Artifacts was conceived by cellist Tomeka Reid as a way of rediscovering the vast songbook of the AACM (which, as this blog has covered extensively, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year), and the trio’s debut album brings together a second-generation AACM dream team, with Nicole Mitchell on flutes and Mike Reed on drums.
The trio’s sound is a throwback to the great Air, and captures the free improvised spirit of that earlier group. The album is packed with classic and little-heard gems from the AACM library, including two Steve McCall-penned cuts from Air’s catalog, “B.K.” and “I’ll Be Right Here Waiting…” Reed had already recorded McCall’s “I’ll Be Right Here Waiting” on his 2010 Loose Assembly recording with Roscoe Mitchell, on which Reid also played. Here, however, with a lineup closer to the original’s, the fragility of McCall’s melody really shines.
Aiming to breathe life into these dormant compositions, the trio kicks things off with Braxton’s “Comp. 23B,” bringing a thrilling lightness to the proceedings. The trio follows Braxton with Roscoe Mitchell’s “Jo Jar,” a propulsive 50-year-old blues tribute to Joseph Jarman, brought to life here with shuffling drums and a fine solo by Reid.
Fred Anderson, who passed 5 years ago this summer, is represented by “Bernice,” which is coupled with Jeff Parker’s “Days Fly By With Ruby,” itself an homage to Anderson. The trio combines both into a lengthy meditation on the AACM’s deep history. Mitchell steps to the fore with a jaw-dropping solo on “B.K.,” leaping and fluttering before handing off to Reed for a quick drum solo. It’s easy to forget how rare it is for Reed to take the spotlight, and his solo is an apt tribute to McCall.
I can’t say exactly why, maybe it’s just hearing these three musicians cut loose in a free trio, but I absolutely loved this record from start to finish. Mitchell, Reid, and Reed, all highly democratic and collaborative players, have performed together for well over a decade. The three click seamlessly into a telepathic performance that both evokes and expands the AACM spirit.
In Bulgarian language, the suffix “nitza”
at the end of a word usually implies a female gender. Many common words
have it. Some are connected with popular food, such as “lyutenitza” (a
tomato-paprika spread), “nadenitza” (sausage), some are words for
activities and games: “krienitza” (hide and seek) “gonenitza” (tag) and a
few name popular folk dances in irregular rhythms, such as “ruchenitza”
(in 7/8) and “kopanitza” (in 11/8).
“Jazzanitza” gives the word “jazz” a bit of a Bulgarian appearance and
that’s the main concept, incarnated into the music of the band, composed
by Borislav Petrov.
JAZZANITZA is a collective of Bulgarian
jazz musicians, whose individual musical searches gravitate towards
combining contemporary jazz with elements of folk music from Bulgaria.
Borislav Petrov took the initiative to bring these musicians together
and let them dive into this brave musical endeavour: to combine the
harmonic structure and stylistic competence of various jazz styles,
while carefully intertwining them with the rhythmic and melodic flavor
of the Bulgarian folk traditions. The improvisation playfully explores
different jazz and folk idioms and brightly outlines the specific
musical background of each band member. Balanced with highly regarded
ensemble playing, the music of JAZZANITZA generates a smooth blend of
diverse musical inheritances, while remaining true to the
essence of the styles it combines.
