FlamenKora Bridges Traditional West African Music with Spanish Flamenco and American Jazz

Motéma Music, now celebrating its 20th year as one of the world’s premier jazz/world labels, will release FlamenKora, a self-titled debut album from a new trio that unites West African Mande music with authentic Spanish flamenco guitar and American and Euro jazz trumpet to create a transglobal collaboration unlike any other. FlamenKora features German-born, New York-based trumpeter Volker Goetze, Senegalese-born, Paris-based kora master and vocalist Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko, and the rising Madrid flamenco guitar sensation, Alejandro Moreno. 

FlamenKora first took root during Pandemic lock-down times, when renowned trumpet player and composer Volker Goetze immersed himself in writing sessions while studying virtually with the esteemed Madrid flamenco maestro Enrique Vargas (Les Paul, Paco De Lucia). Goetze had met Alejandro Moreno at the Theatro Flamenco Madrid in 2018 and the two later performed together in Salzburg, Austria during the “Zwischenräume” Festival (2020). “Studying deeply with Vargas, flamenco became an obsession,” Volker explains. In 2021, Volker struck up a collaboration with Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko and they recorded together as a duo in Paris (that fine album is slated for release on Motéma in 2024). It was during those Paris sessions that the trumpeter first explored incorporating flamenco scales and phrasing derived from the Arabic maqam tradition in his sound. Delighting in how well the Mande and Flamenco traditions effortlessly and beautifully danced together, Volker invited Alejandro to join the duo for a residency at the Jazz & The City festival (Salzburg), where they played to sold-out houses with ovations, and the programmers of the Budapest Music Center discovered the ensemble and booked them for a concert the following year. As the magic of their collaboration was clear, the group found time to record FlamenKora in Cologne in March of 2022.

Volker, who manages, produces and recorded the group, relates, “from touring the world for 12 years with kora master Ablaye Cissoko, recording our three duo albums and directing GRIOT (a film I produced about Ablaye’s life), I discovered so many subtleties in Mande music which I recently realized also includes some of the deepest African roots of flamenco.” He explains further that, “these music traditions have evolved separately for centuries until legendary artists Miles Davis, Paco De Lucia, and Chick Corea introduced the styles to American jazz. This debut is a very special moment for us as, through FlamenKora, we are having an opportunity to extend the work of these jazz masters. It’s the beginning of a grand new adventure.”

Volker’s decades-long investigation into Mande music via his film (GRIOT), his successful albums with Ablaye Cissoko (Sira, Amanki Dionti, Djalya), and via transposing West African Fulani Flute melodies to the trumpet along with his recent dive into flamenco, led him to look beyond the constructs of traditional music and develop a sound that’s entirely new with FlamenKora. The group pays respect to the origins of the 16th century kora, while fueling it with the fiery passion of flamenco, and refining it with the sophistication of jazz. At its core, FlamenKora is a sound of love, relaxation, and spirituality that is pure joy for listeners’ ears.“FlamenKora opens up possibilities for future generations,” says trio member Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko. “For Africa, Europe, the Americas…this is a new departure for the kora. Tradition remains, but we are free to explore and create.” Guitarist Alejandro Moreno adds, “FlamenKora has an original character. Ali’s voice and kora bring a strong energy charge while the warmth of the guitar and power of the trumpet create a great contrast that gracefully coalesces together.” The album drops May 19th. Tour dates t.b.a. Find further band bio information below.

Artist, composer and trumpeter Volker Goetze is renowned for his work bringing folkloric cultures into the jazz idiom. Goetze has extensively toured and recorded with Senegalese Griot and kora master Ablaye Cissoko and directed a feature-length documentary GRIOT about the life of Cissoko. GRIOT received rave reviews from The Globe and Mail UK (“Stunningly Beautiful”) and African News (“A Must-See Film”). Volker’s albums with Ablaye have garnered over 20 million streams worldwide and international acclaim with PRI “The World” naming Amanke Dionti “Best World Music Album (2012).” Volker also produced New York City's first Sound Sculpture Walk (Sonic Gates). (Find more info at volkergoetze.com)

Paris-based Mande Griot Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko is said to have been born “with the kora in his hands.” A native of Dakar, Senegal, he is a nephew of Soundioulou Cissokho “The King of the Kora.” Ali Boulo Santo's magical playing and singing have attracted collaborations with luminaries such as Tony Allen, Omar Sosa, Piers Faccini, Trilok Gurtu, and many others. He co-composed the musical “Kirikou and Karaba” with Youssou N’dour, Angélique Kijo, and Tété. Ali Boulo Santo is acclaimed for combining Mandingo music with Senegalese and Western influences.

Born in Madrid, Alejandro Moreno is a disciple of flamenco maestro Enrique Vargas. Alejandro began his professional career at the age of 16 in the various flamenco tablaos, colmaos, concert halls, and theaters of the Madrid capital. He collaborates with artists including Marco Flores, Manuel Reyes, Karen Lugo, Mariana Collado, Hugo López, Luis Peña, and Pedro Córdoba. Alejandro is currently among the most influential tablaos in Madrid such as Villa Rosa, Casa Patas, Las Carboneras, Torres Bermejas, and Teatro Flamenco de Madrid.

21st Annual Panama Jazz Festival | January 15-20, 2024

Featuring Billy Cobham, Danilo Perez, Alex Blake, Ron Savage, Bill Pierce, Global Jazz Womxn, Hijas del Jazz Orchestra; Berklee Global Jazz Institute 15 Anniversary with special guest Marion Hayden; Panamanian All Stars Trio with Billy Cobham on drums, Danilo Perez on piano and Alex Blake on bass.

In 2023, Panama Jazz Festival celebrated its 20th edition in a hybrid format. With over 40,000 people attending all events of the festival, the event was characterized by the sold-out outdoor show on the final day of the festival. Artistic Director Danilo Perez said, “It was a dream to see the central square of the city of knowledge, a place that was a USA military base during my childhood, completed packed this year. The Panama Jazz Festival 2023 commemoration ushered in a new era, and this coming year we must contemplate serving over 40,000 individuals, which is both a blessing and a challenge.” 

During this next edition, the Panama Jazz Festival will be honoring Panamanian jazz drummer Billy Cobham, who will be performing with his fusion group Spectrum 50; the trio with Danilo Perez on piano and Alex Blake on bass; and the Global Jazz Big Band composed of musicians from all over the world including Mike Rodriguez on trumpet, Brandon Wilkins on tenor sax, Marshall Gilkes on trombone, Gary Husband on keyboards, Cristian Galvez on bass, Rocco Zifarelli on guitar, directed by Guy Barker, and accompanied by distinguished Panamanian musicians including Carlos Agrazal, Luis Carlos Perez, and Samuel Batista.

“As a person born in Coco Solo Hospital in Colon, Panama,” Cobham says, “I never dreamed that I would have the opportunity to perform in front of my countrymen and women at 80 years of age. When I left Panama, I was 3 ½ years old; when I came back it was 2005. It is more than an honor for me to be presented in such a special place. Hopefully, for the time that I have left, I can contribute in some way. Not just playing at the jazz festival, which is a big plus for me, but to have a legacy that goes beyond the concert stage in the areas of education.”

Danilo Perez, who founded the festival in 2003 with his wife Patricia Zarate, says Cobham "is an essential figure in jazz history, and his influence can be evident in the work of today's most notable drummers. He is an important example of how, since its inception, Panama has been a hidden gem for jazz that must be included in its history. Because one of the many festival's contributions is to rescue and document our Panamanian Jazz history, it is with great pride and honor that we dedicate our XXI PJF edition to maestro Billy Cobham."

Other artists who will participate of the festival include the Ron Savage Trio with special guest Bill Pierce; Cuban drummer Calixto Oviedo; Global Jazz Womxn with Patricia Zarate (Panama/Chile), Lihi Haruhi (Israel), Zahili Zamora (Cuba), Ciara Moser (Austria), and Ivanna Cuesta (Dominican Republic) with special guests Afrodisiaco from Panama; the Brazilian duo Pablo Fagundes and Marcus Moraes, The Chilean band Orion Lion & Afroritual, Cuban violinist Tanmy Lopez, Guillermo Nojechowicz from Argentina, and distinguished national projects such as Hijas del Jazz Orchestra with special guest Director Sheila Del Bosque (Cuba) and panamanian singer Solinka.

