Friday, May 14, 2021

OUT TODAY: Composer / Pianist Cettina Donato's 'I SICILIANI' with Actor Ninni Bruschetta via AlfaMusic

Composer and Pianist Cettina Donato Joins Forces with Actor Ninni Bruschetta on New Album I SICILIANI, Honoring Poet Antonio Caldarella
Out May 14, 2021 via AlfaMusic

Italian pianist, conductor and composer Cettina Donato is proud to announce the May 14, 2021 release of her latest album, I Siciliani, featuring renowned actor Antonio ‘Ninni’ Bruschetta. Their second collaboration, this wondrous musical portrait of Sicily comes to life thanks to Donato and Bruschetta’s remarkable synergy and expansive musical vision. Featuring eleven of Donato’s expressive compositions, I Siciliani features the work of the late Italian poet Antonio Caldarella. This groundbreaking release will be available via AlfaMusic.

Cettina Donato is an internationally acclaimed classical and jazz pianist, composer, arranger and conductor. Her highly original work often blurs the lines between genres: from jazz to classical, and from symphonic music to theatrical music. For over a decade, she has led the Cettina Donato Orchestra, a full-size jazz big band with a string quartet, featuring musicians from all over the world. Across the ocean, in Italy, Donato is the only woman that conducts classical symphony orchestras performing a jazz repertoire while also contributing with her own arrangements. Donato has conducted the Bari Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, the Vittorio Emanuele Symphony Orchestra, the Lucca Jazz Orchestra, the Molfetta Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the New Talents Jazz Orchestra, among others. To date, Donato has released five albums including Persistency in 2017 (AlfaMusic) with renowned drummer Eliot Zigmund.

On I Siciliani, which has already received worldwide acclaim in Italy including a feature article in Gazzetta del Sud, Donato explores the work of the late poet Antonio Caldarella alongside legendary actor and writer Antonio Ninni Bruschetta. The Messina-born actor has directed over 40 theatrical works and has appeared in a plethora of film and television projects since the late 1980’s. Along with prominent television roles in Italy, he has known for his work in Visioni Private (1989), Boris (2007), To Rome With Love (2012), and Quo Vado?, which was the highest grossing Italian film in Italy in 2016. Bruschetta received the Tony Bertorelli Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.
The pair’s previous theatrical collaboration came to pass in 2019 with “Il mio nome è Caino“, a production by Claudio Fava. While “Il mio nome è Caino” moved audiences with its emotional script and powerful musical performance, “I Siciliani” offers a new facet of Sicily; the poetic and literary kind.

The artistic inspiration for this project comes from the Strait of Messina, a common homeland for both Donato and Bruschetta, and geographically speaking, the narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily and the western tip of Calabria in the south of Italy. Antonio Caldarella, whose poetry inspired “I Siciliani”, crossed the same passageway throughout his life. Caldarella was a native of Avola in Sicily and raised between Naples, Messina and “the rest of the world.”

With Ninni Bruschetta’s brilliant interpretations, Caldarella’s poetry is brought to life on I Siciliani. Striking a balance between acting and singing, the album showcases Donato’s evocative compositions while bringing her love for large jazz ensemble back to the surface. The album, produced by the AlfaMusic label, is a suite of 8 songs and 3 preludes for piano, all composed, arranged and performed by Donato’s quartet with the assistance of the world class B.I.M Orchestra.

Joining Donato is saxophonist Dario Cecchini (Lee Konitz, Natalie Cole Band, Kenny Wheeler Hot Eleven, Funk Off, Paolo Fresu, Enrico Pieranunzi, Dave Liebman), double bass player Dario Rosciglione (Cedar Walton, Joe Lovano, Randy Brecker, Phil Woods, Tony Scott, Danilo Rea) and drummer Mimmo Campanale (Paolo Fresu, Bob Mintzer, Phil Woods, Lee Konitz, Randy Brecker, Dee Dee Bridgewater). Actress and singer Celeste Gugliandolo, who has appeared on X Factor Italia in 2011 with I Moderni, is a featured special guest on one track.
Ninni Bruschetta lends his voice to I Siciliani, after performing Caldarella’s poetry for years throughout the world. Bruschetta originally began staging the poetry of his friend Antonio Caldarella at small theaters in Sicily before it became a traveling show that consistently changed form.

