Resonance Records is proud to announce the release of The
Quest, the third recording from twenty-year old guitar virtuoso, Andreas
Varady.
With the release of Questions (2010) and his eponymous CD in 2014, the
native of Slovakia, and resident of Ireland, emerged from thin air and put the
guitar playing world on notice that there was a new force on the instrument to
be reckoned with. On The Quest, Varady's artistry has reached new heights, and
it's staggering to behold. His unadulterated command of the guitar, his
highly-developed skills as a composer, his rhythmic facility (which speaks
volumes about his roots in Gypsy music), and his ability to craft an
astonishing flow of single-note lines while traversing chord changes, all by
ear, has attracted the attention of many legends of this music, not the least
of which is Varady's mentor, manager, producer and friend, the esteemed Quincy
Jones. The Quest, available on April 6, 2018, features Varady in the company of
his father Bandi on bass, younger brother Adrian on drums, fellow Slovak
Radovan Tariska on alto saxophone, and Venezuelan native (and current New York
City resident) Benito Gonzalez on piano.
At just
twenty, Varady has already performed at major festivals and venues around the
world. The next exciting new chapter in the journey of this uber-talented musician
begins with the release of The Quest. Varady has expressed that this album,
comprised of all original music, feels very much like his first fully realized
artistic statement, and indeed it showcases Varady's evolution from child
prodigy to consummate artist, one with an abundance of fresh, bold energy.
"I feel like I'm giving you a piece of me on this album," said
Varady. The album title, which also reads like a mission statement is,
"about this whole quest that I'm on in music - seeking cool things, playing
cool music in cool places, enjoying it all and having fun and doing what you
wanna do," said Varady. The album is also his debut release on the
boutique non-profit jazz label, Resonance Records, which signals a departure
from his self-titled major label debut on Verve in 2014. Two other Quincy Jones
protégés, Justin Kauflin and Alfredo Rodriguez, will also be releasing new
albums in 2018.
Resonance
EVP/GM (and executive producer on The Quest) Zev Feldman said about first
hearing Varady, "Upon first listen, I was struck by his talent and
artistry. Then getting a chance to meet him in Ireland, and spending some time
talking with him, he just fits the mold of what Resonance is all about in terms
of promoting younger artists and sharing their music. We're very happy to have
him on the label. It's also a great honor to work with Quincy Jones and his
team, and partnering with them to get Andreas' music out there is something
we're very proud of. Resonance believes strongly in living artists also, not
just those from a bygone era, and it's going to be very exciting to continue to
watch him develop and we're thrilled to be able to add a chapter to his legacy
on our label."
Varady has
many influences. As expected, guitarists such as George Benson, Django
Reinhardt, Kurt Rosenwinkel and Peter Bernstein have greatly impacted his
playing, but Varady explains, "I've always been obsessed with saxophone
players. I get as much influence listening to John Coltrane as I get from
guitar players. But at the end of the day, I could list every musician that
I've ever listened to as an influence. I act like a sponge that way. Whatever I
listen to I always pick up some things, no matter if it's Radiohead or A Tribe
Called Quest or Trane. It can be from hip-hop to rock and jazz...everything
kind of all inspires me and influences me."
A child
prodigy of Hungarian Roma descent, Varady picked up guitar at age four and
quickly revealed his uncommon gift, learning Kenny Dorham's "Blue
Bossa" by ear. At age nine, he moved with his family to Ireland and by age
11, having already absorbed the influences of George Benson and Django
Reinhardt, he began busking with his father on the streets of Limerick and
Cork. Gigs around Ireland soon followed, mainly with drummer-producer David
Lyttle, who produced Varady's first album, 2010's Questions.
In 2011, at age 13, Andreas appeared with guitar master Martin Taylor at the
Inishowen International Guitar Festival in Culdaff and later that year became
the youngest headlining artist at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in London. Invited
to play at the 2012 Montreux Jazz Festival by founder Claude Nobs, he performed
for and met Quincy Jones, who signed him to his management company. He was
signed to Verve Records in 2013 and his stateside debut, executive produced by
David Foster and Quincy Jones and produced by Toto's David Paich, featured
guest appearances from singer Gregory Porter and trumpeter Roy Hargrove.
The opener
on The Quest, "Lost Memories," serves as a kind of mini-overture as
Varady unleashes a fusillade of notes over the engaging theme. Up next is the
dynamic "Radio
Joint" establishing the flexible group chemistry while also showcasing
urgent solos from Varady and Tariska over a driving 12/8 groove. Gonzalez
pushes the envelope in his harmonically probing solo here, which is fueled by
Adrian's intense, whirlwind attack around the kit. "He's in a huge growing
place right now," says Varady of his younger brother. "He has this
kind of ballsy playing style that I felt was the right thing for the tunes on
this album." The 15-year-old further showcases his considerable drumming
skills on the modal "Follow Me," which culminates in a kinetic
call-and-response between the brothers. (By the way, that's Andreas playing
double bass on the hip-hop flavored tag).
Varady
combines speed and finesse combine on the driving 6/8 composition,"The
Time Is Now" and utilizes some Frisellian backwards guitar effects on the
evocative interlude "Patience." The adventurous title track is a
centerpiece for this compelling album. Opening with a rubato free section that
has Gonzalez playing inside the piano while his band mates add provocative
colors and textures, it resolves to a buoyant theme with Andreas and Radovan
tied together in tight unisons while navigating a tricky time-shifting terrain.
"He's a great player," says Varady of the Slovakian saxophonist,
"and I like his strong, darker sound."
The
guitarist shows his urbane side on "Story" and the uplifting, melodic
number "Her
Dream." Then he swings unabashedly on the up-tempo "Radiska," a
burner that also turns Tariska loose and has Gonzalez channeling his inner
McCoy Tyner. "His soloing is swinging and very interactive," says
Varady of the gifted pianist, who turns in a monstrous solo here. "That's
the thing with all of us...we're very interactive on the album. No one is told,
'You do this, you do that.' It's more of a sketch and then see where it goes
from there. So it was a natural process. This album was really open, like pure
jazz...straight in the moment. That's what I was going for."
The closer,
"Outro," featuring more backwards effects over a simple, serene
melody, serves as a bridge to what Varady plans to explore in more depth on his
next recording. "I thought it would be interesting to just add some of the
elements that would be for my upcoming music," he explains. "I'm into
a lot of electronic music, I'm into a lot of hip-hop. That's also a part of me,
and I thought it would be cool to add that color to the album. It's almost like
my one foot is solidly in jazz and on my other foot, my toes are in something
else. And it's not like I'm crossing genres, it's more of like going from one
of my styles to this other style and merging it all together to create this
ultimate thing."
