Richard D. Johnson - "First Glance" via Afar Music 2021

Pianist Richard D. Johnson Presents His Expressive New Release, First Glance

via Afar Music

Pianist and composer Richard D. Johnson is proud to announce the release of his latest recording, First Glance, via Afar Music. The product of a spontaneous recording session, this all-original program showcases the Chicago-based pianist and composer at his musical prime. Touching on the overwhelming sensation that the sight of beauty can elicit, First Glance promotes a positive worldview and a melting pot of experiences.

Inspired by a rollover window of studio time, Johnson’s sixth release as a bandleader took form spontaneously after the pianist joined saxophonist Sharel Cassity for her 2020 recording Fearless. The ensemble, comprised of ace bassist Alex Claffy and high-powered drummer Mark Whifield Jr., had just finished recording Fearless on day one out of two booked at Victorian Studios in Chicago. With the spirit of Cassity’s album in mind, the crew seized the remaining studio session to record eight of Johnson’s own tunes, learning them all in one evening. With organist Paul Mutzabaugh added to the lineup, First Glance is a luminous display of individual talents melded into one cohesive whole.

Much of the material on First Glance calls upon Johnson’s time spent traveling and performing in the Midwest and Middle East. The album opener, “The Cut Off,” specifically observes Johnson’s period in Doha, Qatar, amidst a moment where he witnessed the country’s driving spirit to survive at all costs and become self-sufficient.

Photo Courtesy of Richard Johnson

Traversing decades of rich life experience and musical creation, “Soprano Blues” is a song Johnson stumbled upon when convening the album, a tune he wrote at the age of seventeen with a simple ¾ waltz tune. Speaking more to the present, “No WiFi” is a commentary on a distinctly modern sensation that arises when there is no internet to be found. As this expression tends to get repeated over and over, Johnson wrote in a looping part at the end, influenced by the sound of a “broken record” skipping repeatedly on the same part. 

One particular highlight for Johnson is “Last Minute,” a track he wrote as a tribute to his mentor, Mulgrew Miller. This original pays homage to Miller’s track “The Eleventh Hour” and features several musical elements that Johnson learned from his mentor. 

“Sunday Devotion,” closes off the album with a nostalgic tone. Celebrating his upbringing in the Baptist Church, the younger Johnson would play piano alongside his father on organ. Evoking a Sunday morning service, feelings of gratitude and discipline flow alongside the resonant keys of Mutzabaugh’s organ.

“First Glance is really about people who see something and are overwhelmed with the beauty right at first glance,” Johnson shared. “The album is a journey through that first glance and each song is an individual experience translated into music.” 

1. The Cut Off (5:44)

2. First Glance (4:00)

3. Soprano Blues (4:02)

4. No Wifi (3:22)

5. Sunset (6:08)

6. Trapped (5:30)

7. Last Minute (5:08)

8. Sunday Devotion (5:49)

All music composed by Richard Johnson

Richard Johson, piano

Sharel Cassity, alto (1,2,4,7), soprano (3,5,6), tenor (8) saxophone

Alex Claffy, bass

Mark Whitfield Jr., drums

Paul Mutzabaugh, organ

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OUT FRIDAY: Greg Ward, Sharel Cassity, & Rajiv Halim - ALTOIZM via AFAR Music

Greg Ward, Rajiv Halim, and Sharel Cassity Are Altoizm

New Self-Titled Album out July 16, 2021 via AFAR Music

AFAR Music is proud to announce the July 16, 2021 release of Altoizm, the self-titled debut recording from a three-headed alto saxophone supergroup led by Greg Ward, Rajiv Halim, and Sharel Cassity. 

Featuring a rocksteady yet explosive rhythm section of Richard D. Johnson (piano), Jeremiah Hunt (bass), and Michael Piolet (drums), Altoizm is seven tracks and 42 minutes of original jazz. Ward, Cassity, and Johnson have each written two tunes, and Halim adds “Bembe’s Kids,” a melodically complex tune that’s perhaps the first to simultaneously honor both the bembé rhythms native to sub-Saharan West Africa and the madcap animated comedy Bébé’s Kids, a symbolic nod, Halim says, to “the chaotic social, economic, and political environment in which Black American music has been— and continues to be—developed.”

Musically, it’s a bluesy, noirish tune that sees that chaos and raises it a mischievous grin, while getting the absolute most out of three saxophones playing both in unison and in harmony.