A week of enriching concerts highlighting the great gala night held at the Anayansi Theater in Atlapa Convention Center on Wednesday, January 17, 2024. The same theater will present great live jazz performances on Thursday, January 18. Ateneo Theater, located in the City of Knowledge, will also present afternoon and night concerts; Villa Agustina, situated in the Old Quarter (Casco Antiguo), will hold night concerts and jam sessions every day of the week of the festival. 

The Panama Jazz Festival's signature educational events will happen at the City of Knowledge and will host distinguished institutions such as Berklee College of Music and the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, the New England Conservatory, New York Jazz Academy, and Conservatorio de Santiago de Chile, Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School and Zumix. The Berklee Global Jazz Institute will be celebrating 15 years with a special group lead by distinguished bassist from Detroit Marion Hayden. The festival will be celebrating the 12th Latin American Music Therapy Symposium, bringing together music therapists from Panama, Chile, the United States, Argentina, Uruguay, among other countries. Other important symposiums that will take place during the festival include the 3rd Symposium of Native Peoples and the 8th Symposium of the Culture and Music of Afro-Panamanians.

The 21st Panama Jazz Festival will have the City of Knowledge as its educational venue, and the official hotel will be the Marriot Panama Hotel. The festival will also feature hundreds of national and international musicians and many educational and artistic performances will also be streamed during the event on our social media.

 

Steve White’s (Style Council) jazz-funk supergroup TRIO VALORE 15th Anniv. Edition

Record Kicks presents the 15th anniversary edition of Return of the Iron Monkey, the legendary soul-jazz album from Trio Valore, the British supergroup that features Steve White (The Style Council) on drums, Damon Minchella (Ocean Colour Scene, Paul Weller, Richard Ashcroft) on bass and Seamus Beaghen (Madness, Desmond Dekker, Tom Jones) on Hammond organ. Originally released in October 2008, the album rapidly reached a cult status amongst mods, soul and rare groove fans and the vinyl has been sold out for a long time now. The 15th Anniversary reissue will be released on November 17th on limited edition Crystal Clear LP and digital deluxe edition with two bonus tracks: “Put Em Down (Muro Di Gomma mix)”, which originally appeared as B side of the “Rehab” 45, and a cover of Roy Budd’s classic “Get Carter”. 

Trio Valore has heavyweight roots in funk, jazz, soul and the modernist tradition combined with exemplary musicianship. Steve White joined The Style Council at the age of 17, and is considered by many to be the UK`s finest drummer of his generation, playing on 15 albums with the legendary Paul Weller. As a solo artist, Steve has released 4 albums. As a sideman, he’s been one of the founders of the Acid Jazz movement with Galliano and he played with The Young Disciples, JTQ and Working Week, through to New Orleans legend Dr John, the late great Ian Dury and Brit Pop icons Oasis. Recognized as the youngest musician to perform at Live Aid in Wembley in 1985, Steve has performed at Live 8 as well. Damon Minchella formed Brit Pop heroes Ocean Colour Scene, going on to sell over 3 million albums before leaving in 2004, has also been the first call bassist for Paul Weller for over 12 years. He has performed a with a whole host of other artists, including The Who, Dr John, Jimmy Page, Paul McCartney, Amy Winehouse and Carleen Anderson. Seamus Beaghen has played with a staggering list of artists including Iggy Pop, Morrissey, Supergrass, Babyshambles, Paul Weller, David Gray, Death In Vegas, Alabama 3, Madness, The Grid, Desmond Dekker, Barry Adamson and Tom Jones. 

Together as Trio Valore they sing a simple song, they preach a sermon of groove and carry the torch of a great legacy forward, aiming their music at the heart and the feet – a dance band in the old school style. The 12 tracks of Return of the Iron Monkey are full of floor-shaking Hammond grooves, heavy deep funk & super dancefloor mod-jazz tunes. Amongst the album’s highlights are the super hip versions of Amy Winehouse's “Rehab”, Jimi Hendrix's “Fire” and the Rolling Stones' “Paint It Black” alongside groovy original compositions such as the boogaloo soul number “Dam Square” or the dancefloor jazz album’s title track. 

The reissue of Trio Valore's album is part of Record Kicks’ 2023 initiatives to celebrate its 20th anniversary. Side by side with similar imprints like Daptone, Big Crown or Colemine Records under its motto "The explosive sound from Today's scene", Milan-based record label and music publishing Record Kicks, has been pitching the contemporary funk & soul scene since 2003. With over 250 releases under the belt, the label has released bands from all over the globe and earned support of VIP fans such as rap superstars Jay-Z, Tyler The Creator and Dr. Dre, who sampled the label’s catalogue.

New music releases: Kenneth Jimenez, Mike Reed, Twospeak, and Joshua Moore

Kenneth Jimenez -  Sonnet To Silence

Brooklyn-based bassist/composer Kenneth Jimenez presents his new work 'Sonnet to Silence' on We Jazz Records, 17 November. Consisting of 7 original compositions by Jimenez performed by his quartet including pianist Angelica Sanchez, drummer Gerald Cleaver and saxophonist Hery Paz, 'Sonnet to Silence' echoes the original fire of New York free jazz while stepping into a terrain of its own, boldly forward-thinking. Jimenez, originally from Costa Rica, has a knack at composing pieces that breathe naturally and take fight on the wings provided by the first-rate quartet, joining scene stalwarts and newcomers together as a coherent unit. "Since I was a kid I’ve had this reoccurring dream of running towards the edge of a mountain and suddenly discovering myself flying down to the valley, feeling weightless and fearless", say Jimenez. "This record is the materialization of that dream. The uncompromising voices in the band and our shared desire to explore the unknown make this music live and breathe. It feels that the possibilities become endless when creating with these master improvisers, and the only thing that matters is to take that initial jump into the abyss."' As a whole, the album lets the band loose at times, while the music maintains its natural flow. With 'Sonnet to Silence', Kenneth Jimenez establishes himself as a composer and bandleader with remarkably strong presence.

Mike Reed - The Separatist Party

Chicago drummer, bandleader, composer Mike Reed shares new single and video “Floating With An Intimate Stranger” off of The Separatist Party, his new album out October 27th on Astral Spirits/We Jazz. Highlighting the strengths of the group Reed assembled for the record – cornetist Ben LaMar Gay, poet and spoken word artist Marvin Tate, and members of Bitchin Bajas (Rob Frye, Cooper Crain, and Dan Quinlivan) – “Floating With An Intimate Stranger” is a sleek mid-tempo groover that brings an orchestral depth harkening back to Sun Ra Arkestra’s Chicago days of the 1950’s. Reed explains how while the song’s video “is simply scenes from the road, the song is there to help you get outside of your own body. Sometimes you meditate, sometimes you need substances, and sometimes you share the most intimate thoughts and desires with complete strangers . . . they’re different ways to be free.” With influences ranging from jazz legends like Pharoah Sanders and Don Cherry to the motoric rhythms of krautrock, the musicians “surge through grimy post-rock or drift into ethereal, odd-metered, electrified airspaces with whiffs of Ethio-jazz” (New York Times). These world-spanning influences meld into a propulsive brew that speaks to the turbulence of the times we find ourselves in.rating vital live music venues Constellation and The Hungry Brain.

