, The Absolute Sound
“…one of the most cohesive, convincing and profoundly satisfying recordings of Mahanthappa’s career.” – Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune
“A fantastic album.” – Arun Rath, NPR All Things Considered
“Rudresh Mahanthappa is one of the most important alto saxophone voices working in jazz today.” – Jazz Times
Saxophonist and composer Rudresh Mahanthappa presents the music of Bird Calls, his critically acclaimed Charlie Parker-inspired CD of the same name, with performances September 16 - October 23 in the United States and November 4 - 18 in Europe. The band will also perform early 2017 shows at Dartmouth College and Bucknell University. The tour comes on the heels of Mahanthappa’s July 2016 appointment as Director of Jazz at Princeton University.
Bird Calls earned high praise including Best Album of the year from the DownBeat International Critics Poll and NPR Music’s Jazz Critics Poll, as well as in the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, iTunes, Huffington Post, New York City Jazz Record, and All About Jazz, among others. The DownBeat Critics Poll also named Mahanthappa its #1 Alto Saxophonist of the year and the Village Voice called him their Best Jazz Artist.
United States Tour Dates:
• Friday, September 16, 8:30 p.m. at The Side Door, 85 Lyme Street, Old Lyme, CT
Tickets: $35. Mahanthappa with Adam O’Farrill (trumpet), Matt Mitchell (piano), Francois Moutin (bass), and Dan Weiss (drums).
• Tuesday, October 4, 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. at the Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St., NYC
$25. For information call 212-576-2232 or visit www.jazzstandard.com. Featuring Mahanthappa with Adam O’Farrill (trumpet), Matt Mitchell (piano), Thomson Kneeland (bass), Rudy Royston (drums).
All other US shows feature Mahanthappa with Adam O’Farrill (trumpet), Joshua White (piano), Thomson Kneeland (bass), and Dan Weiss (drums).
• Thursday, October 13, 7:30 p.m. at Outpost, 210 Yale SE, Albuquerque, NM
• Sunday, October 23, 8 p.m. at Vieux Carre, Hamm Building, 408 St. Peter St., St. Paul, MN
Tickets $30-$35. For information call 612-332-5299 or visit www.dakotacooks.com
The performances in Albuquerque, Portland and Seattle are funded, in part, by the Presenter Consortium for Jazz, a program of Chamber Music America funded through the generosity of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
European Tour Dates:
All shows feature Mahanthappa with Adam O’Farrill (trumpet), Joshua White (piano), Francois Moutin (bass), and Rudy Royston (drums).
• Friday, November 4, 8:30 p.m. at Bimhuis, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. www.bimhuis.com
• Saturday, November 5, 6 p.m. at So What’s Next Festival, Muziekgebouw Frits Philips, Eindhoven, The Netherlands. www.tivolivredenburg.nl
• Saturday, November 5, 9 p.m. at Tivolivredenburg, Utrecht, The Netherlands. www.tivolivredenburg.nl
• Monday, November 7, 7:30 p.m. at Stenhammarsalen, Gothenburg, Sweden. www.gso.se
• Thursday, November 10, 8 p.m. at Jazzclub Fasching, Stockholm, Sweden. www.fasching.se
• Saturday, November 12, 10 p.m. at Guimaraes Jazz Festival, Centro Cultural Vila Flor, Guimaraes, Portugal. www.ccvf.pt
• Sunday, November 13, 10:30 a.m. at Café Latino, Ourense, Spain. www.cafelatino.es
• Monday, November 14, 8:30 p.m. at Voll-Damm El Festival Internacional de Jazz de Barcelona, Conservatori del Liceu, Barcelona, Spain. www.theproject.es
• Wednesday, November 16, 9 p.m. at Teatro Prinicipal, Puerto Real, Cadiz, Spain.
• Thursday, November 17, 7:30 p.m. at Auditorio del Centro Cultural Conde Duque, Madrid, Spain. www.condeduquemadrid.es
• Wednesday and Thursday, January 25-26 at Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
• Thursday, March 23, 7:30 p.m. at Bucknell University, Bucknell Hall, Lewisburg, PA
Charlie Parker was a key influence for Mahanthappa from the time a junior high music teacher handed him the Parker album Archetypes along with a copy of Jamey Aebersold’s well-known collection of transcriptions, the Charlie Parker Omnibook. “I was blown away,” he recalls. “I couldn’t believe the way he was playing, gorgeous with so much charisma and flying all over the horn. I think hearing Charlie Parker was what planted the first seeds of wanting to do this for the rest of my life. It was very powerful.”
Poring over the transcription book, which listed catalogue numbers for the compositions but not album titles, the young altoist noticed that nearly half of them were accompanied by the label Savoy 2201. Not long after, while searching the bins at a local chain record store, he spotted a copy of the collection Bird: Master Takes – and there, on the spine, was the magic number: Savoy 2201. He describes the moment as “like finding the Holy Grail.”
Despite the stunning array of influences that have impacted his playing since that time, Parker has always remained an overweening inspiration. “If I ever feel uninspired or down I can always go back to Charlie Parker,” he says. “That always makes me feel invigorated and joyful about playing jazz and playing the saxophone. I always say that what I play still sounds like Bird, just a little bit displaced. It’s coming from the same language and the same foundations. I feel like I’ve always been playing Bird.”
Few musicians share the ability of alto saxophonist/composer Rudresh Mahanthappa to embody the expansive possibilities of his music with his culture. What has materialized is a sound that hybridizes progressive jazz and South Indian classical music in a fluid and forward-looking form that reflects Mahanthappa’s own experience growing up a second-generation Indian-American.
Mahanthappa has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, two New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowships, and numerous commissions. He has been named alto saxophonist of the year five of the past six years in DownBeat Magazine’s International Critics Polls and for six years running by the Jazz Journalists’ Association. In April 2013, he received a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, one of the most prominent arts awards in the world. In 2015, he was named a United States Artists Fellow. In 2016, he was named the Director of Jazz and the Associate Director of the Program in Musical Performance at Princeton University.