“Poetry became song and these are our songs, or rather our stories,” Bruschetta reflects. “Cettina’s, mine, Antonio’s and AlfaMusic’s, all together; stories of jazz, poetry, alcohol and above all stories of love.” Now, this dynamic duo is giving us the opportunity to experience their stories through record — configurations of passion, quality, and expertise that continue to evolve each time they are recorded, performed, and listened to.

1. I siciliani (4:31)
2. Le siciliane (3:36)
3. Alcol (4:17)
4. Preludio N. 1 (2:56)
5. Amico fragile (4:05)
6. Amore segreto (5:55)
7. Preludio N. 2 (1:34)
8. Amuri miu (7:36)
9. Ninna nanna (3:53)
10. Vorrei nuotare (2:11)

Preludio N. 3 (Ghost track) (2:19)

All composed by Concetta Donato
Lyrics by Antonio Caldarella
Publishing: AlfaMusic Studio (Siae)
P&C 2021 AlfaMusic – All Rights reserved

Wolfgang Lackerschmid - Summer Changes (May 14, 2021 Dot Time Records)

Summer Changes is the new album from legendary vibraphonist Wolfgang Lackerschmid. Recorded September 16 & 17, 2018 at the Traumraum Tonstudio, Augsburg, Germany, this new album comes on the heals of several recent Dot Time Records Legends releases that have featured Lackerschmid alongside trumpeter Chet Baker, including the critically acclaimed Quintet Sessions and Ballads For Two. Each track on Summer Changes was written and composed by Lackerschmid, with the exception of “Rosemary’s Baby” and “Poinciana.” The tracklist exhibits a collection of 8 tunes that nod to the unique changing of seasons — the heat of the summer in particular — and a handful of sentimental memories for the artist, including a ballad for his mother.

Lackershmid’s arrangements on Summer Changes embrace feelings of reflection and nostalgia that are ignited by the seasonal change. Yet, the album is as much an homage to the past as it is a motive for the future. The 8 tracks on Summer Changes reveal a glimpse of the artist’s own understanding of time, and specifically, how he has chosen to contextualize his memories and experiences through harmony.

1. Half The Way 03:31
2. Summer Changes 05:11
3. Lemon Moon 06:26
4. Mother's Dream 05:45
5. We Ain't No Magicians 06:12
6. Rosemary's Baby 07:52
7. Poinciana 05:47
8. Stundenwalzer 10:04

Wolfgang Lackerschmid – vibraphone
Mark Soskin – piano
Jay Anderson – bass
Adam Nussbaum – drums

Meredith d'Ambrosio - Sometime Ago (May 14, 2021 Sunnyside Records)

As quiet as it is kept, vocalist/composer Meredith d’Ambrosio has become one of jazz music’s most highly regarded storytellers and performers. Her artful approach to musical interpretation has been treasured by many and has inspired numerous fruitful collaborations. Her new recording, Sometime Ago, finds her working with two masters of song, pianist Randy Halberstadt and trumpeter Don Sickler.

For nearly five decades, d’Ambrosio has been quietly but steadily spinning out new work, sating aficionados and casual listeners alike. Her beautiful voice, piano touch and song craftsmanship have been championed by many. D’Ambrosio’s unique talent can be heard on the seventeen releases recorded over three decades for Sunnyside Records.

The vocalist passes piano duties to Halberstadt on Sometime Ago. Halberstadt is a well-known pianist, composer and accompanist from Seattle, Washington. He brings his ensemble, which includes the father and son rhythm team of bassist Daryl Johns and drummer Steve Johns, to propel this tremendous session of original music from Halberstadt’s and d’Ambrosio’s pens as well as their arrangements of standards.

Sickler contributes his trumpet and production talents to help shape the album. The ensemble met at the legendary Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey in October of 2019 to record the program.