Twospeak - For Henry Moore

Twospeak are band leader and saxophonist Ronan Perrett’s bold and dynamic four-piece that draw inspiration equally from the world of contemporary London jazz, bands like The Bad Plus as well as the 1970’s Canterbury Scene of Soft Machine and Caravan, Hot Rats-era Zappa and Deerhoof-esque indie rock, putting this all together in a heady brew and sounding uniquely themselves. Second single 'For Henry Moore (Reclining Figure 1984)' is a charged, dissonant, energetic bomb of a tune. Brown’s flipped-out rhythm and De Souza’s razor sharp guitar drives the band rattling through changes and gear shifts as Perrett’s sax runs freely over the top. Imagine Lunch Money Life covering Trout Mask Replica and you might be somewhere close. Ronan says of the inspiration behind the song “For Henry Moore is based on a captivating sculpture of a large golden reclining figure, coincidentally created in 1984. It immediately captured my imagination as I saw it rising up and striding off to cause chaos.”Born in the contemporary jazz scene, the band features musicians from groups such as Waaju, Byron Wallen’s Four Corners, Caravela and Dizraeli. Fictions will be available on LP and digitally from None More Records on November 17.

Joshua Moshe - Inner Search 

Joshua Moshe (FKA Josh Kelly/JK GROUP) share his debut album 'Inner Search', under his own name on La Sape Records. Following a challenging recovery period after chemotherapy in late 2021, Joshua Moshe embarked on a transformative musical journey, shedding his band persona and embracing a solo identity. The culmination of this artistic exploration is his debut album ‘Inner Search’, recorded six months after completing treatment. For this project, Moshe assembled a rejuvenated lineup of incredible collaborators: Felix Bloxsom, Erica Tucceri, Angus Radley, Cazeuax O.S.L.O., Phil Noy, Niran Dasika, James Bowers, Javier Fredes, and Matthew Hayes, whilst maintaining a strong partnership with long-standing producer, Lewis Moody. 'Inner Search' showcases an eclectic blend of influences drawing inspiration from Late Modal Jazz (Pharaoh Sanders, Joe Henderson, John Coltrane), Afro-Cuban Music, Jewish Music, Garage, Broken Beat, Nu-Jazz, and Modern Jazz. Such breadth of influence signifies a departure from the traditional dancey-crossover style, evolving the JK GROUP sound into something truly distinctive and extraordinary.

Hello, I’m Britti. — New Orleans Artist Emerges From Obscurity To Shine on Dan Auerbach-Produced Debut

Singer-songwriter Britti — born Brittany Guerin in Baton Rouge; reborn in and proudly repping New Orleans now — isn’t defined by genre as much as her effervescent spirit, which she will share with the world on February 2, 2024, with the release of Hello, I’m Britti., her aptly titled 11-song debut album on Easy Eye Sound. 

Produced and co-written by Dan Auerbach — lead singer of The Black Keys, founder of Easy Eye Sound, and the GRAMMY®-winning producer behind celebrated releases from Yola, Marcus King, Lana Del Rey, Valerie June, Dr. John and many more — Hello, I’m Britti. is a love letter to the place she calls home, a triumphant ode to fresh starts in the face of heartbreak, and the culmination of a years-long journey even Britti didn’t always know she was taking. 

The album (available for pre-order now) shows the many sides of a singular voice: pairing shimmering country-pop with bright trills (much like childhood favorite Dolly Parton) on “Back Where We Belong”; breathy purrs atop the hazy reverie of 90’s R&B on “Silly Boy”; and full-on bellows alongside sumptuous horns paying homage to her New Orleans home on “Save Me.” Ever the savvy producer, Auerbach enlisted a remarkable group of first-call players to uplift Britti’s formidable instrument, including percussionist Nick Movshon (Amy Winehouse, Wu Tang Clan), Jay Bellerose (Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Sharon Van Etten), guitarist Tom Bukovac (Sheryl Crow, Stevie Nicks), and keyboard wizard Mike Rojas (Yola, Miranda Lambert), among others.

Listen to Hello, I’m Britti.’s lead single, the stunning Sade-meets-second-line groover “Nothing Compares To You,” which blends slinky guitar and synth interplay with Britti’s featherlight vocals. 

Britti “grew up in the most musical environment in the world,” Auerbach observes. “It’s in her DNA.” Raised by her mother and grandmother — whom she dubs Brown Sugar and Cayenne Pepper, respectively — Britti was surrounded by music in the family home: classic soul and R&B, blues, zydeco, and more. Her uncle, the eminent jazz bassist Roland Guerin, invited her to attend his gigs with Allen Toussaint, Dr. John and others. Britti soaked it all in while nurturing her own talent at every turn: school chorus, church choir, harmonizing with the radio on long car rides. “Singing is my passion,” she says, “but it’s also my purpose.”

After earning a degree in music performance from Loyola University, Britti fantasized about being “discovered” and pursuing a life in music. Yet for the better part of a decade that life revolved around working in a music store, selling instruments to people pursuing their dreams, while deferring her own. The devastating end of a long-term relationship combined with a pandemic furlough prompted a moment of clarity. “I remember saying this out loud in prayer,” she recalls. “‘What if I actually try believing in myself?’ I had this whole dialogue with my ancestors, my spirit guide, and the divine like ‘What if I try?’” 

She began posting videos covering songs by some of her favorite artists, including Auerbach’s own “Whispered Words (Pretty Lies)” from his debut solo LP, Keep It Hid. Auerbach found the video online and within days the two were meeting in Nashville, discussing a collaboration. “I’m sure he’s great with everybody,” says Britti, “but we definitely vibe.”

Their shared interests and influences are on display throughout the album as each track tells its own compact story. The tunes span a range of sounds and emotions, with Britt’s unique vocal style the thread that runs through all of them. It’s a voice you won’t soon forget, and Hello, I’m Britti. is the perfect introduction.

 

New York drummer & composer Lesley Mok releases new album leading her 10-piece ensemble; 'The Living Collection'

Imagine taking your first breath. Feeling this strange, cold air fill your lungs for the first time, its invisible mass taking its place inside the body. Breathe in. It’s the infant’s first breath that is somehow the most enduring, propelling the innumerable yet finite number of breaths to follow, which go on and on until finally one day they stop. Is it an anxious, questioning gasp? Or is it a savored moment of pleasure, like a long drag of a cigarette that gets pressed out of tightly sculpted lips, the smoke dancing and fading out above. The breath of life.

In the context of music, breath is a concept filled with both technical and metaphorical meanings. A group that ‘breathes together’ is aware of the physicality of music-making and chooses to align these moments of rest. But ‘breathing together’ also suggests a broader, more poetic kind-of synchronicity within the ensemble, an ethic of unison and cooperation that undergirds all musical decisions. The members of the group no longer function as separate voices but instead flow like breath within a single body.

The Living Collection does and does not breathe together. Mok’s compositions resist the urge to always unite the ensemble, instead opting for fluid and complex structures that often emphasize the tension within ideas, letting the sounds from each player reflect against one another, creating a kaleidoscopic texture that exists somewhere between an array of distinct voices and an indiscernible whole. The body that is the ensemble is not simply a uniting force, but also the limit or boundary of its music, a membrane that contains within it the aging, varied relationships amongst its ten players. This is our Living Collection.

Jorie Graham’s poem ‘Scarcely There’ considers the openness of the natural world and the various modes of relating that exist within it, evolving over time and manifesting in a range of physical phenomena. Graham: it wants its furious place again, all floral and full of appearance, full of its fourth wall, its silvery after-tomorrow and ramping-up now quite a spectacular dusk.

In an ecosystem, individuals find themselves in a constant, evolving relationship with the world around them, forced to resonate with a flow of entities no matter how disparate, the particular always in view of the universal. Is this some kind of freedom? A bounded exploration, like a child playing with the toys in front of them, arranging and rearranging them to create new worlds of possibility, of breath and breadth. If anything is guaranteed, it is the promise of the next day that brings with it the light of a fresh, unfurling dawn. Breathe out. -Henry Mermer, January 2023

Buselli/Wallarab Jazz Orchestra– The Gennett Suite

On The Gennett Suite, acclaimed composer-arranger Brent Wallarab weaves a masterpiece from the music and history that birthed the recording industry.