1. Pravo Kato Magistrala 06:47 2. Tantzi Mantzi 04:39 3. Our Table (Says Cheers To Your Table) 06:24 4. Culture Differences 05:11 5. Gagarin 05:53 6. Acikbas 06:15 7. Ti Si Znaish, Maina 05:45 8. Kremito 04:58 9. Tupanitza 04:45
Borislav Petrov – drums, composition Dimitar Liolev – alto sax Vladimir Karparov – tenor and soprano saxes Ludmil Krumov – guitar Lyubo Tzanev – piano Boris Taslev – bass
This quartet was born from a conversation between Joe Morris and Jamie Saft about their mutual fascination with John Coltrane’s “Live at the Village Vanguard Again” album. From there they decided to develop a project under the influence of the music played by Coltrane with his wife Alice Coltrane, Jimmy Garrison, Rashied Ali and a pair of guests, Pharoah Sanders and Emanuel Rahim. Right away they established that Morris would use a double bass, instead of his usual guitar, and that Saft would focus completely on acoustic piano, putting aside any electric and electronic keyboards. And they immediately named the two other contributors to the enterprise: reedist Joe McPhee – who in fact attended the recording of Coltrane’s “Vanguard Again” album, sitting in the front row – and drummer Charles Downs. These choices were obvious: McPhee and Downs are true living legends of free jazz. Morris had a well established musical relationship with McPhee and all loved Downs’ contributions, when he was known as Rashid Bakr, to the music of Cecil Taylor, Jemeel Moondoc, William Parker and Roy Campbell. Then they figured out the name of the quartet: TICONDEROGA. The Mohawk word means “junction of two waterways”. Which waterways? Easy to guess: the original “new thing” fronted by Coltrane with Albert Ayler and Ornette Coleman and what is now understood as structured improvised music. The final product hits you like a punch. A good, reviving, punch…
Marco Villarreal resides in Northwest Indiana where he teaches and plays
guitar. From solo guitar to playing in various ensembles such as Freek
Johnson, Frank Russell Group, Willie Waldman Project, Steve Hashimoto
Quintet, MVProject, et al. During the fall of 2013 Marco made his debut
recording as a solo artist. The project featuring bass legend Tony
Franklin and LA drum prodigy Tony Austin offer an adventurous feel to
Marco's style of composition.
He starting playing the guitar at 15 and has not turned back. Some
teachers include Pat Martino, Fareed Haque and Mick Goodrick. Studied at
Musician's Institute '91-'92. Berklee College of Music 2002. Continues
to learn every day and tries to improve overall musicianship and
facility on the guitar.
Marco
Villarreal's debut recording Ethereal features the rhythm section of
iconic bassist Tony Franklin and drum virtuoso Tony Austin. Guests
include Willie Waldman, Dave Aron and Greg Spero. This project was
recorded in 8 hours on October 8, 2013 at Hollywood Way Studios in
Burbank Ca. The record feature's original compositions and group
improvisations such as the one take off the cuff "Pan Fry" and the 6/8
jam "Lunar" Check it out!!
1. Spurious Intellectualism 2. The Little Things 3. Bet on It 4. Precession (feat. Willie Waldman & Dave Aron) 5. Compression Variations (feat. Greg Spero) 6. Compression 7. Lunar 8. Pan Fry (feat. Tony Franklin, Tony Austin & Willie Waldman) 9. Have Another
Marco Villarreal - guitar Tony Franklin - bass Tony Austin - drums
Usually, all star summits, be they in sports or in music, end up with polite and sterile affairs. The SF Jazz Collective has been able to avoid this pitfall, maybe because they keep stirring up the lineup and material to get everyone on their collective toes. Miguel Zenon/as has been with the group the longest, and keeps the rest of the band quite inspired. The band consists of stud muffins David Sanchez/ts, Avishai Cohen/tp, Robin Eubanks/tb, Warren Wolf/bib, Edward Simon/p, Matt P enman/b and Ebed Calvaire/dr, and during this gig at the SFJazz Center in 2014, they explore the Joe Henderson songbook with creativity along with bringing some new material into the picture.
They do some clever arrangements, such as the lithe groove on “ Recorda-Me” which features Cohen’s muted horn, and a cleverly constructed “Black Narcissus” which has Eubanks doing some wonderful pastel work. A reading of “Inner Urge” includes some fascinating mix of jazz and almost modern classical modes and themes, while “Fire” has a nifty bass line that takes the music on an intriguing path.
Original pieces are splattered around, with Wolf’s “Four Stars From Heaven” a beautiful exposure on the vibes. Zenon’s three part “Synthesis of a Band” features a Sanchez’s warm tenor which segues to spotlights for Eubanks and Cohen. This full feast of music could have been a cerebral and sterile affair, but the sparks fly throughout the session, showing the mix of macho chops and clever minds along with celebration of one of the greats in jazz. A cooker on this limited edition set.