Naturally, it is the music that stands out, as all of those involved are highly motivated to provide thoughtful interpretations of original and cover songs.
The recording begins with Halbertstadt’s longing filled “When Springtime Turns to Fall;” d’Ambrosio’s amber tone at home in the meditative and upbeat moments. The pianist and vocalist’s “Feast Your Eyes” is playful in its lyrics and modal development, while John Williams and Alan and Marilyn Bergman’s “Moonlight” is a laid back bossa reflection. Sickler’s warm flugelhorn introduces Sergio Mihanovich’s “Sometime Ago,” a coolly performed ballad featuring Daryl Johns’s fantastic solo bass work.

Marvin Fisher and Jack Segal’s blue “May I Come In” plays into a Chet Bakeresque subtle warmth in anguish. A bouncy take on “Ralph Rainger and Dorothy Parker’s “I Wished On The Moon” brings a sprightly feel, before Halberstadt and d’Ambrosio’s “My Open Heart” provides a heartbreaking song of love and loss.

Schertzinger and Mercer’s chestnut “I Remember You” is done in an upbeat swing, while d’Ambrosio’s “Oh Well, What The Hell” finds happiness in exasperation, Sickler’s fine muted trumpet a counterpoint to d’Ambrosio’s lines. The recording concludes with Rainger and Robin’s “If I Should Lose You,” a mid-tempo Latin piece that leaves listeners wishing for more.

A true master of mood and presentation, Meredith d’Ambrosio luxuriates in a meeting of bright collaborators on Sometime Ago. Randy Halberstadt and Don Sickler help to produce a balanced and emotionally varied work of art.

1. When Springtime Turns To Fall
2. Feast Your Eyes
3. In The Moonlight
4. Sometime Ago
5. May I Come In
6. I Wished On The Moon
7. My Open Heart
8. I Remember You
9. Oh Well, What The Hell
10. If I Should Lose You

Meredith d'Ambrosio - vocals
Randy Halberstadt - piano
Daryl Johns - bass
Steve Johns - drums
Don Sickler - flugelhorn (4) & muted trumpet (9)

SINGLE from Ches Smith's Path of Seven Colors Out Today

The single "Here's The Light" from Path of Seven Colors – the exhilarating album from Ches Smith's We All Break – is out today, May 14. The full album is slated for release June 11, 2021 via Pyroclastic Records

Melding elements of Haitian Vodou and contemporary jazz, the groundbreaking 
album offers eight evolutionary/revolutionary tracks performed by a collaborative octet of world-class musicians including Smith, pianist Matt Mitchell, saxophonist Miguel Zenón, bassist Nick Dunston, vocalist Sirene Dantor Rene, and master drummers Daniel Brevil, Markus Schwartz and Fanfan Jean-Guy Rene.

Chris Potter Circuits Trio - Sunrise Reprise (14 May, 2021 Edition Records)

One of the most prolific improvisers of his generation returns with the follow up to his 2019 Circuits album: a powerful and cathartic record featuring keyboardist James Francies and drummer Eric Harland.

In Sept 2020, a small window emerged from the restrictions and saw an opportunity to record ‘Sunrise Reprise’ with his Circuits trio. It was the first time anyone in the group had recorded with other musicians in months, and for prolific musicians such as these, it resulted in an outpouring of collective creativity, energy, and spirit.

The session was a huge release from the build-up of tension over the previous months, as Chris explains; “All of a sudden we’re in the studio. It felt such a release, a sense of freedom to create and to express ourselves collectively. It’s this, that has been the central part of this album – it’s about the trio, our shared energy, reflecting our own thoughts and feelings from all that’s going on in the world. Eric, James, and I really needed to PLAY, to try to put into music all the intense feelings of the previous few months. The close bond we had developed playing this music together on the road led to what we felt as a cathartic musical experience in the studio, documented in one very special evening”. Chris Potter
1. Sunrise and Joshua Trees 5.41
2. Southbound 8.17
3. Serpentine 11.10
4. The Peanut 5.11
5. Nowhere, Now Here/Sunrise Reprise 24.27

Chris Potter - tenor and soprano saxophones, clarinets, flutes, sampler/keyboard
James Francies - piano, keyboards
Eric Harland - drums

