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Elliot Galvin Trio – Punch – Edition

Elliot Galvin Trio – Punch – Edition

by | Dec 13, 2016 | Jazz CD Reviews

Elliot Galvin Trio – Punch – Edition 1076, 38:14 (7/29/16) ****: (Elliot Galvin; piano, kalimba, accordion, cassette player, melodica, stylophone/ Tom McCredie; double bass/ Simon Roth; drums, percussion and glockenspiel) Technically dazzling, wildly innovative trio music well outside the normal jazz trio in terms of conception and theatricality. I would think that the jazz piano tradition presses down rather heavily on the aspiring young musician. First, there are the high technical standards for any working musician in the business, not to mention the levels represented by modernist greats from Bill Evans to Bill Charlap. Then there is the enormous refinement of the various styles. How can one say something new in the oversubscribed tradition of post-bebop, ECM modal, or avant-avant? However, in the record under review, Punch, Elliot Galvin doesn’t seem to be stymied in the least, nor to have qualm or reservation about his relation to the jazz tradition. This might be because he has a head full of zany ideas of his own, or it might owe to a technique that has been forged in the white heat of 20th-century classical music rather than in mastering the rhetoric of bebop. In any case, Galvin and his mates Simon […]

Michael Dease – All These Hands – PosiTone

Michael Dease – All These Hands – PosiTone

by | Dec 7, 2016 | Jazz CD Reviews

An historical jazz journey from Michael Dease… Michael Dease – All These Hands – PosiTone PR8160, 65:53 (1/6/17) ****:  (Michael Dease – trombone; Renee Rosnes – piano; Steve Wilson – flute, alto sax, soprano sax; Etienne Charles – trumpet & flugelhorn; Randy Napoleon – guitar; Gerald Cannon – bass; Rodney Whitaker – bass; Lewis Nash – drums; With special guests: Jason Hainsworth – tenor sax (#7); Diego Rivera – tenor sax (#7); Rufus Reid – bass (#11); Dan Pratt – tenor sax (#11) Michael Dease has helped revitalized the trombone as a lead instrument on recorded jazz ensembles. His fluid delivery and burnished tone brings to mind J. J. Johnson, and Dease has had a rapid rise on the jazz scene. His fourth session for PosiTone Records, set to be released early next month explores the major jazz destinations in which jazz took root. It’s a journey that began in the deep south and migrated to northern urban centers following the search for upward mobility and social freedom. Recorded on mostly quintet and trio formats, Michael composed all the compositions and they celebrate the development of the jazz form with its strong influence from the blues, both urban and rural. […]

“Tribute” = MOZART: Quartet in B-flat; Quintet in c – Michael Tree, viola/ Dover Quartet – Cedille

“Tribute” = MOZART: Quartet in B-flat; Quintet in c – Michael Tree, viola/ Dover Quartet – Cedille

by | Nov 16, 2016 | Classical CD Reviews

Pay close attention to this one, as you are going to hear from them a whole lot more in the near future. Tribute = MOZART: Quartet in B-flat, K 589; Quintet in c, K 406 – Dover Quartet/ Michael Tree, viola (in Quintet) – Cedille CDR 90000 167, 73:10 [Distr. by Naxos] *****: Formed in 2008 at Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute of Music (recently appointed the faculty quartet in residence at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music), this is the Dover Quartet’s debut on disc, and happy the folks at Cedille who landed them. This is an auspicious entry into the recorded legacy of these pieces, and an equally auspicious entry into the glamour and time honored legacy of another quartet, the Guarneri, who themselves debuted in 1966 with an outstanding RCA recording of these same two quartets. Guarneri first violinist Arnold Steinhardt writes an introduction in the notes, and served as a coach to the quartet while still in nascent formation. To round off the circle, Guarneri violist Michael Tree plays second viola in this recording’s Quintet. It’s perhaps a little unfair to compare this release with that of the mentors, but the Dover comes out very well. Tempos are a […]

“Filament” = Works of DESSNER, MUHLY, LUX & GLASS – eighth blackbird – Cedille vinyl & CD

“Filament” = Works of DESSNER, MUHLY, LUX & GLASS – eighth blackbird – Cedille vinyl & CD

by | Mar 28, 2016 | SACD & Other Hi-Res Reviews

Fear not minimalism or new music—hear this with joy and gratitude. “Filament” = BRYCE DESSNER: Murder Ballades; NICO MUHLY: Doublespeak; SON LUX: To Love; This is My Line; PHILIP GLASS: Two Pages – eighth blackbird – Cedille CDR60000 157, vinyl & CD, 49:10, (7/08/16) [Distr. by Naxos] ****: Chicago based Eighth Blackbird is absolutely one of the finest new music ensembles in the country. They are all superb musicians and their choice in repertory is excellent; something that, fortunately, has given them a stellar reputation with contemporary composers and this amazing rep list becomes self-supporting. This new collection is a perfect example and was recorded live at Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, in May of 2013. To me, the centerpiece of this set is the amazing Murder Ballades by the very talented guitarist (of the rock group “The National”) turned composer Bryce Dessner. This collection of seven captivating pieces is based on the very real and somewhat bizarre folk tradition of writing ballades and ditties that describe murders. The individual works are mostly based on actual folk melodies on this grisly topic; while “Dark Holler” is actually an original melody of Dessner’s in the same dark, folky but ominous style. This […]