This limited edition 2-disc set, recorded during the Collective’s four-night residency in October 2014 on the Robert N. Miner Auditorium stage at the SFJAZZ Center, documents the SFJAZZ Collective’s fresh arrangements of the work of Joe Henderson—the late saxophone giant and longtime San Francisco resident who had a long association with SFJAZZ—as well as their own stimulating compositions.
Featuring Miguel Zenón (alto saxophone), David Sánchez (tenor saxophone), Avishai Cohen (trumpet), Robin Eubanks (trombone), Warren Wolf (vibraphone), Edward Simon (piano), Matt Penman (bass), and Obed Calvaire (drums).
DISC 1
1. Recorda-Me – Joe Henderson (arranged by Miguel Zenón)
2. A Shade of Jade – Joe Henderson (arranged by Edward Simon)
3. Big Tent, Little Tent – Matt Penman
4. Cross Currents – Robin Eubanks
5. Inner Urge – Joe Henderson (arranged by Avishai Cohen)
6. Four Stars From Heaven – Warren Wolf
7. Eternal Wait – David Sánchez
8. Fire – Joe Henderson (arranged by Obed Calvaire)
Disc 2
1. Y Todavia La Quiero – Joe Henderson (arranged by David Sánchez)
2. Afro-Centric – Joe Henderson (arranged by Matt Penman)
3. Synthesis of A Band, Parts 1, 2 and 3 – Miguel Zenón
4. Black Narcissus – Joe Henderson (arranged by Robin Eubanks)
5. Locura – Edward Simon
6. Evolution – Avishai Cohen
7. Absolvents – Obed Calvaire
8. Jinrikisha – Joe Henderson (arranged by Warren Wolf)
Bassist and composer Konstantin Ionenko continues to experiment with
formations as he returns with yet another revised lineup on Noema.
The name refers to a Greek word meaning "thought" or the content of
thought. Recorded in Kiev, Ukraine and mastered in Moscow, the quartet
album consists of eight original Ionenko compositions that bridge
European chamber jazz and creative improvisation. As a composer, Ionenko
has favored a refined blend of evocative lyricism and post-modern
innovation and this release is no exception, building and expanding on
tradition.
The lone returning Ionenko colleague is Pavel
Galitsky, one of the most in-demand drummers in Eastern Europe. He has
worked with Ionenko as part of the quintet on Deep Immersion (Fancy Music, 2013) and the Deep Tone Project
quartet (Fancy Music, 2014). Trumpeter Dima Bondarev (here playing
flugelhorn) is a Ukrainian native based in Germany. He has won a number
of regional trumpet competitions throughout Europe. Trained in Europe
and the US, guitarist Alex Maksymiw is a Toronto, Canada native of
Ukrainian background, now living in Berlin.
Noema opens
with "Kaleidoscope" and, true to its name, the piece is full of changes
in time and shifts in texture albeit, without leaving the mid-tempo
range. At ten-plus minutes, it provides opportunity for each of the
players to shine. More abstract in nature are "Imprinted Acerbity" and
the title track while "Far Out" mixes melodicism with a certain
quirkiness. "Four Doors" has a freer swing to it while "Prelude" and
"November" create an atmosphere of melancholy. All-in-all, there is a
great amount of diversity and complexity in Ionenko's compositions.