Music composed by Chris Potter - Chris Potter Music (BMI)

Produced by Chris Potter
Executive producers Dave Stapleton and Louise Holland

Recorded by Josh Giunta at GSI Studios 19th September 2020
Mixed by Christopher Allen at Sear Sound 28th & 29th September 2020
Mastered by Huntley Miller at HM Mastering

Artwork design by Oli Bentley, Split
Photos by Dave Stapleton

Chris Potter plays D’Addario Jazz Select reeds, RS Berkeley flutes and Selmer saxophones.
James Francies is a Yamaha Artist, endorses Korg Keyboards and is an IWC Brand Ambassador. James Francies appears courtesy of Blue Note Records.
Eric Harland plays Sakae drums, Remo drumheads, Vic Firth sticks and Zildjian cymbals

Pre-Order Now!! Available as Limited Edition Coloured & Numbered Vinyl and CD

Formats Available:
– The first 200 LPs will be numbered
– All LP copies will be coloured

Sun Ra & His Arkestra - Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Beyond Saturn) May 14, 2021

As live, late-1970s Sun Ra albums go, Somewhere Over the Rainbow is a cut above. It's similar to and contemporaneous with The Soul Vibrations of Man and Taking a Chance on Chances, two live sets also issued on Saturn in 1977 (and available in our remastered digital catalog).

Tape was not available, but we worked from a solidly transferred, clean 1977 Saturn LP (catalog #7877). As with many limited-release Saturn pressings, Somewhere Over the Rainbow offers exciting performances and solos preserved with dollar-store acoustics. Audio restoration can't add what the gear didn't capture—e.g., you can't "remix" the balance of instruments recorded with ad hoc mic placement—but these tracks here benefit from digital cleanup and sonic improvements (including phase correction, an issue with a number of Saturn releases).

This expanded Beyond Saturn edition includes two bonus tracks sourced from a stray tape from the original live 1977 dates. These tracks are not previously unreleased—they were previously and deliberately "misfiled" by the artist. That is, they were included on the A-side of a 1985 Saturn LP whose other content was unrelated.

The original 1977 release alternates four Sun Ra originals with three Tin Pan Alley favorites. It was during the 1970s that Ra began peppering his sets with Big Band-era standards, especially titles originally recorded by his heroes Fletcher Henderson and Duke Ellington. However, "Gone With the Wind," "Over the Rainbow," and "Take the 'A' Train" recur frequently in the career-spanning Ra discography.

Also of interest in this set is "I'll Wait for You," whose throbbing disco pulse prefigures the dance floor stylings pursued by Ra on his later albums Lanquidity, On Jupiter, and Sleeping Beauty.

The performances were recorded at the Bluebird in Bloomington, Indiana. The discographic Earthly Recordings of Sun Ra (by Robert Campbell and Christopher Trent, 2nd ed. 2000) notes: "Michael Weiss says that the Arkestra played two nights at the Bluebird; each night consisted of two 3-hour sets. He recalls that 'the band paraded around playing "Lights on a Satellite" like on the Montreux album'. [Two] dancers were identified from two local newspaper accounts. These articles say there were 18 people in the band, and imply the presence of Pat Patrick and Vincent Chancey, plus a possible third drummer—none of them audible on these tracks. Weiss, however, is sure that Patrick and Chancey were not present."

The two bonus tracks, "Outer Reach Intensity-Energy" and "Cosmos Rendezvous," were first issued by Sun Ra on the 1985 LP known as Stars That Shine Darkly Vol. 2, and alternately called Outer Reach Intensity-Energy. There was no identifying information included with the release—typical of Ra during the 1980s, it was issued in a generic sleeve which may or may not have been adorned with hand-art and no info except track titles on the label. However, Michael D. Anderson of the Sun Ra Music Archive found these tracks on a tape associated with the Bluebird dates.