To most people, the small town of Richmond, Indiana won’t ring a bell. But those attuned to the seismic events that occurred there a century ago will instantly conjure up such early jazz icons as Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, and Jelly Roll Morton, surrounded by primitive recording technology in a converted piano factory – the setting for some of the most famous, pioneering jazz records made at the Gennett Studios, for one of the earliest successful record labels.       

The brilliant composer and Indiana University professor Brent Wallarab has long admired that music, and the story of how culture, politics, capitalism, and the 1920s thirst for freedom combined to place Gennett at an epicenter of 20th-century music. With The Gennett Suite, he captures that history in a monumental piece, for the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra, that repurposes music from the Gennett label’s influential early records. The album will be released on June 9, 2023 on Patois Records, a scrappy little label of our own time, owned by veteran trombonist and educator Wayne Wallace.    

Using such classic compositions as “Dippermouth Blues,” “Wolverine Blues,” and “Star Dust” – the first recording of which took place in Richmond – Wallarab reimagines these legendary themes and personages for a new century. To do so, he has emptied his considerable toolbox of musical wizardry. He has extended themes, elasticized the time, turned ensembles into prisms, and applied a host of anachronic techniques – funkified bass lines, advanced harmonies, brilliant sonances, and plush ensemble textures barely imagined 100 years ago – to boldly bring these ancient compositions into the 21st century. 

But not at the expense of the original material; at their most modern, Wallarab’s reinterpretations lose neither sight nor sound of the source. “These are more than just ‘arrangements’ of the tunes,” he points out. “I tried to give each one its own character. . . . [Each] is a unique part of the overall narrative I want to tell.” 

Wallarab designed The Gennett Suite in four movements, each of which elevates one of the major jazz tributaries flowing into the Gennett studios in the early 1920s. The first movement, Royal Blue, celebrates some of the label’s earliest stars, tracing the evolution of jazz from an idiom of collective improvisation – represented by “Tin Roof Blues,” recorded in 1923 by the New Orleans Rhythm Kings – to a soloist’s art in the hands of Louis Armstrong. Wallarab illustrates this transition with an interlude that leads from “Tin Roof Blues” to the contemporaneous classics “Chimes Blues” and “Dippermouth Blues,” Gennett recordings made by King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band starring Armstrong, who had arrived in Chicago in 1922. 

The second movement, Blues Faux Bix, focuses on Armstrong’s white counterpart, cornetist Bix Beiderbecke, whose cooler sound and more measured approach provided a Midwest alternative to the sounds from New Orleans. (Beiderbecke was born and raised in Davenport, Iowa.) This movement combines several songs Beiderbecke recorded for Gennett with his band The Wolverines  – the early classics “Wolverine Blues” and “The Jazz Me Blues” – and Beiderbecke’s eidetic “Davenport Blues,” recorded under his own name and here starring Wallarab’s longtime band-leading partner, trumpet ace Mark Buselli. 

Movement 3, Hoagland, reminds us that one of the earliest architects of the Great American Songbook – Hoagland Howard (“Hoagy”) Carmichael – played his own role in the Gennett story, as a fledgling songwriter and confidant of other musicians on the scene. On Carmichael’s classic “Riverboat Shuffle,” Wallarab recombines sections of the melody to build suspense and create an irresistible propulsion. But the real highlight is Wallarab’s extraordinary recomposition – and saxophonist Greg Ward’s emotionally transcendent interpretation – of “Star Dust,” which many consider to be the greatest single American popular song. 

Carmichael first recorded “Star Dust” at Gennett in 1927. It grew out of his friendship with and admiration for Beiderbecke: Carmichael sought to capture the dreamy quality of the cornetist’s improvisations in this indelible through-composed melody. Given its pride among place in popular music, its inclusion would seem like a foregone conclusion, but Wallarab felt that wasn’t justification enough. “I went round and round on this,” he admits. “I mean, does the world really need another arrangement of ‘Star Dust?’ But I knew that if we were going to deal with Hoagy, it had to be reckoned with. So I decided that I would only submit a new arrangement if I could come up with a different approach.” 

He ended up with a fantasia based on the original theme, incorporating elements from European classical composers in subtle ways; once he’d decided on the treatment, Wallarab knew that it should be a vehicle for Ward, the Chicago jazz veteran who joined the Indiana University faculty in 2019. Ward is well known in new jazz circles for exploratory bands like his Rogue Parade, and for collaborations with “Beat Scientist” Makaya McCraven. As Wallarab points out, “We all know what an amazingly creative small-group improviser he is. But a lead saxophone player in a big band? It’s just among the best I've ever heard from anyone. His playing on ‘Star Dust’ is just breathtaking.”

The final movement, Mr. Jelly Lord, honors Jelly Roll Morton, the first notable jazz composer, whose 1923 Gennett collaboration with the New Orleans Rhythm Kings helped put the new studio and its fledgling label on the map of American recording. Morton’s early arrangements had a seminal impact on his peers and imitators; and in “King Porter Stomp,” he gifted the world with a classic composition that has inspired new treatments by artists from Fletcher Henderson to Gil Evans to avant-jazz guitarist Noël Akchoté.       

Although not a native Hoosier, Wallarab has spent the majority of his adult life in Indiana, and he has taken a keen interest in the state’s pivotal role during the early days of the recording industry. “Gennett’s importance in spreading jazz throughout the country and across the world has always been so inspiring to me,” he explains. His first attempt to commemorate that history in the form of a major composition came in 2003; but even after the piece was performed, “I knew that it wasn’t done yet,” he says. “It was OK, but it became the model for the current Gennett Suite.” He began to rewrite the project in 2017 and then, in early 2022, he committed to finishing the monumental piece before the end of the year.

“As far as I’m concerned, my job was to create this musical narrative of Gennett,” Wallarab continues. To help tell that story beyond the music itself, he enlisted acclaimed jazz historian John Hasse, Curator Emeritus at the Smithsonian Institution, whose astute historical essay contextualizes the milieu in which jazz and Gennett both took root; and also David Brent Johnson, author and nationally syndicated radio host at Bloomington’s WFIU-FM, to analyze Wallarab’s use of the source material for the work. The essays highlight the 60-plus-page booklet that accompanies the splendidly packaged double-CD.

In bringing the music of 100 years ago forward, Wallarab has fulfilled his long-held goal to commemorate Gennett and, more broadly, the state of Indiana’s vital and often forgotten role in the record business. A passionate educator, he has also made this a teachable moment, using the work to dust off and re-examine music that remains vital yet malleable to changing tastes. 

In 2023, “Gennett is not exactly an unknown,” Wallarab says, but neither is it high in the consciousness of modern listeners. In fact, “A lot of the musicians who played on the session had no idea about the label and his history.” But they surely do now. 

Trombonist and composer/arranger Brent Wallarab is the David N. Baker Associate Professor of Jazz Studies at Indiana University’s world-renowned Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington. In 1994, he and trumpeter Mark Buselli founded their eponymous jazz orchestra, which has developed into one of the most widely respected big bands in the country, while attaining an elevated position on the historically rich Indianapolis jazz scene. The Gennett Suite is their eighth album. 

 

Jacob Young | "Eventually"

Jacob Young’s fourth leader-recording for ECM not only presents the guitarist’s first pass at the guitar trio format, but moreover offers a broader view of his compositional pallet, as he, bassist Mats Eilertsen and drummer Audun Kleive explore a wide variety of pulsations, temperaments and styles, all tied together by Jacob’s always melodic embrace. On his last effort, 2015’s Forever Young, the guitarist was joined by Trygve Seim and the Marcin Wasilewski Trio, performing what The Guardian called, “a set full of undemonstrative surprises and contrasts”, where “the quality of the composing matches the formidable powers of the band.” Eventually continues that record’s gentle lyricism, while Audun Kleive’s percussive injections add counterpoint to Jacob’s in turns balladic and more rhythmically overt elaborations, lending this set its sharp edge. 