It takes great individual talent but also real chemistry as a unit to pull off the kinds of sophisticated arrangements presented here. Even though these three saxophonists are used to being featured soloists and, collectively, have released about a dozen albums as leaders, their chemistry with each other is palpable. Far from being able to discern any ego, what shines through most prominently is the collective desire to produce purposeful and meaningful compositions. 

Maybe it’s a Chicago thing. 

All three—Ward, Halim, and Cassity—are stalwart stewards of the Second City’s jazz scene. Ward, a prolific instrumentalist and composer, counts pioneering free jazz saxophonist Fred Anderson as a mentor and Chicago rapper Lupe Fiasco as a colleague. There are few compositional commissions for which he’s not qualified. He’s composed classical music and jazz, scores for ballet and film, and concerti for symphony orchestra and chamber ensembles, as well as tunes for his own bands, Fitted Shards and Phonic Juggernaut. His 2010 debut with the former, South Side Story, was named Recording of the Year by the Chicago Tribune, and he’s presently a member of the jazz studies faculty at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music.

Halim, like Ward, has collaborated regularly with the Jazz Institute of Chicago, and, like Ward, possesses a boundless musicality. As a young saxophonist, he found a mentor in iconic Chicago tenorman Von Freeman, frequently sitting in at Freeman’s long running jazz jam at the South Side’s New Apartment Lounge. And not far removed from his high school graduation, he played Lollapalooza as a member of the hip-hop-fueled sonic cauldron that was Kids These Days. From that association, he befriended Chance the Rapper, appearing on the latter’s 2017 Grammy-winner Coloring Book.

Sharel Cassity, Greg Ward, and Rajiv Halim courtesy of AFAR Music Group

A similar thing happened when Halim found himself in the same recording studio as Cassity. The DIVA Jazz Orchestra’s lead alto saxophonist from ’07 to ’14, Cassity has released four albums as a leader (most recently 2018’s Evolve), has played in bands led by Cyrus Chestnut, Nicholas Payton, and the late Jimmy Heath, and has shared stages with Christian McBride, Wynton Marsalis, Dee Dee Bridgwater, and too many other jazz immortals to properly note here. She and Ward had met touring together a decade prior in New York, but she’d never played with Halim.  Each in the studio working on individual projects, Cassity and Halim got to talking—then soon got to jamming. Feeling instant chemistry, Cassity suggested “an alto summit.” Halim quickly agreed, but they needed one more. It had to be Ward. 

Wise choice. Ward understood instinctively how to get the best out of these three altos, both individually and collectively. Case in point is his first composition here, “The Mighty Mayfly of Truth,” which explodes warmly and gradually like the break of a bluebird day, with brilliant three-part section playing that shines warm on your face and solos that melt it.  

“I thought about each saxophonist and tried to imagine how our sounds would come together,” said Ward. “And then, ‘The Mighty Mayfly of Truth’ almost jumped out of me.”

Next, Cassity’s “Thoroughbred,” introduces an original melody of the highest pedigree over the chord changes to Benny Golson’s “Stablemates,” raising the stakes down the stretch with an eight-bar tag reminiscent of the late Jimmy Heath’s elegant codas. 

Not only can she end a tune with grace and style, Cassity can also open an album with authority; allow “Cedar Groove” to testify. Composing atop the chord changes to Cedar Walton’s “Fantasy in D,” Cassity has constructed a theatrical yet muscly tribute to the late Jazz Messenger, with a couple of rejuvenating micro-cations to Latin America woven into the tune’s hard-swinging and eminently hummable main theme. 

Alto summits bringing together three saxophonists of this caliber are rare. Factor in the quality of the rhythm section—see Johnson’s “Last Minute,” the album’s closer, for masterclasses from both Piolet and Hunt and Ward’s “John Cotton” for bluesy improvisational pianism at its breeziest from Johnson—and you can forget about it.

Cassity knew when she caught Halim in that studio that they couldn’t let the pitch go by. “This opportunity” she said, “has allowed us to work together in a way we never would have been able to otherwise.” 

