Anat Cohen & Fred Hersch Present Their Debut Duo Recording LIVE IN HEALDSBURG

Anat Cohen and Fred Hersch, two of most prolific and celebrated artists in modern jazz today, proudly announce the release of their debut duo recording, Live In Healdsburg. The album, due out on Anzic Records on March 9, displays qualities these world-class artists, and expert collaborators, have in abundance: empathy, open hearts, big ears, quick instincts, and an ego-less approach to the music. Cohen and Hersch also have the rare gift of combining virtuosity and beauty, which permeates every note they play. 

As remarkable a clarinetist as she is, I have rarely played with a musician who listens so well. Often in the middle of a solo, she will stop playing and just check out what I am doing. She has amazing ears and such an ease with her instrument that she can really 'tell stories' in the moment. And Anat always imparts a sense of joy and passion to everything she plays. It is a true pleasure to make music with her! - Fred Hersch

Playing with Fred feels like swimming in an endless sea of possibilities. Fred is finely tuned to the moment and always ready to take the music in any direction - swinging, open, serious, humorous, groovy and always tasteful. Fred's incredible playing and his fascinating palate of colors and moods inspire me to jump in with my clarinet and go on an adventure together. It is a true pleasure to make music with him! - Anat Cohen

  

Live In Healdsburg comes on the heels of Anat's Tentet recording, Happy Song, and her two Brazilian albums, Outra Coisa: The Music of Moacir Santos (with 7-guitarist Marcello Gonçalves) and Rosa Dos Ventos (with Trio Brasileiro), both nominated for Grammy Awards this year. This trio of releases follows her previous album, Luminosa (2015). "The sound of Luminosa reflects my musical life in New York City," she explained. "I flow between modern and traditional jazz, between samba and choro - all maybe in a week's time. The title is Portuguese for luminous and to me, music is a luminous experience. Whenever I'm immersed in it, life lights up for me, no matter what else is going on." In a feature on Luminosa, NPR said: "Jazz musicians don't get much more global than Anat Cohen." Prior to that release came Claroscuro in 2012, another worldly collection that featured such guests as Paquito D'Rivera and Wycliffe Gordon - and garnered a four-and-a-half-star review in DownBeat Magazine. In 2009, Anat was the first Israeli to ever headline the hallowed Village Vanguard, a stand that yielded a quartet tribute to the Benny Goodman songbook in Clarinetwork: Live at the Village Vanguard (2010). Notes from the Village (2008) was a showcase for her multi-reed talents in quartet and quintet settings, and she released two albums in 2007, the orchestral Noir and string quartet-laced Poetica. Anat made her leader debut with the small-combo Place & Time (2005). Anat has also recorded four acclaimed albums as part of the3 Cohens Sextet with her brothers, saxophonist Yuval and trumpeter Avishai: One (2003), Braid (2007), Family (2011) and Tightrope (2013), with their work together landing them on the cover of DownBeat.

All About Jazz aptly called Anat "one of a kind," and she has won over the most knowing of jazz sages: Dan Morgenstern praised her "gutsy, swinging" style, Ira Gitler her "liquid dexterity and authentic feeling," and Gary Giddins her musicality "that bristles with invention." The late Nat Hentoff said: "Anat does what all authentic musicians do: She tells stories from her own experiences that are so deeply felt that they are very likely to connect listeners to their own dreams, desires and longings."

  

For Fred Hersch, Live In Healdsburg is the follow up recording to his latest CD, the double Grammy nominated, Open Book (his 7th and 8th nominations). This album with Ms. Cohen is also the latest recording in a stunningly impressive discography that dates back to the 1980s and encompasses more than twenty albums as a leader. Hersch has also appeared on more than twenty recordings as co-leader, over two dozen albums as a featured soloist (including the album Tightrope from The 3 Cohens, on Anzic), and more than sixty recordings as a sideman, for the likes of Art Farmer, Lee Konitz, Toots Thielemans, Eddie Daniels, Billy Harper and many others. Hersch, a Guggenheim fellow, recently released his memoir, Good Things Happen Slowly, which was featured in the Sunday New York Times and was named one of 2017's Five Best Memoirs by The Washington Post.