“Young often plays quietly and obliquely, but he likes grooves,” The Guardian has noted and these qualities are ever-present here, organised in constant juxtaposition with each other throughout the set. Long-time partner Mats Eilertsen, who appeared on Jacob’s label debut Evening Falls (2004) and Sideways (2007), contributes a confident foundation, simultaneously complementing and challenging his colleagues in a vivid, contemporary jazz programme. 

Jacob: “It took quite a while to make a new album after Forever Young, because I had to get older. I had to dare to just play with bass and drums – no piano or horns. When Mats and Audun agreed to do this recording with me in the classic guitar, bass and drums trio format, it was important for us not to go ahead and make ‘just another guitar-trio record’, but to make it sound fresh, like something we’ve never done before.”

 Part of the freshness here comes from the fact that Jacob doesn’t draw from obvious references to or quotes of the past guitar-greats he admires, but instead concentrates on developing his own voice as a composer and guitarist – one defined by subtle chord-melody harmonisations. Jacob: “When I am the only chordal instrument it gives me more freedom playing these harmonically dense pieces, because when playing single lines during an improvisation and only having the bass beneath more notes are available. Then I can throw in a chord that sounds good with the bass without having to adjust to a piano’s voicing and sound, or any other chordal instrument.” 

Jacob also emphasises the significance of his sidemen in the process of making the album: “We treated the material like equals. I was the leader in the sense that I composed the music, but more than anything, it’s about the interplay with these two masters. Mats and Audun make improvising easier for me – it’s one of their mutual abilities. To make other people sound better.” 

Whether it’s in the descending lines of the title track “Eventually”, the underlying groove of “I Told You In October”, the subtle balladry of “Moon Over Meno” or the more robust approach taken on bluesy “One For Louis” – Jacob calls the song his “personal take on ‘Rollover Beethoven’” – there’s indeed a particular, electric friction at play between the three musicians as they search for (and find) fresh modes of expression across nine inventive new originals by the guitarist-composer.

Jacob Young has previously released three recordings as a leader for the label: Evening Falls (2004), Sideways (2007) and Forever Young (2014), recorded in the company of ECM stalwarts like late drummer Jon Christensen, saxophonist Trygve Seim, Marcin Wasilewski and more. He was also part of Manu Katché’s group on Third Round (2010) and the drummer’s compilation album Touchstone for Manu (2014). 

Besides his role as an esteemed and in-demand sideman for numerous ECM projects – among them albums by Bobo Stenson, Tord Gustavsen, Mathias Eick, Trygve Seim or Wolfert Brederode –, Mats Eilertsen has released his own acclaimed leader-albums for the label, in quintet on Rubicon (2016) and trio on And Then Comes The Night (2019). 

Audun Kleive too shares history with ECM, going back to Terje Rypdal’s Chaser from 1985. He has appeared on over a dozen other recordings, often with Terje but also on Mathias Eick’s The Door (2008), Arve Henriksen’s Cartography (2010), with Jon Balke’s Magnetic North Orchestra on Further (1994) and Kyanos (2002) Marilyn Mazur’s Small Labyritnhs (1997) and more.

New music releases: Chakachas, Terri Walker, Stefano Cosi, and Allez Kiki Fermentation

Chakachas  - Discoteca Sudamericana (with bonus tracks)

A wonderful set of funky Latin grooves from Chakachas – an album that was recorded around the same time as their classic Jungle Fever record, but which is much more obscure overall! The set was originally only issued in Europe, and has a groove that's very similar to Jungle Fever – a mad messed-up blend of Latin, funk, and sleazy European grooves – delivered with a style that's part soundtrack, part US Latin – and all groovy all the way through! There's plenty of heavy percussion, funky basslines, and riffing guitar – and the record is filled with funky nuggets all the way through, with titles that include "Hot Hands", "Liza & Brook", "Mamadula", "The Walking Brass", "Turtle Soup", "Bugaloo", and "Super Cat". Reissue includes bonus tracks not on the original record – "Tengo Tengo", "Noche De Amor (voc)", and "Hot Hands (inst)". ~ Dusty Groove

Terri Walker – My Love Story

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Terri Walker is celebrating the 20th anniversary of her critically acclaimed 2003 album, ‘Untitled’, with the release of her highly anticipated new album ‘My Love Story’, out now via Wings of a Hummingbird Records/Believe UK. Produced by Konny Kon & Tyler Daley – widely recognised as Children of Zeus, who also co-wrote the album alongside Walker & Drs, the seven-track album showcases Terri’s unique blend of Soul and RnB. Following on from the release of singles ‘Finally Over You’ and ‘I’m Not The One’, ‘My Love Story’ is a testament to Terri’s growth as an artist over the past two decades. Speaking about the album Terri said: “My Love Story is an album that I made for myself. It has been one of accountability, and ownership – no blaming or assumptions. It’s an album where I didn’t worry that it didn’t meet mine, or other people’s expectations.

Stefano Cosi - Shine

Shine is the first work of Italian drummer and producer Stefano Cosi. The record, published in March 2023 by Groove It Records, includes nine tracks; the producer decided to collaborate with a different singer in each one of them, carefully choosing the voice best suited for each track. All the singers involved are internationally renewed and familiar with the sounds and styles adopted by Stefano, and are accompanied by a wide array of extremely talented and experienced musicians. The reason behind this choice lies in the fact that the producer believes that making music is above all a cultural matter, in the sense of being part of a certain space and time with those who share the same curiosity.

Allez Kiki Fermentation - Gusto Di Luce

Funky jazz nuggets with a mighty nice lineup – one that features plenty of vibes next to the keyboards, all resonating strongly over tight rhythms on acoustic bass and drums! There's almost a sunshiney vibe to the music at times that fits the image on the cover – not polished or slick, but this sort of shimmering quality that really lets you bathe in the warmth of the music – especially as the grooves are often laidback, yet still plenty darn funky! The drums are great, and the way they kick in with the vibes is wonderful – on titles that include "Estinto Omicida", "Hydromiel 2022", "Orso Pacifico", "Bourguignon", and "Saint Emilion". ~ Dusty Groove

Jessica Pavone | "Clamor"

Jessica Pavone has released Clamor, another distinctive ensemble album from the composer-violist and a continuation of the concerto form she developed on 2021’s "deeply affecting" (Pitchfork) Lull. 

First premiered in the fall of 2022, Clamor features four movements that each take their name from an invention that women created to circumvent obstructions to their freedoms. Two movements highlight Katherine Young’s unique bassoon style, while the others center ensemble communication. The ensemble for Clamor comprises eminent women and nonbinary musicians who each bring their own voices to the composition: violinists Aimée Niemann and Charlotte Munn-Wood, violists Abby Swidler and Pavone, cellist Mariel Roberts, and double bassist Shayna Dulberger.

Details for Jessica Pavone's release show have also changed. The concert will now take place on November 12th at Brooklyn art space Pioneer Works as a part of Second Sundays. 

In the 17th century, Korean women invented the standing see-saw to help them see what lay outside. These women weren’t allowed to leave their homes, so the see-saw gave them the ability to peek out the walls of their property, if even for just a second. Composer-violist Jessica Pavone came upon this history in January 2021 after writing a rhythm that swayed back-and-forth; she wondered what drew her to this see-saw-like pattern so she started researching its origins. This led her to want to find more stories of how women have worked around societal barriers and norms, and, in turn, to composing Clamor. Through her signature indeterminate and fluid style, Clamor reimagines the idea of “womens’ work,'' using women-made inventions as a starting point to craft powerful music.

First premiered in the fall of 2022, Clamor is written for a six-person ensemble and bassoon soloist Katherine Young and features four movements that each take their name from an invention that women created to circumvent obstructions to their freedoms. To find them, Pavone read feminist texts by Gloria Steinem and searched for women-made inventions from countries around the world and from across eras. The inventions she chose are the Neolttwigi, or the 17th century see-saw; Nu Shu, a secret language developed by Chinese women who were forbidden from going to school; and bloomers, which were created by Amelia Bloomer during the Victorian dress reform.