Bondarev's
bright and melodic horn dominates the lead on these pieces, in some
cases trading off, or alternating, with Maksymiw's guitar. Smartly
composed and played evocatively, Ionenko and Galitsky respectively
provide the attitude and imaginative pacing that makes each of these
compositions engaging and effective. Noema is thoughtful without being heavy-handed and Ionenko continues to develop as a composer and leader with each release. Karl Ackermann
1. Kaleidoscope 10:21
2. Imprinted Acerbity 04:18
3. Far Out 05:56
4. Glassy 05:21
5. Four Doors 08:59
6. Prelude 06:16
7. Noema 08:30
8. November 06:38
Dmitri Bondarev: flugelhorn
Alex Maksymiw: guitar
Konstantin Ionenko: bass
Pavel Galitsky: drums
Michael Moynihan is an adventurous saxophonist,
multi-instrumentalist, composer, and music educator. Born in Tucson,
Michael began his professional career at the age of 14, and has since
brought his music around the globe.
In 2006, Michael performed
with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra as the winner of the high school
division of the TSO Young Artist’s Competition. After graduating from
high school and the Arizona Jazz Academy (now the Tucson Jazz
Institute), he attended the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University
and studied with master musicians James Moody, David Sanchez, David
Baker, and Otis Murphy. He was hand picked to attend the exclusive
Steans Music Institute at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago, where he
performed his original music with the top young jazz artists in the
country, including Remy LaBoeuf and winner of the Thelonius Monk
Competition, John Irabagon.
During a sabbatical from his
university studies, Michael toured the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom,
Botswana, and South Africa with Zimbabwean music legend Thomas Mapfumo
as a member of his band The Blacks Unlimited. During this time, he also
worked as a woodwind specialist aboard the vessels of Princess Cruises,
where he saw the world and gained valuable professional experience.
Michael, now 27, is a graduate of the University of Arizona. He teaches saxophone, flute, and clarinet lessons at Chicago Music Store,
and can be seen performing around the greater Tucson area at venues
such as Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, Pastiche, Monterrey Court, and many
more. Michael is passionate about delivering cutting-edge original
music to the Tucson community, and and has just released his debut
album, Chronicles!
1. Weird World 08:02 2. We Had a Great Time 05:40 3. December 07:24 4. The Pipe 06:25 5. Disorder 06:31 6. OPG Blues 04:48 7. A Fib, A Lie 06:55 8. Trane's Day 04:46
Michael Moynihan - tenor sax Matt Mitchell – guitar Tim Rachbach – drums Jack Wood – bass
Right
off the top of this set list, the program is plainly spelled out:
Today’s Forecast calls for reverence of the smoky early ‘60s, a la that
rose-tinted pushback from the mid ‘80s. These here must be clean cut,
ambitious young people locking horns for glory’s restoration! Just like
Blanchard and Harrison before them, we herald the new-New Morning in
America. The leadoff solos even seem to obliquely recall “Part Time
Lover”, one of Stevie’s finer commercial singles of that era, which
these dapper cats must have ingested from FM radio between spoonfuls’s
of strained peas. Wait…What? ... No, cancel the DeLorian time machine
ride: it all seemed so predestined until about four minutes in, when
the musicians switched up gears and dropped the beat and us into
contemporary times, where meaningful music tends to belong... I’ve got
to admit, though: that was pretty hip. And now we must start again.
New Chapter.
This
is the second album from Colorado’s Jason Klobnak Quintet, twenty-some
months following the release of the JKQ’s very auspicious opening salvo
Mountain, Move. In the time elapsed since then some key components of
the band have changed: a bassist moved to the Big Apple, a keyboardist
answered the call of our Uncle Sam. However, much has remained largely
constant - chiefly the bandleader himself. This Klobnak is the same
trumpeter-composer from 2013, only two years more mature, two good
strides closer to capturing the elusive Self through creativity. Not
much of one for fireworks and revolutionary posture, this guy’s more a
thinker, a worker. Generous to his well-chosen friends. Likes things
kept tidy. Probably plots carefully the route to his destinations but
still thoroughly enjoys the journey. Honestly, I’m just supposing here -
Jason and I don’t actually know one another socially very well. But
this is Jazz, and a good player or writer or arranger will clearly
express to the listener their spirit through the music, and Jason
Klobnak is a real good Jazz musician. His trumpet flights manage to
excite without many departures from the instrument’s middle register and
the compositions prepared for this project gel together on multiple
levels, oftentimes breezing melodically above but all business below
decks in the engine room. Throughout there’s a steady sense of
determination, optimism, congeniality and that certain bump which
readily identifies this musical strain as early twenty-first century
Jazz music, a deep-rooted varietal.