1. We Live to Be 04:46
2. Gone with the Wind 02:47
3. Make Another Mistake 03:43
4. Take the 'A' Train 11:21
5. Amen Amen (Amen, Meni, Many Amens) 07:36
6. Over the Rainbow 07:33
7. I'll Wait for You 03:33
8. Outer Reach Intensity-Energy (bonus track) 03:53
9. Cosmos Rendezvous (bonus track) 04:19

Sun Ra: piano, organ, vocal
Ahmed Abdullah: trumpet
Akh Tal Ebah: trumpet, flugelhorn, vocal
Marshall Allen: alto sax, flute, percussion
Danny Davis: alto sax, flute, percussion
John Gilmore: tenor sax, timbales, vocals
Danny Ray Thompson: baritone sax, flute, percussion
James Jacson: bassoon, flute, Infinity Drum
Eloe Omoe: bass clarinet
ShooBee Doo [Reginald J. Fields]: bass
Tommy Hunter: drums
Luqman Ali [Edward Skinner]: drums
Atakatune: congas, percussion
June Tyson: vocals
Performers not heard:
Judith Holton [Wisteria el Moondew]: dancer
Cheryl Banks: dancer

Tracks 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9 composed by Sun Ra © Enterplanetary Koncepts (BMI)
"Gone with the Wind" by Herb Magidson & Allie Wrubel © Bourne Co./Music Sales Corp. (ASCAP)
"Take the 'A' Train" by Billy Strayhorn © Billy Strayhorn Songs Inc./Reservoir Media Music (ASCAP)
"Over the Rainbow" by Harold Arlen & Yip Harburg © EMI Feist (ASCAP)

Tracks produced by Sun Ra
Tracks 1–6: Vinyl transfer by Timothy Stollenwerk from an original Saturn LP in the collection of Craig Koon
Tracks 7–9: Tape transfer by Michael D. Anderson, Sun Ra Music Archive
Digital audio restoration by Irwin Chusid
Cover reconstruction by I.C.
Recorded at the Bluebird, Bloomington, IN, ca. July 18, 1977

Susan Alcorn / Leila Bordreuil / Ingrid Laubrock - Bird Meets Wire (May 14, 2021)

Ingrid Laubrock is a saxophonist/composer based in Brooklyn since 2009. Laubrock is interested in exploring the borders between musical realms and creating multi-layered, dense and often evocative sound worlds. Laubrock has worked with Anthony Braxton, Mary Halvorson, Kris Davis, Tyshawn Sorey, Tim Berne, Muhal Richard Abrams and many others

1. Area 41
2. Bird Meets Wire
3. Is Is Not
4. Topology
5. Cañones (El Pueblo Unido)
6. The Fourth World
7. Indigo Blue (Wayfarin' Stranger)

Susan Alcorn pedal steel
Leila Bordreuil cello
Ingrid Laubrock tenor and soprano saxophone

All compositions by Alcorn/Brodreuil/Laubrock except Wayfarin' Stranger (Public Domain) and El Pueblo Unido (Public Domain)

Recorded by Colin Marston at The Thousand Caves, April 1 2018
Mixed by Susan Alcorn
Mastered by Ed Tretault
Executive Producer: Kevin Reilly

MOBA: The New Project of Angelo Mastronardi out on May 14, 2021 (GleAM Records)

GleAM Records is proud to announce the release of M.O.B.A.,the new musical project by producer and pianist Angelo Mastronardi, available on CD and digital download / streaming from 14 May 2021.

In this new work, pianist and producer Angelo Mastronardi seeks a new balance between the interaction of the piano trio formed by Paolo Romano(electric bass), Gianluca Aceto(semi-acoustic bass) andPaolo Colazzo(drums) and the tonal possibilities offered. by electric instruments and synthesizers, played by the leader Angelo Mastronardi (piano, fender rhodes & synth) and by the beatmaker Bonbooze(synth & drum machine), together with the winds played by Emanuele Coluccia(alto and tenor saxophone) and by Marco Gianfreda (trumpet).

The pianist starts from seven of his compositions and involves the musicians in a process of sharing ideas and arrangements. The result is a music that perfectly blends writing and extemporaneousness. A research that goes further to redesign the idea of ​​structure and bring together different languages ​​in a new form. Ultimately an aesthetic manifesto of the GleAM label and its more transversal editorial line.