1. Cedar Groove (4:53) - Cassity

2. Bembe’s Kids (5:36) - Halim

3. The Mighty Mayfly of Truth (6:25) - Ward

4. Thoroughbred (6:46) - Cassity

5. The Time Has Come (5:16) - Johnson

6. John Cotton (6:50) - Ward

7. Last Minute (6:02) - Johnson

Rajiv Halim, Sharel Cassity, Greg Ward - Alto Saxophone

Richard Johnson - Piano

Jeremiah Hunt - Bass

Michael Piolet - Drums

AFAR Music

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EVENT

Date and time

Thu, July 29, 2021

8:00 PM – 9:30 PM CDT

Location

Jazz Showcase

806 South Plymouth Ct

Chicago, IL 60605

United States

Michael Dease - Give It All You Got (February 26, 2021 Posi-Tones Records)

Poll-winning trombonist Michael Dease shows us just what it means to "Give It All You Got" on his eighth release for Posi-Tone. All the pieces fit together perfectly as Dease provides remarkable clarity of vision for enlisting the able assistance of Jim Alfredson on organ, Greg Tardy on saxophone, Anthony Stanco on trumpet, Gwendolyn Dease on percussion, and Ulysses Owens Jr. on drums.

This remarkable collection of hard hitting performances also features special guest appearances from saxophonist Sharel Cassity and guitarist Randy Napoleon that are seamlessly woven into the mix as the bandleader shines brightly with inspiration across a wide spectrum of styles and sounds! 

Critical ears and casual listeners will be delighted as Michael Dease continues to entertain and astonish, while walking the talk of his charitable message to "Give It All You Got."

1. A Sliver Of Silver 05:47

2. Climb The Mountain 07:04

3. Dave's Boogie-Down 05:58

4. Lake Toxaway Getaway 04:56

5. Parker's Fancy 04:57

6. Ritmo De Brevard 06:08

7. The Next Level 05:18

8. Transylvania County Funk Parade 06:08

9. Word To The Wise 05:23

10. Zanderfied 05:58

Michael Dease - trombone

Anthony Stanco - trumpet, flugelhorn 6

Gregory Tardy - tenor saxophone

Jim Alfredson - organ

Ulysses Owens Jr. - drums

Gwendolyn Dease - congas 1, 4, 6, 8, 10; triangle 5, 6

Brooklyn Dease - percussion 6

Luther Allison - drums 3, 9

Sharel Cassity - alto saxophone 5

Randy Napoleon - guitar 8

produced by Marc Free

engineered by Nick O'Toole

recorded September 22, 2019 at Acoustic Recording, Brooklyn, NY

mixed & mastered at Woodland Studio, Lake Oswego, OR

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James Hall - Lattice (OUTSIDE IN MUSIC February 9, 2018)

Trombonist/Composer James Hall Weaves Together Diverse Styles and Inspirations To Form the Intricate and Stirring Lattice

Hall's second album as a leader, set for release February 9, 2018 from Outside In Music,

beautifully melds trombone and flute, chamber music and jazz, passion and complexity

 "James Hall and his band [have] an eclectic, but inviting, voice. Their music is accessible, but weaves in and out of some of the highest realms of Jazz and Classical tradition."

- Makoto Fujimura, International Arts Movement

Intricately weaving together voices, melodies, ideas and genres, Lattice is the alluring and inventive sophomore release from trombonist/composer James Hall. Due out February 9, 2018 from Outside In Music, the album is built around the harmonious combination of Hall's dexterous trombone and the virtuosic flute playing of Jamie Baum, a study in contrasts that proves remarkably pliable and expressive through Hall's inspired vision.

Lattice follows Hall's acclaimed debut, Soon We Will Not Be Here, in which he and his Thousand Rooms Quartet set the work of contemporary New York City-based poets to Third Stream-inspired music that struck a delicate balance between modern jazz and contemporary classical music. Lattice eschews the vocals of its predecessor and veers in a more recognizably jazz direction, though Hall's richly detailed writing maintains the sophisticated architecture of chamber music without forsaking the passion and propulsion of the best modern jazz.

To achieve those ends, Hall enlisted a skilled band with an elusive chemistry to breathe life into his compositions. In addition to Baum, he's joined by keyboardist Deanna Witkowski (Donny McCaslin), bassist Tom DiCarlo (Claudio Roditi, Sean Jones), and drummer Allan Mednard (Kurt Rosenwinkel, Aaron Parks). On two tracks the band is supplemented by in-demand saxophonist Sharel Cassity (Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis), whose fiery alto adds a new flavor to the often more contemplative styles of Hall and Baum.