The music of Clamor is a continuation of the concerto form Pavone developed on 2021’s Lull. Two movements highlight Young’s unique bassoon style, while the others center ensemble communication. The ensemble for Clamor comprises eminent women and nonbinary musicians who each bring their own voices to the composition: violinists Aimée Niemann and Charlote Munn-Wood, violists Abby Swidler and Pavone, cellist Mariel Roberts, and double bassist Shayna Dulberger.

Clamor builds from a time-based score, in which Pavone instructs players to move from phrase to phrase at specific times. Each musician plays a specific pattern until they reach the designated clock marker that tells them to change; these loose dictations allow Pavone to foreground each musician’s intuition and individuality instead of creating a composer-performer hierarchy. Young’s movements in particular—“Nu Shu” parts 1 and 2—grow from her singular bassoon language. Pavone and Young have a long history of collaboration and friendship and these movements are born out of their mutual understanding. Throughout, Young showcases her fearless exploration, excavating the full dynamic, textural, and emotional range of her bassoon.

The other movements of Clamor drift between ensemble unisons and solo voices, watching as each instrument pops out of the fold or fades away. There’s democracy in this playing—no one musician feels like a leader or a follower. Rather, each passes their melody along to the other, letting every voice be heard. During “Bloom,” for example, a folksy melody branches out into a series of drones that flow with ease between consonance and dissonance, eventually erupting in one final howl. There’s a sense of empowerment that emerges from both these solo moments and the group’s melodies that braid together. At its heart, Clamor shows us the strength of individual and communal voices—demonstrating how womens’ work can be a space for both agency and collectivity.

New music releases: Kenny Thomas, Angel Bat Dawid, Barbara Mason, With Love Vol 2 - Compiled By Miche

Kenny Thomas – The Best Of Kenny Thomas

Cooltempo Records launches the first in a series of compilations and reissues starting with brit-soul icon Kenny Thomas. Containing the biggest hits, fan favourites, and previously unreleased material. Twice Brit-Award nominated Kenny Thomas is one of the UK’s most successful Soul singers of his generation, having had two Top 10 albums and numerous Top 40 singles over his illustrious thirty-year career. His debut album Voices, released in 1991, sold over a million copies worldwide, going double platinum in the UK alone and features the top 5 hit ‘Thinking About Your Love’. Most recently, Kenny appeared on the Top of the Pops BBC series to discuss his hits, having performed on the show no less than 9 times. During lockdown, Take That’s Gary Barlow invited him to sing for his Crooner Sessions with the video garnering over 4 million views. Kenny is set to embark on a UK theatre tour in support of the Best Of throughout November and December. The Best Of Kenny Thomas features his ’90s chart hits along with rare mixes and two previously unreleased tracks.

Angel Bat Dawid - Requiem For Jazz

An amazing piece of work from Angel Bat Dawid – music that's light years ahead from her recordings of just a few years back – and that's really saying a lot, given the strength of that material! The album features music from a large stage performance put together by Angel – partly inspired by the legendary film The Cry Of Jazz – done by director Edward Bland at the end of the 50s, with music by Sun Ra, and groundbreaking testament on the nature of jazz and black expression in America. The film has been a touchstone for us for decades – yet somehow, Angel finds a way to to channel all its power and explode its meaning and message into something even more powerful – directing a larger group of musicians and singers with a stunningly majestic quality – one that is sure to elevate Dawid into the upper reaches of jazz for years to come. An instant masterpiece, and a record that will become a touchstone for both jazz and contemporary music in general – with titles that include "Introit", "Dias Ire", "Rex Tremendae", "Recordare", "Confutatis", "Lacrimosa", "Kyrie Eleison", "Agnus Dei", and "Lux Aeterna". ~ Dusty Groove

Barbara Mason - The Ghetto

Very obscure work from the great Barbara Mason – a set that has a Buddah Records-era photo of her on the front, but which feels as if was recorded about a decade later – although it's a bit hard to tell, as there's not much detail in the notes! Yet despite that lack, there's some great material here – tracks that really showcase Barbara's maturing vocal approach, with a range that's much stronger than her late 60s hits – as she takes on a few soul tunes by others, redoes some of her classics, and throws in a few new tracks too! Titles include "Don't You Ever Take Your Love Away", "You Got Me Runnin", "People Make The World Go Round", "Feel Like Making Love", "Give Me Your Love", "Easy", "I'm So Proud", and "The Ghetto" – plus two different versions of the tunes "From His Woman To You", "Shackin Up", and "Yes I'm Ready".  ~ Dusty Groove

With Love Vol 2 – Compiled By Miche

Miche's at it again – and he's somehow managed to top the great sound of the first volume in the series – digging deeper into the past, coming up with more soulful numbers overall, then throwing in just the right touch of Brazilian grooves to even things out! As before, there's no unifying label or scene to these tracks – they're just brought together in celebration of a really joyous, positive, uplifting vibe – one possessed by each track alone, but which really steps out strongly as they all resonate together! Titles include "Save The Best For Last" by Alice Cohen & Fun City, "You & Me" by Mark Meadows, "Take To The Sky" by Mixed Generation Enterprize, "I Like What She's Doing" by Billy Boomer, "Straight Forward" by PJ City, "Realize" by Maxwell, "High On You" by Freedom, "Blow My Mind" by The Lost Family, "As" by The Family Tree, "A Luz Que Brilha Meu Viver" by Banda 22, "Misterio Brilhante" by Ze Da Lata, "Then I Reach Satisfaction" by Eleventh Commandment, and "Dame Solamente Amor" by Rogers Mitchell. ~ Dusty Groove

Nitai Hershkovits | "Call on the Old Wise"

Call on the Old Wise is Nitai Hershkovits’ first record for ECM, presenting his powerful pianistic ingenuity in a largely improvised solo setting. Nitai’s improvisations unfold like compositions being created in real-time: “It’s like I’m playing with several periods of music at once, but in a sort of augmented-reality-environment,” states Nitai. “To me the album is like a journey taking you through multiple varying experiences in the blink of an eye. Like jumping through frames holding different pictures or looking through windows to different worlds.” Call on the Old Wise follows Isabela and Here Be Dragons, where Nitai has been heard as a member of Oded Tzur’s quartet.

The album is partially dedicated to Nitai’s former piano teacher Suzan Cohen, with whom he studied in Jerusalem and who according to Nitai is the mentor to whom the term ‘wise’ in the record’s title alludes. The pieces “The Old Wise," “Of Mentorship” and “For Suzan” refer directly to her. But Nitai draws from wide-reaching influences, ranging from his work in jazz contexts and cutting-edge contemporary explorations to his background in classical music. This immaculate balance of idioms gives rise to an abundance of colors and timbres, explored by a pianist, who has successfully forged his very own voice as improviser and shape-designer.

In his approach to improvisation, he notes, shapes and textures set the direction for the development of material: “I don’t want to be confined to any specific key or time signature, but rather leave the freedom to continually re-evaluate things in real-time and see them from a new perspective over and over again. That’s also why I tried to go into the session with as few preconceived ideas as possible.” In light of this spontaneous sense of creation, it is striking how completely formed many of the miniaturesque designs on the album unfurl. Nitai mentions inspirations as seemingly disparate as Chick Corea and Russian composers Rachmaninoff and Scriabin guiding him in the process.

Recorded at the Auditorio Stelio Molo in Lugano in 2022, the specific acoustic properties of the studio too play into the fabric of Nitai’s musical developments, as did his exchanges with producer Manfred Eicher. Nitai: “In the studio very few words are spoken. With Manfred, it’s like there’s another musician in the room, reflecting, reacting and reshaping the music in the moment.” Call on the Old Wise is a testimony to Nitai Hershkovits’s unique inventiveness as well as an essential addition to ECM’s celebrated line of solo piano recordings.