1. Today's Forecast: Sunny, High of 80 Degrees and a Chance of Snow 2. Breaking Point 3. Awe 4. New Chapter 5. Stay in the Game 6. Forward 7. Maybe Next Time 8. For Them 9. It Won't Return Void 10. The Other Side of Circumstances 11. Wait... What?
Jason Klobnak - trumpet Elijah Samuels - tenor sax Annie Booth - piano Kim Bird - bass Paul Mullikin & Alejandro Castano - drums
Available in January of 2016, When You Wish Upon a Star, guitarist Bill Frisell draws upon the classic film and television music we have heard on screen and how it shapes and informs our emotional relationships to what we see. Frisell, whose own music has been featured in major motion pictures like Finding Forrester and The Million Dollar Hotel performs with singer Petra Haden, violist Eyvind Kang, bassist Thomas Morgan, drummer Rudy Royston in re-imagining time-honored gems such as When You Wish Upon a Star, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Shadow of Your Smile, Moon River, You Only Live Twice, Frisell's own theme for Gary Larson’s television special, Tales from the Far Side and others (for full track listing go to - www.billfrisell.com/discography/when-you-wish-upon-star). Produced by Lee Townsend; engineered by Tucker Martine and Adam Muñoz and mastered with Greg Calbi.
01. To Kill a Mockingbird Pt. 1
02. To Kill a Mockingbird Pt. 2
03. You Only Live Twice
04. Psycho Pt. 1
05. Psycho Pt. 2
06. The Shadow of Your Smile
07. Bonanza
08. Once Upon a Time in the West (Theme)
09. (As a Judgement)
10. (Farewell to Cheyenne)
11. When You Wish Upon a Star
12. Tales from the Far Side
13. Moon River
14. The Godfather
15. The Bad and the Beautiful
16. Happy Trails
Bill Frisell – electric and acoustic guitar
Petra Haden – voice
Eyvind Kang – viola
Thomas Morgan – bass
Rudy Royston – drums, percussion
Produced by Lee Townsend
Arranged by Bill Frisell
CD Artwork: Paul Moore
EPK Directed and Produced by Paul Moore; Edited by Paul Hicks
With his debut for the historic Impulse! label, John Scofield – a jazz guitarist long inclined to balance the music’s earthy qualities with its melodically knotty ones – has reconvened the early 90s lineup he led with saxophonist Joe Lovano and drummer Bill Stewart, and added bassist Larry Grenadier. Scofield recently lost a son to cancer, and the experience focused his sense of how vividly the past survives in the present – hence the title, and a predilection for the blues, country music and soul-jazz he loved in his own youth. The smoky soul theme, BB King-like figures and rugged chord vamp of Slinky are classic Scofield; Lovano is imperiously wayward on the hoedown Chap Dance; Stewart and Grenadier counter Museum’s traddy bounce with postbop’s circumlocutions; and Get Proud has a soulfully Ray Charlesian drive. Scofield sounds warmer and more comfortable in his skin than he has for some years, but this set’s mellowness is constantly being creatively hounded by a quartet of superb improvisers.
With the release of Green, Seattle-based guitarist and bandleader Rik Wright has reached the highest point of his career thus far. In completing the additive colors trilogy begun by Blue and Red (released 2013 and 2014, respectively), this album takes the unity shared with bandmates James DeJoie (reeds and flute), bassist Geoff Harper, and drummer-percussionist Greg Campbell, to its most intense levels of focus yet. As Fundamental Forces, the uncategorizable quartet continues to not only push the envelope, but also fill that envelope with a truly original songbook—signed, sealed, and delivered to the discerning listener. If Blue introduced the voice and Red gave that voice a stage, then Green is the mind that shapes its every note, signaling a giant cognitive leap into the future of an artist who breaks as many barriers as he brings together.
