Tuesday, March 9, 2021

R+R=NOW - R+R=NOW LIVE (2021 Blue Note)

In October 2018, Robert Glasper settled into the Blue Note club in NYC for a month-long residency several nights of which featured the new dream team collective R+R=NOW with Glasper on keys, Terrace Martin on synthesizer, vocoder, and alto saxophone, Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah on trumpet, Derrick Hodge on bass, Taylor McFerrin on synthesizer, and Justin Tyson on drums. The band had recently released their debut album Collagically Speaking and the music had already taken on expansive new dimensions in concert as evidenced on R+R=NOW Live, a thrilling live recording with standout tracks including “Respond,” “Change of Tone,” “Resting Warrior,” and a cover of Kendrick Lamar’s “How Much a Dollar Cost.”

1. Respond (Live)
2. Been On My Mind (Live)
3. How Much A Dollar Cost (Live)
4. Change Of Tone (Live)
5. Perspectives/Postpartum (Live)
6. Needed You Still Feat. Omari Hardwick (Live)
7. Resting Warrior (Live)

Dan Pitt Quintet - Wrongs (April 9, 2021)

Dan Pitt is a guitarist, composer, educator and improviser. As an active member of Toronto’s jazzmand creative music scene for the past several years, Pitt has played guitar in a variety of bands with the likes of Dave Young, Pat Collins, David Braid, Terry Clarke, Terry Promane, Tim Berne, and Michael Attias. He has also worked and recorded with Harrison Vetro, Lina Allemano, Nick Fraser and Andrew Downing. His first two records as a leader - the trio outing Fundamentally Flawed and the solo recording Monochrome - were critically lauded, establishing Pitt as an exciting young voice on the creative music scene.

Wrongs - Pitt’s third release as a leader - is easily his most ambitious work yet.

With Wrongs, Pitt expands on his creative vision, adding a tetrad of woodwinds into the mix. For this recording, Pitt enlisted bassist Alex Fournier and drummer Nick Fraser - both of whom play in Pitt’s trio - while also adding the sounds of Naomi McCarroll-Butler on bass clarinet and alto sax as well as Patrick Smith on tenor and soprano saxophones.

The compositions featured on this album were written over the course of the last several years, and serve as a vehicle for the band to take in whatever direction they want, as far out as they want to go. From the ambient wash of Hunter’s Dream to the aggressive bite of the title track, this music offers a broad range of sounds and textures that further demonstrate Pitt’s ability to create music that isn’t constrained by the limits of any style or genre.


1. Two Part 5:15
2. BroOke 5:56
3. Shadows Loom 7:19
4. Hunter’s Dream 5:24
5. What Is 6:45
6. Wrongs 5:17
7. Change is Imminent 7:31

Naomi McCarroll-Butler - Alto Saxophone and Bass Clarinet
Patrick Smith - Tenor and Soprano Saxophone
Alex Fournier - Double Bass
Nick Fraser - Drums and Cymbals

All compositions by Dan Pitt (SOCAN)

Recorded At Canterbury Music Company, August 22nd and 23rd, 2020
Engineered by Jeremy Darby
Mixed and Mastered by Fedge
Artwork and Design by Yesim Tosuner

Pat Metheny - Road to the Sun (March 2021 Modern Recordings)

There are only a handful of living musicians who can continually reinvent themselves year after year, and even fewer still who can claim to have maintained equal degrees of innovation and excellence across a career spanning decades.

Pat Metheny is one of the few artists in the world who can lay claim to such a description. On his latest album, Road To The Sun, Pat Metheny surprises us once again with his seemingly endless ability to harvest new vistas while retaining the instantly recognizable Metheny sound.

With two major new works, performed by five of the world ́s leading guitarists, Metheny charts a new way of obliterating boundaries between genres while simultaneously unveiling new facets of an already expansive personal language.
Grammy-winner Jason Vieaux, described by NPR as “perhaps the most precise and soulful classical guitarist of his generation” was tapped by Metheny to perform his four-movement solo guitar suite Four Paths Of Light.