ANAT COHEN/FRED HERSCH - Live In Healdsburg

1. A Lark (Fred Hersch) 8:23

2. Child's Song (Fred Hersch) 7:21

3. The Purple Piece (Anat Cohen) 8:27

4. Isfahan (Billy Strayhorn) 8:05

5. Lee's Dream (Fred Hersch) 5:19

6. Peacocks (Jimmy Rowles) 10:25

7. Jitterbug Waltz (Fats Waller) 8:19

8. Mood Indigo - Encore (Duke Ellington) 5:13

Recorded live at the Healdsburg Jazz Festival, Raven Performing Arts Theater, Healdsburg, CA, June 11, 2016

Anat Cohen On Tour - 2018

March 2 - NYC @ The 92nd Street Y

March 10 - Cambridge, MA @ Sanders Theatre

Double Bill with Ben Wendel Seasons Group

March 14-17 - Davis, CA @ Mondavi Center for The Performing Arts

Fred Hersch & Anat Cohen Duo

March 18 - Boise, Idaho @ Boise State University

Fred Hersch & Anat Cohen Duo

March 20 & 21 - Seattle, WA @ Dimitriou's Jazz Alley

Fred Hersch & Anat Cohen Duo

April 5 - Lawrence, KS @ Lied Center of Kansas

Special Guest w/ KU Jazz Ensemble I

April 7 - Kansas City, MO @ American Jazz Museum

Anat Cohen Tentet

April 8 - Columbia, MO @ "We Always Swing"® Jazz Series

Anat Cohen Tentet

April 9 & 10 - Lebanon, IL @ Hettenhausen Center for the Arts,

McKendree University

Anat Cohen Tentet

April 11 - Dayton, OH @ Sears Recital Hall, University of Dayton

Anat Cohen Tentet

April 21 - Davie, FL @ Bailey Hall, Broward College

Anat Cohen Quartet

May 5 - Washington, DC @ John F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts

Celebrate Mary Lou Williams featuring the Anat Cohen Tentet

May 31 - Sante Fe, NM @ Lensic Performing Arts Center

Fred Hersch & Anat Cohen Duo

Guitarist Perry Smith Makes Quintet Recording Debut with New Angel

At the core of everything that guitarist/composer Perry Smith does is the desire to create personal and musical connections with the artistic community. That's true of the community he's built around his inclusive weekly series in Brooklyn, "The Nest Session;" it's behind his decision to use social media as a means of reaching out, not cutting off. And it lies at the very heart of his third album as a leader, New Angel -- both in the close relationships he shares with his bandmates and in his desire to make the sometimes heady concepts of modern jazz something accessible and deeply personal.

New Angel (due out March 2 via Smith's own Smith Tone Records imprint) marks the debut of the gifted guitarist's stellar new quintet, which features saxophonist Jon Irabagon, pianist Glenn Zaleski, bassist Matt Aronoff and drummer Allan Mednard. While they've all played together in a variety of contexts, Smith's decision to bring together this particular group stems directly from their shared experiences at Nest Sessions jams, which he and Aronoff have co-led for more than three years.

"It's been a really wonderful experience," Smith says. "I've been able to play with so many incredible musicians each and every week, so I've formed a lot of strong musical relationships. Beyond my own quintet, though, it's really about bringing the community together and trying to create a diverse and inclusive space for every jazz artist in the city to feel welcome."

The creative and the activist stem from the same instincts in Smith's work. Though he insists that he didn't set out to make a "social justice" record per se, his response to our current divisive political moment comes through in meditative solo "vignettes" interspersed throughout the album. Titles like "Lullaby for Freedom" and "Hope for Peace" tell the (ultimately optimistic) story.

"I wanted a few of the tracks to represent the message that I wanted to get across," Smith explains. "One of the challenges you face as an artist is to figure out how you can make a difference with your art -- especially in jazz, which can be so theoretical and complex. How you can go beyond that to create work that has a deeper, greater meaning is something that I've been passionate about for a long time."

Translating similar instincts from the social to the musical lies behind Smith's decision to assemble his quintet. Following his two earlier quartet recordings, Stars and Cars (2009) and Street Sense (2013), he became drawn to composing for more voices, so the versatility offered by the combination of a guitar, piano and saxophone frontline became especially compelling. He found the specific possibilities offered by weaving his own voice with those of Irabagon and Zaleski, paired with the rhythmic imaginations of Aronoff and Mednard, especially thrilling. The album was co-produced by Sam Minaie, who played bass on both of Smith's previous releases and provided the unique insight of a sharp listener with a deep knowledge of Smith and his music.

In addition, the entire session was filmed and will be released as a series of videos through Smith's social media outlets. Seeing the shift in the way that listeners take in music, the guitarist wanted to be sure his music reached the widest possible audience in the most easily accessible form. While the full album will be available in more traditional forms, he hopes these videos will make a more immediate connection.