If there’s one thing you can count on in Rik Wright’s music, it’s a balance of abandon and meticulous control. Enchantingly, this fine line blurs even more for the third round, even as it comes across more boldly than ever. And in the track “Harmonic Tremor,” one can see just how far the band has come in that very regard. This tune follows the compositional formula that works so well for Wright, twining melodic reed work and bright drums around a core groove of guitar and bass, but takes it to unexpected places via DeJoie’s gritty baritonism, Wright’s elastic commentary, and Campbell’s artful shuffling. Such is the band’s commitment to equality, which through the vital contributions of its members forms a distinct whole. One hears it in DeJoie’s acrobatic alto playing (“Contradiction”) and in the lilting flute of his own “Alicia’s Waltz” (the only track of the set not from Wright’s pen). One hears it, too, in the rhythm section’s evocative pacing throughout “Patience” and “Sugar Crash.” Regardless of which musician you focus on, every contribution is more lucid than the last.
Wright’s music has always been characterized by its immediacy, and on Green, perhaps more than any other album, immediacy gilds the niche that Fundamental Forces has already carved. Be it relatively brief, as the emblematic guitar solo “Sunrise Pixels” and the concluding “Overcast” (in which Wright and DeJoie strengthen the sunbeams of their harmonic relationship), or expansive, as the 10-minute “Wanderous,” the quartet brings full, cinematic charge to its playing. The latter tune is a landmark achievement, unfolding patiently and featuring a beautiful color shift to clarinet. Here, as throughout the album, Wright’s guitar reveals its phases like the moon, taking on the light of a hidden sun and turning it into song. Despite, if not because of, the hefty length of this track, it pushes through space and time with the quiet grace of a comet.
Although this album completes a broader project, it stands on its own feet as an example of a pure love of music making. And from this vantage point, the future looks bright for Wright indeed.
1. Contradiction 05:07
2. Sugar Crash 05:08
3. Patience 04:53
4. Harmonic Tremor 06:45
5. Alicia's Waltz 03:26
6. Wanderous 09:53
7. Sunrise Pixels 03:02
8. Overcast 02:47
Released October 10, 2015
Rik Wright (guitar)
Jim DeJoie (alto sax, bass clarinet, clarinet, flute)
This CD is dedicated to the memory of William E. Wright III, with loving thanks to Judy Harper, who was an integral part of the recording process. Additional thanks to all of those friends and acquaintances that have supported us along the way.
Arthur Vint & Associates went in to record "Through The Badlands" at the Bunker Studio in Brooklyn, NY on February 11th, 2015 and the album was mixed and mastered at Bass Hit Studio in Manhattan in April. Now the album is done. Es completo. C'est fini! The only thing remaining to be done is to press these soundwaves into grooves and send them out into the world! Once I reach my goal and manufacture the product, Ropeadope Records will add the album to their catalog and release, distribute and promote the album worldwide in January of 2016! Ropeadope Records has been around since 1999 and is a progressive, artist driven record label that has released albums by Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra, Tin Hat Trio, MMW, Sex Mob, Snarky Puppy, and Christian Scott. I'm thrilled to be in such good company!
So far, I have invested 100% of my own funds into this project, but am now looking for some help. By pre-ordering a copy of "Through The Badlands" on CD or vinyl you can help finish finance this project - and be one of the first people to hear it! I am aiming to raise $2,500, which will help cover the expenses of manufacturing the physical CDs and LPs. If I'm able to raise more money than this, than I may be able to cover all the manufacturing expenses...
Breakdown of remaining costs...
• Artwork: $500
• Song Licensing: $500
• CD manufacturing: $1,100
• Vinyl manufacturing: $2,500
• TOTAL: $4,600 (<--more than $2,500)
That's it! I've already paid for everything else myself in cash, so this is the final frontier.