The centerpiece of this landmark recording is Road To The Sun, a six-movement piece for fellow Grammy-award winning Los Angeles Guitar Quartet LAGQ – Metheny describes them as “one of the best bands in the world”.

In the end, Road To The Sun is nothing if not another truly great Pat Metheny record. It will rank alongside Secret Story, Bright Size Life, 80/81,One Quiet Night, Still Life (talking), Song X, and all the rest as being yet another unexpected and almost willfully inscrutable plot twist, inevitable to a genre with only one common element: Metheny himself.

Big Monitors - Knots And Notes (March 2021 Auand Records)

“Knots and Notes” tie generations
In Giancarlo Tossani’s new album, out now on Auand
The Italian pianist leads his band Big Monitors
A lively dialogue with young artists and a tribute to William Parker

Giancarlo Tossani

Halfway between music investigation and sociological experiment, Giancarlo Tossani's new album on Auand Records aims at putting together different generations and have them face the vast repertoire of such a multifaceted free jazz name as double bass player William Parker.

Generated by curiosity and connections (and also disconnections) between human beings belonging to different worlds, “Knots and Notes” showcases the talent of Big Monitors, a quintet led by Tossani and featuring Gabriele Mitelli (pocket trumpet, alto flugelhorn, synths), Tobia “Bobby” Bondesan (alto sax), Michele Bondesan (double bass), Andrea Grillini (drums), and a special appearance by the teenager singer Amanda Noelia Roberts (vocals on two tracks).

«We had this idea – Tossani recalls – when Michele Bondesan suggested some William Parker tunes for a live show we had scheduled. I was not a connoisseur of his vast and varied art, but I was intrigued by that: I belong to the William Parker generation, but Michele is in his twenties. When experiencing that music, what will his young generation listen to and relate to, compared to me and my musical and personal background, which belongs to different decades? This is not just a tribute, even if appropriate. It’s also a reflection on legacy and changes, repetition and difference».

William Parker’s multifaceted and huge talent, expressed through music, poetry and many other art forms, becomes the common thread in this album, embracing distant points in time. «In jazz music – the pianist says – notes are played at the same time, and they are tied together, bonded, much like the different generations connecting their languages. When I pick a musician, it’s always a matter of friendship, similarity, and fellowship. The prep work and the final edits are mine here, but I usually leave some blank space for my fellow musicians to fill when we’re working on it – I’m always surprised by the outcome. Tobia Bondesan has even come up with two themes on some of my outlines.» This is how tracks are tied together too, such as “Hunk Pappa (W. Parker) + Junk Meal”, which highlights puns and assonances of two compositions that can be paired «by affinity and change in direction.»

01 Slipped
02 In Order To Survive
03 Binding
04 Hunk Pappa Blues Junk Meal
05 Dream Flag
06 Sennit
07 Old Tears Fall Down
08 Lashing
09 Autumn Leaves Vermeer
10 Mr Reeve
11 Whipping
12 ONeals Porch
13 Hitch

Tobia Bondesan alto sax
Gabriele Mitelli pocket trumpet, alto flugelhorn, synths
Giancarlo Tossani piano, wurlitzer, virtual synths
Michele Bondesan double bass
Andrea Grillini drums

feat. Amanda Noelia Roberts voice (07, 09), lyrics (09)

Recorded and mixed at Ritmo&Blu Recording Studio,
Pozzolengo (BS) Italy on November 26-27, 2019 by Stefano Castagna
Mastered at New Mastering, Milano Italy on April 30, 2020 by Maurizio Giannotti
Produced by Giancarlo Tossani
Executive producer: Marco Valente

The Mike Taylor Quartet - Mandala (April 14, 2021 Jazz In Britain)

A not-for-profit organisation, whose aim is to collect, curate, preserve, celebrate and promote the legacy of British jazz musicians. The archive collects, curates and preserves off-air and other recordings of British jazz performances.
The organisation will publish books, release vinyl, CDs and downloads, working in partnership with musicians and their families.