A lattice necessarily begins with two pieces crossing, and for Hall that second piece was his now-wife, Kristen, to whom Lattice is dedicated. Their romance, engagement and marriage provided the spark that inspired him to begin writing this music. "I wanted to compose a project for two voices," Hall explains. "The idea of two voices in close counterpoint seemed like a nice parallel to the love story that was happening in my life at the time. It all came together with the interweaving of melody lines reflecting the interweaving of two lives."

More direct musical inspiration came from a few sources that Hall had long admired. One was legendary trombonist/composer/arranger Bob Brookmeyer's writing for two voices, exemplified by his work with Stan Getz and Jim Hall. Another was the interplay of bass trombone and flute on Herbie Hancock's classic album Speak Like a Child. Baum shared Hall's love for that album, and their bonding over it was key to her signing on for the project.

Two strands are not enough to make a latticework, however, and as a number of pieces intersect to form a pattern, so Hall's project expanded to encompass other voices and inspirations. He crossed paths with Mednard while both were touring with the retro-pop ensemble Postmodern Jukebox, while DiCarlo was suggested by Baum. Witkowski was introduced to Hall at the release concert for Soon We Will Not Be Here, and her interest in his music was matched by her gifts for interpreting it on both piano and Rhodes.

The scale of Hall's concerns expanded and intersected as well. While a new love - not to mention wedding planning - can be all consuming, eventually the outside world intrudes. Never has that been more true than in recent years, as a project conceived on an intimate personal scale inevitably took on a broader scope as harsh realities came to light. The injustices brought to light by the Black Lives Matter movement and the divisive aftermath of the 2016 presidential election forced Hall to widen his perspective. Again, Herbie Hancock proved inspirational; Speak Like a Child was released in the politically tumultuous year of 1968, its hopeful call for a more childlike and loving perspective a conscious refutation of the day's clashing ideologies.

"It's a pretty album produced at an ugly time," Hall says. "So as the world was sliding into an abyss and I was working on what for me was 'pretty' music, I was thinking of Herbie as a precedent."

The lilting melody of "Shoy" opens the album, tipping its hat to another form of interweaving - the hybridization of grapes to create new wine varietals. While living in Germany more than a decade ago, Hall worked on a vineyard that specialized in the Sheurebe grape - the title is a transliterated shortening of the name - which is a cross between Riesling and Silvaner. Cassity's supple alto kicks off Joe Henderson's familiar "Black Narcissus," which floats on Witkowski's airy Rhodes while being driven by Mednard's subtly roiling rhythm.

The title track is patient about bringing its divergent voices together, finally melding into a hopefully melodious theme at the song's halfway point. The simmering swing of "Brittle Stitch" muses on the fragility of any relationship and the care and attention they require, while "Gaillardia" does some of that work by hinting at Hall's wife's maiden name in the form of a flower. The elegiac "Traveler" is dedicated to the composer's great-uncle, whose passion for roaming the world and unconventional pairing with Hall's great-aunt both offered models to emulate. "Kind Folk" is one of a few gorgeous Kenny Wheeler tunes that entered Hall's songbook after the late trumpet great served as artist-in-residence during Hall's time at Lawrence University, while the bluesy "Terrace," featuring the full-throated moan of Hall's muted trombone, closes the album with a portrait of his adopted neighborhood in Brooklyn.

"A lattice is made up of many intersecting parts," Hall concludes. "As this project matured, even if I composed a piece thinking about myself and my wife, the lattice grew to incorporate everyone I met, everyone I engaged with. It touches on the question of where I sit in the lattice that is New York City, or on a larger scale, that is America in the 21st century. I take heart in the fact that there can be as many strands and intersections in a lattice as there are people or relationships in my life. Maybe it starts with me and my life or my family, but it doesn't have to end there."

www.jameshallmusic.com

www.outsideinmusic.com

James Hall

A trombonist and composer from Nebraska based in New York City, James Hall is a versatile musician and composer whose projects have spanned jazz, classical, Latin, and popular music. As a composer and bandleader, James was named a finalist in the ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Competition, won three ASCAPlus Awards for composition, and was a featured performer/composer at the 2012 Chelsea Music Festival. He has appeared on several recordings with Postmodern Jukebox, with whom he has toured Europe and the United States. His first CD as a composer/bandleader, Soon We Will Not Be Here, was released in October 2013 and featured his Thousand Rooms Quartet. James holds degrees from the Lawrence Conservatory of Music in Wisconsin and Aaron Copland School of Music in New York. His teachers have included Luis Bonilla, Hal Crook, Michael Dease, Nick Keelan, Ed Neumeister, and Fred Sturm.