1. Here and Now
2. GleAM
3. Beyond Sight
4. From Z to A
5. No Walls
6.Far is Around The Corner
7. Know The Way
8. Five Drops
9. River

Angelo Mastronardi - piano, fender rhodes, synth
Emanuele Coluccia – alto sax (track 2,5,7), tenor sax (track 5)
Marco Gianfreda - trumpet (track 2)
Bonbooze – synth (1,2,4,5,7) drum machine (track 1)
Paolo Romano – electric bass (tracks 4, 5, 6, 8)
Gianluca Aceto – semi-acoustic bass (track 2)
Paolo Colazzo – drums & percussion (all tracks except track 1)

Recorded on november 2020 at GleAM Studio (Lecce)
Mixed & Mastered on dicember 2020 at MDLab Studio Lecce
Sound Engineer: Marco D’Agostinis
Produced by GleAM Records

Missa Jazz from B-Side Band (May 14, 2021 Big Round Records)

Since its inception in 2006, the B-Side Band has become the premiere professional big band in the city of Brno in the Czech Republic. Now, under the direction of bandleader Josef Buchta, the band presents its newest album: MISSA JAZZ. In this latest work, the B-Side Band is joined by Chamber Orchestra Brno and the Ars Brunensis chamber choir; together, they perform Jaromír Hnilička’s Missa Jazz. As its name suggests, the work is a complete Mass, and the score for its first iteration is held at the Vatican Library. Now, the original composition has been expanded to include a chamber orchestra and several new choral parts, resulting in a total reimagining of the work. First debuted in the fall of 2008, this album is the first-ever studio recording of the final expanded version of the Missa Jazz.

1 Preludium  3:48
2 Introitus  5:36
3 Kyrie  10:21
4 Gloria  4:53
5 Graduale  5:59
6 Omnes gentes iubilate Deo  3:03
7 Credo  3:20
8 Sanctus  0:57
9 Pater Noster  1:27
10 Interludium  2:43
11 Agnus Dei  1:19
12 Communio  3:02
13 Postludium  3:57

B-SIDE BAND
trumpet
Josef Buchta bandleader
Lukáš Koudelka
František Adamík
Juraj Bartoš (solo flugelhorn 2, solo trumpet 4, 13)

trombone
Petr Hnětkovský (solo 4, 5)
Martin Henek
Pavel Semek

saxophone
Pavel Zlámal  tenor (solo 2, 4, 13), baritone (solo 3)
Petr Kovařík  tenor
Antonín Mühlhansl  alt
Lubor Pokluda  baritone

Jiří Kalousek  guitar
Tomáš Vunderle Koudelka double bass
Richard Mlynář  piano
Petr Ptáček  drums

CHAMBER ORCHESTRA BRNO
Pavel Wallinger, Maria Filová, Irena Hůrková, Jan Vašta  violin I
Leoš Zavadilík, Filip Kostelecký, Jan Rybka, Marie Pšenicová  violin II
Tomáš Kulík, Petr Pšenica  viola
Pavel Šabacký, Libor Kučera violoncello
Michal Pokorný  contrabass
Jan Ondruš  oboe
Martin Sobol  flute
Karel Hofmann, Miloš Kovařík  french horn
Pavel Sapák, Jiří Klement  clarinet
Jan Říhák  timpani
Alžběta Horská  harp

ARS BRUNENSIS
Dan Kalousek  choir master

Matthew Halpin - Agreements (May 14, 2021)

When I first put on Matthew’s record, I felt like a kid again—lying on the floor of the living room, dreading the moment when a song would end. Matthew and his band of musicians—Kit Downes on organ, Hanno Busch on guitar, Sean Carpio on drums, and Sergio Martinez on percussion—embody present, past, and future. They expand and contract, maneuver past impossible hairpin turns, and interact with kaleidoscopic intricacy.