1. Son Of Red Blues
2. Night In Tunisia
3. Folk Dance #1
4. Half Blue
5. Mandala

Recorded live by Jon Hiseman on Friday, 8th January 1965 at the Studio Club, Westcliff-On-Sea, Southend.

Previously unheard. These are the only known live recordings of the Quartet.

Mike Taylor – piano
Dave Tomlin – soprano sax
Tony Reeves – bass
Jon Hiseman – drums

Orbain Unit - Xerai (March 2021)

Improvisation quintet formed by Akauzazte, Killerkume and Los Plomos members who get together elements from free-jazz/avant-garde, noise, psychedelia, electronics and even extreme metal to create hypnotic and intense sonic assaults.

1. Ljoom 08:51
2. Kurtzea 12:41
3. Powerhouse 15:13
4. Adheit 08:12

Orbain Unit are:
Iker Arrazola: drums
Txemi Artigas: electric bass
Joxean Rivas: drums, electronics & vocals
Fernando Ulzión: sax
Mikel Vega: guitar & effects

Dustin Laurenzi - Snaketime: The Music of Moondog (March 2021)

Chicago saxophonist Dustin Laurenzi has developed a distinctly personal approach to improvisation and composition that has garnered the attention of the city's creative music community. Recognized for his "offbeat approach to articulating harmonies and constructing melodies" (NextBop), Dustin's music is inspired and informed by jazz, folk, improvised music, and contemporary classical music.

1. Nero's Expedition 07:44
2. Lament I (Bird's Lament) 06:42
3. Remember 03:34
4. Fiesta Piano Solo 05:21
5. Down Is Up 07:03
6. All Is Loneliness 07:17
7. Lullaby 07:32

Chad McCullough -- Trumpet
Nick Mazzarella -- Alto Saxophone
Dustin Laurenzi -- Tenor Saxophone
Jason Stein -- Bass Clarinet
Dave Miller -- Guitar
Matt Ulery -- Bass
Quin Kirchner -- Drums/Percussion
Ryan Packard -- Drums/Percussion

All Compositions by Louis Hardin (A.K.A Moondog)
Arrangements by Dustin Laurenzi

Recorded by Nick Broste January 12, 2018 Live at the Hungry Brain (Chicago, IL)
Mixed by Nick Broste at Shape Shoppe (Chicago, IL)
Mastered by Mikey Young

Michael Wimberly - Afrofuturism (2021)

Veteran Percussionist and Composer Michael Wimberly Announces New Genre-Crossing Album Afrofuturism

Being released in three distinct parts, the album exhibits the breadth of Wimberly's sonic jouney and runs the gamut of musical traditions from Pop, Rock, R&B, Afrobeat, and West African music. Afrofuturism features guest performances and writing by Grammy award-winning singer Joss Stone, Australian pop singer Gary Pinto, Kora master Foday Muso Susa, and producer and guitarist Sharief Hobley.

1. Alive: Featuring Sharief Hobley / Written by M. Wimberly (5:38)
2. Mack Daddy’s Woman: Written by M. Wimberly (5:02)
3. Revolution: Written by M. Wimberly / L. Goldman (4:56)
4. Afrofuturism(radio edit): Written by M. Wimberly / Remix by Mike Meurin (4:30)
5. Lovin’ Everywhere (Acapella): Written by M. Wimberly / L. Goldman (0:29)
6. Dance with You: Featuring Joss Stone/Written by M.Wimberly/J.Stone/J. Joseph/F. Musa Suso (3:07)
7. Madiba: Featuring: Theresa Thomason / Written by M.Wimberly/J.Joseph/Foday Musa Suso (5:37)
8. Djeli Song: Featuring Foday Musa Suso / Written by M. Wimberly/J.Joseph, F. Musa Suso (4:54)
9. DDK Groove: Written by M. Wimberly/J.Joseph/F. Musa Suso (5:15)
10.Radio: Featuring Gary Pinto / Written by G. Pinto and M. Wimberly (4:12)
11. Afrofuturism (Ext. Mix): Written by M. Wimberly / Remix by Mike Meurin (7:17)
12. Solei (Traditional): Featuring Missia & Famoro Dioubate / Written by F. Dioubate (3:05)
13. Solei (Contemporary): Written by F. Dioubate (3:05)