My "rewards" are pretty straightforward: I'm basically using this campaign as a pre-order method for the album in different formats. However, there will be a few extra "perks" as well. The album artwork is currently being designed by my brother in-law Eric W Palmer and the drafts that he's sent me look uh-maz-ing, so I'm going to print a limited number of posters with the artwork (and maybe some T-shirts) that can be ordered here as well. Also, If you live in the New York City area and donate $150, you will be invited to a private cocktail/listening party! Not only will you get to imbibe fancy cocktails made by yours truly whilst listening to my new album, but you will get to HANG OUT WITH MY BABY SON HENRY!!!! You can even hold him if you want and change his diapers for no extra cost!! (For those of you that don't know, I'm a bartender at the world famous Village Vanguard jazz club...my drinks are LEGIT.)
I'm extremely proud of how this record turned out and am still blown away by the sounds and performances that were captured in the studio. I'm already at work planning what's next for this band, but first thing's first - getting this record out. They say no one buys music anymore - prove them wrong and pre-order my album!
THANK YOU!!
-->ARTHUR
(In addition to pre-ordering a copy of "Through The Badlands," please consider spreading the word to those you may think would be interested in this music - or buy an extra copy for a friend!!)
theBAND.
Originally from Tucson, AZ, drummer Arthur Vint has lived in the New York area for eight years where he has established himself as an in demand session musician for projects spanning jazz, latin, country and rock genres. His debut album as a leader, "Through The Badlands" draws upon all these influences and is the culmination of several years of composing and arranging for his unique ensemble that features violin, harmonica, tenor saxophone, bass clarinet as the lead voices, with accompaniment by the more traditional rhythm section of guitar, piano, bass and drums. The songs conjure images of his native southwest mixed with the hustle of New York City...
Although he has played drums on over 25 albums, this marks Arthur's first official release as a leader. The band he assembled, Arthur Vint & Associates, includes Rich Perry on tenor saxophone, who was a teacher of Arthur's at both William Paterson University and the Manhattan School of Music and has one of the most distinctive and recocnizable voices on the instrument today. Tony Scherr, perhaps better known for his bass work with Bill Frisell, plays guitar on the album and Jon Cowherd, of the Brian Blade Fellowship, plays piano and Hammond B3. Blanca Cecelia Gonzalez brings her beautiful style and interpretation on the violin and Yvonnick Prene plays some truly inspirational chromatic harmonica. Fellow Tucsonans Andrew Halchak and Ian Stapp join on bass clarinet and upright bass respectively, both of whom have been musical collaborators with Arthur since their high school days.
This stellar lineup gives life to seven of Vint's original compositions and two of Ian Stapp's, as well as Vint's arrangements of songs by Neil Young and The Sons of the Pioneers. To some, these songs will surely fall into the "jazz" category as they are instrumental and prominently feature improvisation, but the album taken as a whole is truly un-categorizable. We hope you enjoy the music!
Arthur Vint & Associates’ debut album “Through The Badlands” evokes visions of the western American landscape, with its vast open expanses and rocky terrain. Rooted in the great American traditions of jazz and rock ‘n’ roll, the album weaves contemporary influences with vintage country as well as traditional Native American spiritual music, drawing on the images and sounds of Vint’s childhood growing up in Tucson, Arizona. Vint’s diverse influences on this album range from Neil Young to Thelonious Monk, Marty Robbins to John Coltrane and beyond.
Cuenta el pianista McCoy Tyner que cuando el 9 de
diciembre de 1964, alguien bajó la intensidad de las luces del estudio
Englewood Cliffs, de New Jersey, supuso que la intención era la de recrear un
clima de ‘night club’ o algo así, espacios en los que el cuarteto liderado de
John Coltrane, que completaban Jimmy Garrison y Elvin Jones, exploraba nuevos
caminos para su música.
En ese clima, el genial saxofonista dio a luz a A Love Supreme
(Impulse!), una de sus obras esenciales en la que, según él mismo consignaba en
el texto incluido en la presentación original, consagraba su música al Creador,
a quien responsabilizaba por su “despertar espiritual”, tras sus experiencias
de adicciones al alcohol y las drogas.