KVERNO: Credo – A Composer Portrait of Trond H.F. Kverno – Bergen Cathedral Choir/ Arnfinn Tobiassen, organ – LAWO

KVERNO: Credo – A Composer Portrait of Trond H.F. Kverno – Bergen Cathedral Choir/ Arnfinn Tobiassen, organ – LAWO

by | Mar 27, 2016 | SACD & Other Hi-Res Reviews

KVERNO: Credo – A Composer Portrait of Trond H.F. Kverno – Bergen Cathedral Choir/ Arnfinn Tobiassen, organ – LAWO multichannel SACD (5.0) LWC1091 (11/13/15) [Dist. by Naxos] ****: Inspiring and ethereal music by Norwegian composer Trond Kverno. The new SACD/CD from Bergen Cathedral Choir and organist Arnfinn Tobiassen is a tribute to Norwegian contemporary composer Trond H.F. Kverno on his 70th birthday. The listener is introduced to both his choral work, as well as his works inspired by medieval ballads and Norwegian folklore. The works on this disc were composed in the 1970s through 2004. Most of the selections on this disc are based on Norwegian folklore. Some of the pieces are instrumental, and feature some powerful organ playing by Tobiassen. Some are choral works that are ethereal and beautiful. Translations are provided in the informative liner notes. Bergen is such a stunning and uplifting city, it’s not surprising to hear such inspiring music from musicians with ties to the locale. If you haven’t been there, search the web for some photos. Most of our readers, including me, won’t be familiar with Kverno’s music, but that’s not an excuse to fail to pick up this disc and give it a listen. […]

Ferit Odman – Dameronia With Strings – Equinox Music – vinyl

Ferit Odman – Dameronia With Strings – Equinox Music – vinyl

by | Mar 1, 2016 | SACD & Other Hi-Res Reviews

Ferit Odman – Dameronia With Strings – Equinox Music EMLP0002, 42:12 stereo vinyl ****1/2: Drummer puts together a masterful tribute to a great jazz composer. (Ferit Odman – drums; Terell Stafford – trumpet; Danny Grissett – piano; Peter Washington – bass; Antoine Silverman – violin, concertmaster; Diane Montoe – violin, concertmaster; Tamara DeMent – violin; Chris Cardona – viola; Emily Brausa – cello; Clarice Jensen – cello; David O’Rourke – strings arrangement, cond.) Turkish drummer Ferit Odman chose a special concept for his third album. He has elected to pay homage to a great (if not renowned) jazz composer and arranger, Tadd Dameron. Dameronia With Strings revisits various arrangements by Dameron, for Sarah Vaughan (1946), Blue Mitchell’s “Smooth As The Wind” (1961) and the 1956 John Coltrane quartet (“On a Misty Night”, Soultrane”) The legendary Philly Joe Jones chose Dameron’s arrangement of “Look Stop & Listen”  to be an integral part of the Magic Touch session. Dameron also arranged a version of this for Benny Goodman. Somewhat unknown to the general public, Tadd Dameron was celebrated in the jazz community for his innovative approach to jazz. The earliest tribute band, Dameronia, was formed by Philly Joe Jones in 1982. This […]

“Tavener Conducts Tavener” – Cappella Nova/ Alan Tavener – Linn

“Tavener Conducts Tavener” – Cappella Nova/ Alan Tavener – Linn

by | Feb 23, 2016 | Classical CD Reviews

A Tavener tribute of substance and compelling emotion. “Tavener Conducts Tavener” – Cappella Nova/ Alan Tavener – Linn CKD 539, 74 min. [Distr. by Naxos] ****: Cappella Nova has a long association with the music of the late John Tavener (2013), and so this tribute album is bookended with music from the very first composition they commissioned from him, Resurrection. Conductor Alan Tavener is a relation, but not close, though he seems to have an innate understanding of this music that only a close relative could! Cappella sings everything here with endearment and understanding. In fact this is as fine a compilation of Tavener’s music as I have heard, and there are many. He was an uneven composer; at his best, as in many of the smaller choral works, The Protecting Veil, and in my opinion his finest piece, The Veil of the Temple, his music approached the sublime. At the other end it often felt as if he were on autopilot, or at best unsure of his direction. Spiritually towards the end of his life this same dilemma plagued him, though he professed to remain an Orthodox Christian. His influence however, is not in doubt. Just listening to the […]