The result is a glimpse into Halpin’s vertiginous inner life. On “Dancing with the Devil,” Downes’s organ shrieks above the fray as the band builds into a Boschian orgy. On “To Do,” the same organ paints planar surfaces and hallucinatory shapes, weaving a retrofuturist fugue state in the song's second half. Martinez and Carpio propel “The Beach'' forward with a groove at once relentless and weightless, scintillating like the light that reflects off the water on a perfect summer’s day. In “Treetown,” Halpin and Busch’s electroacoustic bird calls remind me of the Brooklyn mockingbirds that have learned to imitate car alarms: nature adapting to technology. The track recedes like the natural world it represents, increasingly silent in the wake of destruction.

1. To-Do Today, To-Do Dismay

2. Dancing with the Devil

3. Dog Day Afternoon

4. The Beach

5. Swings and Roundabouts

6. Sit Up and Shut Down

7. Awkward Handshakes

8. Pop Fiction

9. Treetown

10. Sigh For Sam

11. Sleep


Matthew Halpin - tenor saxophone, composition

Kit Downes - hammond organ

Hanno Busch - electric guitar

Sergio Martinez - percussion

Sean Carpio - drums 

Veronika Morscher, Rebekka Salomea Ziegler, Laura Totenhagen - voices on “Sleep"


Recorded at Riverside Studios, Cologne

Engineered by Julian David

Mixed and mastered by Oliver Bergner

Artwork by Janet Cruise Halpin

Graphic design by Daniel F. Hirth

Released with Frutex Tracks

Distribution by Hey!Blau

Supported by Generations Jazz Festival and SRF


Pre-order

Ahmed Warshanna - Ishta ( May 14, 2021)

Some records come to the world at their appointed moment. The heat of the contextual social atmosphere is particular enough to make us call that music “urgent” or “essential.” Those records attain musical truth via their time and place, relying on external factors to deepen their beauty. There is no shame in this, but pride and joy at crystallizing history beyond the boundaries of language.

Ishta, this debut EP from guitarist Ahmed Warshanna, is not that. Rather, this EP comes of its own accord. It is a breath of fresh air.

The five tracks on Ishta are a musical journey that could have been released at any point in the last half century and would still contain the same multitude of musical truths that they do today. By shrugging off temporal burdens, Ishta demands relevancy across historical contexts. This music necessitates itself.

Though this music is steeped in timelessness, it is not at all unmoored. Ahmed’s music is, rather, centrally grounded by its physical occupation in the world as a dual citizen of both Egyptian and American musical tradition. Place is an exploration of self. This music proves that.

Here is a call to search for meaning in the diasporic, to center ourselves at the intersections of inner-identities that can be disparate and otherwise opposed. With this music, the chains of heritage do not bind and arrest, but are jewelry, and liberate the spirit through a celebration of its weighted beauty.

1. Inty Omry – Ahmed Warshanna (9:33)
2. Alf Leila - Ahmed Warshanna (9:13)
3. Samaka – Ahmed Warshanna (6:58)
4. Azra’ – Ahmed Warshanna (8:24)
5. Intisar – Ahmed Warshanna (9:39)

Guitar, Ahmed Warshanna
Trumpet, Hart Guonjian-Pettit
Tenor, Saxophone Dominic Ellis
Trombone, Daniel Sperlein 
Piano, Josh Miller
Bass, Thomas Owens
Drums, Charlie Seda

Record Label: Tiber River
Recorded and Mixed By: Noah Maruyama 
Mastered By: Alan Wonneberger
Production Coordination: Alan Wonneberger, Matt Belzer, Tom Lagana

Nick Kerkhoff Quartet - Here and Now (May 14, 2021)

1. Here and Now
2. Intro
3. Almada
4. Last Train Home
5. Could Have Been You
6. Siluae
7. Could Have Been You (Reprise)
8. Leaves
9. The Voice of a New Generation

George Panaite – drums
Emanuele Pellegrini – piano
Jesse Schilderink – saxophones
Nick Kerkhoff – bass

All compositions written by Nick Kerkhoff
Recorded on August 25, 2020 at Fattoria Musica, Germany
Recording – Steffen Lütke
Mixing – Udo Pannekeet at Wedgeview Studios, The Netherlands
Mastering – Nathan James at Vault Mastering, U.S.A.