Born to a Moroccan mother and a Polish father, Nitai originally started out his musical path on clarinet before switching to the piano at age 15. Jazz and improvised music were the focal point of his musical investigations throughout his teens, with a particularly strong interest for the idiosyncrasies of Sonny Rollins. In this period, Nitai won several jazz competitions in the Tel Aviv area, before his deepened interest in classical music took shape, leading to studies in both jazz – with Omer Avital and bassist Avishai Cohen i.a. – and classical piano, with Menahem Weisenberg and Amir Pedorovits. After a five-year-spell in Avishai Cohen’s trio (2011-2016), Nitai moved to New York, where he played in numerous groups, among them Oded Tzur’s quartet, of which he continues to be part today. He has recently moved back to Israel, where he is involved with a variety of musical projects, including collaborations with electronic musician Yuvi Havkin aka Rejoicer and drummer Amir Bresler, who can be heard on their joint venture Apifera.

New music releases: Zbonics, The Southern Gentlemen, Funkcool Orchestra, and John Scofield

Zbonics - Keep On Walkin'

Zbonics makes their return with their full-album release from Color Red and Session Resurrection, Keep On Walkin'. The group led by Zak Najor (Greyboy Allstars), features an all-star cast including Karl Denson (Rolling Stones), Robert Walter (Roger Waters), Rebecca Jade (Aubrey Logan), and Greyboy. Zbonics started out as a studio project in Zak Najor’s (Greyboy Allstars) garage. Then in 2001, Producer Justin Prizant and Drummer Zak Najor recruited key musicians to take these early song idea gems and develop them into a timeless jazz/funk album. Saxophonist Karl Denson (Rolling Stones), Keyboardists Adam Scone (Lou Donaldson) and Robert Walter (20th Congress, Greyboy Allstars) , guitarist Melvin Sparks (Isley Bros, Little Richard, Marvin Gaye) and Zak himself on the drums, and many others, built a mighty foundation for this collection of songs. After the Instrumentation of the records was complete, a not-yet-world-known vocalist lent his voice and lyrical talent generously to the project. This vocalist ended up being multi-Grammy winner Gregory Porter. The Time To Do Your Thing album was received with a great response in the U.S. and in Europe. Jazz singer-songwriter and radio personality called Zbonics Time To Do Your Thing one of the best jazz albums of the year making Keep On Walkin' a promising sophomore release.

The Southern Gentlemen - Back In The Game

Known collectively as The Southern Gentlemen, guitarist Eric Essix, trumpeter Joey Sommerville and violinist Michael Ward have reunited after an 8-year hiatus to release their debut single, the straight-up smooth “Back In The Game.” The group are planning for a  2024 tour, bringing their dynamic on-stage chemistry and compelling arrangement of musical instruments to venues across the land! Individually, the members have toured the world, performed, and recorded with some of the biggest names in the music industry, and have nearly 40 albums between them. The new single promises to propel up the Smooth Jazz radio charts and onto popular playlists worldwide as the ensemble returns with their signature raw energy and excitement and an even stronger sense of purpose and camaraderie! ~ www.smoothjazz.com

Funkcool Orchestra - Latin Freaks

These guys are definitely Latin Freaks – of the sort who like to mix heavy percussion with some clubbier instrumentation – all at a level that would make 70s salsa disco giants like Joe Bataan or Eddie Drennon mighty proud! This Italian group have a great way with the music, and have really crafted something wonderful and amazing – a full, rich sound that draws from the sharpness of salsa instrumentation, yet which has more focused grooves for the dancefloor – tight horns on top, nice percussion on the bottom, and sweet keyboards and basslines right down the middle! There's vocals on the set from a few female singers – and the great Joe Bataan joins the group on the title "Can't Help Foolin" – next to other cuts that include "Juanita Shing A Ling", "Divine Dance", "Boogie With Your Baby", "Little Black Woman", "Latin Freak", and "Tiene O Tempo". ~ Dusty Groove

John Scofield - Uncle John's Band

A surprisingly strong project from guitarist John Scofield – one that we'll admit we were a bit skeptical about, but which really delivers strongly overall! The set features Scofield and group taking on some tunes from a variety of sources – including the Grateful Dead, who are namechecked in the title – and the lineup features the bass of Vicente Archer and drums of Bill Stewart next to Scofield on electric guitar – all recorded at a level that's a bit warmer than you might expect from ECM, which really makes the music come alive – spacious, yet up-close and personal too, with hollow-body guitar work that resonates almost in an acoustic way at times, even as Scofield shows a few of his funkier currents on a few tunes. Titles include "How Deep", "TV Band", "Old Man", "Nothing Is Forever", "Budo", "The Girlfriend Chord", "Stairway To The Stars", "Mask", "Ray's Idea", and "Uncle John's Band". ~ Dusty Groove

NOVALIMA - La Danza EP Pt 2

The pioneering Afro-Peruvian sound system and Latin GRAMMY nominees NOVALIMA is thrilled to announce the release of their scorching new single, "Soy Palenque", featuring the sensational vocals of Karolinativa, a Peruvian MC that vindicates Afro-Peruvian identity through her lyrics, and an electrifying brass ensemble by Mexican dub jazz duo Man After Man. 

This track is the first glimpse into NOAVALIMA's sizzling "La Danza EP Pt 2", set to drop on October 27th on Six Degrees Records

On the new EPs La Danza Part 1 & 2, Novalima has collaborated with a new generation of artists who’ve reinterpreted their African Heritage. And sonically they experimented with both emerging sounds coming out of Peru and the world. All while paying homage to their African heritage as well as traditional African grooves and instruments.

This has been showcased on their current 20th anniversary U.S. tour, as they have prepared a playlist that includes songs from all of their previous albums as well as singles from their upcoming new album. They have also done some changes to the live lineup since the pandemic, adding Ivon Muñoz, a young Afro-Peruvian musician and dancer who plays cajon, percussion and adds Afro-Peruvian tap dancing to the show.

Novalima is thrilled to be back on the road to celebrate with their fans stating, “We’ve been aiming to export Peruvian culture through our music over the past 20 years, and so far we’ve been blessed by playing all over the world and meeting new great artists, who’ve somehow inspired our growth in music and our own artistic evolution. We are proud to be able to still be on the road with our family: our amazing live band, and this year we plan to take over new audiences to spread even more our music to younger crowds through our live concerts, which will be an exhilarating dance experience.”

During their career, Novalima has garnered worldwide critical acclaim from mainstream (NPR, UK Guardian, Wall Street Journal, La Presse, Metro, Billboard) and underground media (Giant Step, Remezcla, Sounds & Colors, Nat Geo) alike, delivered legendary performances around the world at festivals such as Roskilde, WOMAD, Pirineos Sur, NYC Central Park, Montreal Jazz Festival and Chicago’s Millennium Park, earned a Latin Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Album, and were featured in cult filmmaker Robert Rodriguez’s hit Mexploitation movie Machete.

• Tour Dates:
• October 05 @ Joshua Tree Festival - Joshua Tree, CA
• October 07 @ The Cedar - Minneapolis, MN
• October 09 @ Indigenous Peoples Day Festival – Chicago, IL
• November 21 @ Gran Teatro Nacional - Lima. PE

Ibrahim Maalouf Announces North American Headline Tour

French-Lebanese trumpeter/composer and global music star Ibrahim Maalouf has announced his biggest North American headlining tour to date for April-May 2024, including New York City’s Webster Hall.  Today he has also shared a live performance video of his song “Todo Colores,” which was filmed during GRAMMY weekend 2023 in Los Angeles as part of JAMMCARD's signature event, the JammJam.  The video features Maalouf and his band with special guests Cimafunk and Tank & the Bangas.  “Todo Colores” is from Maalouf’s new album Capacity To Love.

Capacity To Love - Maalouf’s 15th studio album - is unlike any he’s previously made, and has been celebrated by New Yorker, NPR All Things Considered, NPR Music, the New York Times, PRI’s The World, People Magazine, WNYC and more.  Featuring Sharon Stone, D Smoke, Pos from De La Soul, Erick the Architect, Gregory Porter, Cimafunk, Tank and the Bangas and many other international stars, it smashes together an array of sounds and all original songs, inspired by hip-hop, r&b, jazz, music from across the globe and Maalouf’s signature trumpet style rooted in his Lebanese roots.  Partly inspired by Maalouf’s love of cinema, Capacity To Love beams with positivity, a grand musical statement based on his belief that community and a sharing of ideas between cultures is the only way for humanity to prevail.  The album begins with Charlie Chaplin’s famous speech in The Dictatorand concludes with a trenchant spoken word that Sharon Stone wrote and recited for this album. 