Personnel:
Foday Musa Suso Kora / Vocals, Joss Stone Vocals, Gary Pinto Vocals, Theresa Thomason Vocals, Sharief Hobley Guitar / Vocals, Famoro Dioubate Balafon / Vocals, Missia Saran Dioubate Vocals, Trevor Allen Bass, Armando Gola Bass, Sekou Dioubate Bass, Jonathan Joseph Drums, Waldron Ricks Trumpet, Bruce Williamson Tenor Sax / Soprano Sax / Flute, Kofi Osei Williams Djembe, Cloe Parker and Imani Lewis-Shirley Background Vocals, Michael Wimberly Keyboards / Vibraphone Percussion / Vocals

Executive Producer: Michael Wimberly
Produced by Mike Meurin & Michael Wimberly / Mixing / Edited by Mike Meurin
Recorded by: Ken Rich @ Grand Street Recording Studios Brooklyn, NY
Assistant engineers: Jake Lumus, Luke Young, Gintas Norvilla
Additional Engineering by Steve Greenwell on “Dance with You”
Mastering by Jody Elff

Unveiling of the virtual programming of Nuit blanche! (Montréal en lumière)


A digital Nuit blanche
You won't have enough of one night to see it all!

For its 18th edition, the Nuit blanche, presented by the Casino de Montréal, offers you a different and culturally nourishing "Night" in the form of a big at-home celebration accompanied by artists from all horizons!

Next Saturday, March 13, we are offering over thirty free digital activities for all tastes - humour, games, visual art, cinema, music, theater, and dance - which will allow you to fill up on culture!

The Nuit blanche Cabaret
For one night only!

Starting at 9PM, join Arnaud Soly, on our Facebook and YouTube pages, where he will be live from the Lion d’Or to present his Nuit blanche Cabaret, a multidisciplinary show in which he invites a dozen artists from various backgrounds: Émile Bilodeau, Klô Pelgag, Katherine Levac, Queen KA, Éric Desranleau, Daniel Grenier, Antonin Mousseau-Rivard - to name a few - who will rub shoulders with visual artists, dancers, comedians, poets, actors... A crazy evening of unexpected twists!
Virtual activities
To consume without moderation

VISUAL ARTS
Manuel Mathieu’s Night at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

The MAC’s virtual Nuit blanche

Art Souterrain: We won’t move for nothing

Art Matters: Idle Mapping from a High Speed Train

And many more!


CINEMA
FNC on the moon

La Nuit des courts du FIFA
 
And many more !


LAUGHS
2nd anniversary of
the Terminal Comédie Club

La Nuit des podcasts presented by Zoofest

And many more !


GAMES
The Ghost of Pointe-à-Callière,
a virtual escape game

Le Grand quiz musical
presented by Randolph pub ludique and Rosemarie Records

And many more !


WORDS
Des mots pour déconfiner nos maux

La Nuit Blanche du DOMPTEUR / DöX FöX

And many more !


MULTI
DISCIPLINARY
La virée nocturne
by Radio-Canada
animated by Pierre-Yves Lord

La fête n’est pas finie

L’Art-chimiste

And many more !


MUSIC
Le Casino de Montréal presents Les 24h Vinyle

DRAEDEN
presented by îleSoniq

Salimo et Adamo,
a virtual show

Calamine feat. Petite Papa

And many more !


Thank you!

The 2021 edition of MONTRÉAL EN LUMIÈRE would not be possible without the support of its esteemed partners and sponsors. Special thanks to this year’s presenter, the Casino de Montréal, for helping to highlight the invaluable work of Montreal’s gastronomic institutions. Thanks also to the Société des alcools du Québec for its support, especially in these difficult times, and to Air France. And last but not least, a huge thank you to the public sector partners for their continued trust and support.