En el marco de una especie de suite de cuatro movimientos, Coltrane
desarrolló una apertura, Acknowledgement, basada en el riff inicial
definido por el contrabajo de Garrison tras el sonido de un gong, sobre la cual
construyó líneas melódicas con su instrumento y una suerte de mantra que repite
el título del álbum una y otra vez.
Seguida por Resolution y Pursuance, dos piezas que transitan
patrones rítmicos y formales habituales para la época, aunque proponiendo
cierta expansión hacia incipientes destellos del free jazz, la obra cerraba con
Psalm, una epifanía en la que el saxofonista tradujo al lenguaje de su
saxo tenor un poema que había escrito a Dios.
Sin embargo, su carácter místico no impidió que A Love Supreme se
transformara en uno de los discos más populares de la historia del jazz y, con
su más de medio millón de copias vendidas, en uno de sus mayores éxitos
comerciales.
Con tales antecedentes a su favor, la nueva edición del álbum permite ir más
allá de lo hasta ahora conocido, y entrar en su proceso de realización. En ese
sentido, la inclusión de versiones alternativas del mismo día de grabación, y
del día siguiente, muestra tanto la evolución como la solidez de la idea que
inspiraba a Coltrane.
Aún cuando, en su búsqueda, el 10 de diciembre sumó a su cuarteto el
contrabajista Art Davis y al saxo tenor Archie Shepp, con quien en Acknowledgement
sostuvo diálogos y contrapuntos cuya publicación no hace sino enriquecer aún
más la obra original.
El saxofonista, compositor e improvisador sueco Mats Gustafsson
además de ser un ícono del free jazz escandinavo es, sin lugar a dudas,
una de las figuras esenciales de la música creativa de nuestro tiempo.
En su dilatado e infatigable trayecto musical colaboró con Sonic Youth, Jim O’Rourke, Barry Guy, Merzbow, Ken Vandermark, Peter Brötzmann, Derek Bailey, Peter Evans, Otomo Yoshihide, Paul Lytton, Evan Parker, Agustí Fernández, Misha Mengelberg y Peter Evans y ha liderado algunas de las bandas más destacadas de este milenio, tales como The Thing (con Ingebrigt Håker Flaten y Paal Nilssen-Love), Fire! (junto a Johan Berthling y Andreas Werliin), el multiestelar ensamble extendido Fire! Orchestra y la agrupación Swedish Azz (con Per Ake-Holmlander, Kjell Nordeson, dieb13 y Eric Carlsson), entre otros.
A esa fascinante producción discográfica se sumará en los próximos días el álbum Hidros 6 – Knockin’, trabajo en el que se presenta bajo la denominación Mats Gustafsson & NU Ensemble.
Este emprendimiento –en origen constituido en 1996 y reformado en 2013- incluye una rutilante alineación integrada por Mats Gustafsson en saxos slide, tenor, barítono y bajo, electrónicos y piano, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten y Jon RuneStrøm en bajos, Per Åke Holmlander en tuba, dieb13 en bandejas, Kjell Nordeson en vibráfono, batería y glockenspiel, Agustí Fernández en piano y órgano, Joe McPhee en trompeta de bolsillo, saxo tenor y órgano, Peter Evans en trompetas, Stine Janvind Motland en voces, Christer Bothén en clarinete bajo y guimbri y Paal Nilssen-Love en batería.
Los cuatro temas contenidos en el álbum –cuya autoría corresponde a Mats Gustafsson-
están dedicados a la música y las letras del legendario cantante,
compositor y pianista afroamericano de rock’n’roll Little Richards.
Hidros 6 – Knockin’ será publicado hacia finales de este mes y
contará con dos ediciones, una en CD simple y otra en formato de box
set que incluye dos discos en vinilo, cinco CD, un cuadernillo con
información y un DVD.
El lanzamiento de este nuevo material, en sus dos ediciones, corre por cuenta del sello discográfico polaco NotTwo Records.