Maalouf - a major star at home in France - will also headline the Accor Arena in Paris on November 29.  This is Maalouf’s third time headlining France’s biggest arena, with a capacity of 17,000.  See below for his full ‘23-24 performance itinerary.  

Other highlights include a Q&A event at the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles which included a chat and performance with special guest and collaborator Angelique Kidjo.  Maalouf also performed at his mentor Quincy Jones’ 90th birthday tribute concerts at the Hollywood Bowl in July, playing alongside Stevie Wonder, John Legend, Jennifer Hudson, Jacob Collier and Samara Joy.

Shortly after Capacity To Love was released last November, Maalouf earned his first-ever GRAMMY nomination, for his album with Angelique Kidjo, Queen of Sheba. Maalouf and Kidjo discussed the album with Rolling Stone, The Talkhouse, Okay Africa and the Tape Op podcast, and SPIN said “it may be the most interesting album of the year.” Glide called it “undoubtedly one of the most important world recordings of the year" while WNYC celebrated the project as “ambitious and expressive.” A soaring 7-part suite, the album was inspired by, and reinvents, the myth of Queen Sheba, an African Queen who heard about the reputation of King Salomon and traveled to Jerusalem to witness the king’s wisdom.

Hailed as a “virtuoso” by The New York Times, Maalouf has spent his career crossing borders and blurring genres, mixing jazz, pop, classical, electronic, Middle Eastern, and African influences into a cross-cultural swirl. Born in the midst of a deadly civil war, Maalouf escaped Beirut with his family and spent his formative years in France, where he fell in love with music’s power to transcend geography and language. He has performed in 40 countries, sold out arenas from Paris to Istanbul, has been scouted by Quincy Jones and raised millions for charity. In the fall of 2021 he performed on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, introduced by Jon Batiste as “a living legend of jazz” and performed in front of the Eiffel Tower on Bastille Day for an audience of six million.

NEW BIG BAND ALBUM: Composer/Arranger Drew Zaremba's "Reunion"

Drew Zaremba is saxophonist, organist, and rightfully lauded powerhouse of an arranger and composer. Drawing eclectic influence from icons of big band, heroes of classical music, and the luminaries of British Rock, Zaremba combines, concocts, and creates with a refreshing originality in the wildest of never-before-imagined manners. Described as a musician who “writes and plays from his heart” and who “knows and speaks the language of music” (Eddie Gomez), Zaremba presents Reunion, an unequivocally celebratory big band debut rich with creativity at every turn, united first and foremost around the deep joy that permeates from every note he pens. 

Reunion is Zaremba’s joyous brainchild of many years of devoted craftsmanship and many years of searching for a musical identity. Having worked as a writer and arranger for so many other high-profile artists throughout the world of jazz and creative music, Zaremba found himself, until recently, not knowing how to define his own concept of voice. When the pandemic of 2020 occurred, Zaremba was able to fully explore this question for the first time. The answer was not, however, a single genre blend or trademark concept, but something more that blanketed everything he created: joy. “My style of music is generally joyful,” Zaremba says. “[This] doesn’t necessarily mean happy or sad, but there’s a sense of hope and optimism within different settings of groove, melody, and (generally speaking) rich harmony.” 

The title of the album is aptly chosen as it is derived from a multiplicity of overlapping reunions. The first, and arguably most paramount, reunion that occurred is that of the band itself following the isolation and lack of ensemble work that occurred for so many with the onset of lockdown mandates. “[Reunion] is the first major recording session since the pandemic for a particular subset of musicians in the Front Range, and this represents our reunion together after nearly two years of not playing together,” Zaremba says. “It was an emotional experience for all of us, and a true joy to play together!” The mirth of reconnecting was felt most deeply in the sense of community found amidst the rhythm section. Comprising Zaremba’s colleagues - fellow professors at the University of Northern Colorado - this rhythm section has played together for over ten years, and, as Zaremba rightfully notes, “their synergy is palpable and connects all the elements of the band.” Lastly, this album was an opportunity for Zaremba to reunite with a few key players in his life: vocalist and trombonist Seth Weaver and the renowned composer/bandleader John Clayton. Weaver was a former roommate of Zaremba’s and for the two, this session was a joyous time of catching up and making music once more. Clayton has been a longstanding mentor of Zaremba’s and it is this relationship that led him to being the producer for the album. “This represents a beautiful collaboration between us. I’m incredibly grateful for him and his involvement on the project,” Zaremba says. 

One of the people Zaremba has written for over the years is the great Wayne Bergeron, and this continues on Reunion with “You Ain’t Got The Blues,” one of Zaremba’s originals. “I’ve known [Bergeron] on and off for the last decade as a fan, student, admirer, and now partner in crime!” Zaremba says. “I’ve done a couple charts for Wayne, and this one is one that I’m quite proud of. He absolutely crushes it, I’m very grateful he is on the project.” A great element of Reunion is that it showcases Zaremba’s unique ability to joyfully blend ideas from

whatever influence he may choose. In particular, Zaremba showcases his origins in classical music and how he’s carried those elements into his writing in the jazz and creative music genres. “I grew up a classical pianist, and thought one day I would be a professional concert pianist (definitely took a left turn since then!). However, the melodies and songs from my childhood greatly informed who I am today,” Zaremba says. Three of the arrangements on the album epitomize this: Chopin’s “Minute Waltz,” Haydn’s “Surprise” Symphony, and Scott Joplin’s “The Entertainer”. The “Minute Waltz” is in the burning style of Buddy Rich and is done as a tongue-in-cheek 4/4. Haydn’s “Surprise” Symphony originated from one of Zaremba’s thought experiments when he asked himself the tantalizing question of “What if Haydn had collaborated with Count Basie?” Meanwhile, “The Entertainer” was arranged, as Zaremba describes, to take “a Clayton-inspired spin to New Orleans.” Zaremba continues to display his ability to reimagine music with his arrangement of Pink Floyd’s “Money”. Featuring Marion Powers on vocals, “Money” blends Latin American grooves, driving rock influence, and metric complexity. “Nothing quite says British Invasion like 21/8 Bembé, right?” Zaremba teases. “No? Well, we decide to go there anyways.” 

One of the profound elements of Reunion is Zaremba’s ability to collaborate in bringing it to life. From the writing and rehearsing to the production and tracking, Zaremba has demonstrated with his band that working alongside others is as important as the individual brilliance that sparks the project’s inception. “There were a LOT of chats, discussion, and editing between myself and the rhythm section, particularly [drummer] Jim White, who is a fabulous producer as well,” Zaremba says. “He helped the music breathe in so many places where it needed to.” Zaremba also thanks the role and influence of John Clayton on the album. “John (Clayton) and I have been getting together for years, and some of these charts are tunes we’ve done in lessons/hangs over the past couple years,” Zaremba says. “His touch is all over this album.” One of the biggest contributions to the album was the lyrics to the track “Together.” The song, which was written by Zaremba for his wife, Jolie, and son, Charlie, features a vocal performance by long-time collaborator and friend, Rosana Eckert. In addition to contributing her stellar vocal performance, Eckert also composed the lyrics for the piece. “Rosana knew all of us,” Zaremba says, “so this was a very touching and beautiful collaboration that I love to share with friends and fans.” 

With Reunion, Zaremba successfully creates a mosaic of variegated brilliance that reflects and reimagines the kaleidoscopic array of influences that influenced him. Armed with his keen compositional vision and ever-flowing joy, Zaremba makes an indelible mark on the world of composition that will leave an inexorable impression on all who follow after. 

Reunion releases on Next Level, an imprint of Outside in Music on November 10th, 2023. The first single, Money, releases on October 6th, 2023.