                                                                        

The band's thrilling chemistry is vividly apparent from the opening moments of "Rise and Fall," whose title makes the tune's shifting moods and tempos sound deceptively simple. The gentle, memorable melody is prime evidence of Smith's gift for crafting compositions that embrace the listener while providing plenty of spark for improvisation.

"Deep Water" is a much knottier outing; its title, in fact, reflects the challenge that confronts the quintet in its harmonic complexity and sharp, treacherous angles. "Playing this song can feel like, 'We're in deep water right now,'" Smith admits. "That's always been a tradition in jazz: the idea that you're pushing yourself to try to explore something new while still trying to create something musical."

If the title track seems to hang in the air like an unanswered question, that may be due to the fact that it's the earliest piece on the album, one that Smith started working on as he turned 30, met the woman who would become his wife, and found himself facing many of the larger "what ifs" in life. "New Angel" may be a reference to his now-wife, but more broadly it's a reference to a spirit of freshness and change.

The spikiness of "Monk's World" immediately evokes the keen-edged genius and eyebrow-arched joy of the great Thelonious Monk. Smith wrote the piece on the chord changes of Monk's classic "Epistrophy" as a way of paying homage to the legendary pianist's outsized influence. "In my experience on the jazz scene in New York," Smith says, "musicians are always more excited about playing Monk's tunes than anybody else's -- more than even Coltrane or Wayne Shorter or Herbie. I think it has to do with the playful nature of his songs and the cool, creative melodies that he wrote, which open a lot of freedom in the landscape."

Presaged by Smith's introspective, soulful "Notes for Nostalgia," "The Old Road" is a wistful rumination on the composer's early days growing up in the California Bay Area. A similarly reflective spirit pervades "Lucid Night," where the incisive melody suggests a certain brooding clarity.

"Graceful Spirit" returns the album to the theme of connection and community. It was specifically inspired by the eloquence and example of former President Barack Obama, but more generally muses on the idea of grace and empathy as powerful and necessary qualities in a leader -- whether of the free world or of a scintillating and passionate jazz quintet.

Guitarist Perry Smith combines the tradition of jazz with broad influences from R&B, rock and folk to create his indelible signature style. Originally from California, Smith is now based in Brooklyn where he leads his own groups and is a sideman for several jazz and contemporary artists. He is also a founding member of the critically acclaimed New West Guitar Group, which has been performing internationally for 10 years and has been recognized as one of the premier guitar ensembles in the country. Smith received his Bachelor of Music degree from the Flora L. Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California and completed his Masters in Music at New York University, studying with the great John Scofield. His extensive performance resume includes notable venues and festivals such as the Blue Note Jazz Club, The Village Vanguard, Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola at Lincoln Center, the Montreal Jazz Festival, Java Jazz Festival in Indonesia, and the Philippine International Jazz Festival. Smith hosts a weekly series in Brooklyn called "The Nest Session", performing with a different group of NYC's finest jazz musicians every Wednesday, generously supported by a grant from KeyedUp.org in conjunction with the Jazz Foundation of America.

Jazz-R&B keyboardist Brian Culbertson releases "Colors Of Love"

Contemporary jazz-R&B funkster Brian Culbertson has had love on his mind essentially since last Valentine’s Day. Inspired by the occasion of his twentieth wedding anniversary last fall, the keyboardist began writing thirteen new songs about a year ago dedicated to his wife, Michelle, which make up his “Colors of Love” album that was released on Wednesday, Valentine’s Day, by BCM Entertainment. Substituting the live band instrumentation customary of his recordings, Culbertson crafted an intimate set of ardent acoustic piano melodies using sensual synth grooves and textures. With the title track of his eighteenth album that he wrote, arranged and produced already in the Billboard Top 5, his attention is fixed on creating the highly-theatrical production he’ll take on the road for nearly three months beginning March 30 across the bridge from Philadelphia in Collingswood, New Jersey and concluding in Seattle on June 17.    

Culbertson showcases his proficiency as a multi-instrumentalist by playing virtually all the instruments heard on “Colors of Love” – piano, keyboards, Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, Hammond B3 organ, synth bass, drum programming, percussion and trumpet. The only supplementation came from guitarist Isaiah Sharkey along with an ethereal accordion passage from Peter White on the song “In A Dream.” Impassioned tracks like “I Want You,” “Love Transcended,” “Don’t Go,” “You’re Magic,” “Let’s Chill,” “Desire,” “In Your Embrace” and “The Look” employ caressing melodies and sultry rhythms to allure, soothe and seduce. Even more revealing and evocative is the ravishing piano poetry of “Through The Years,” “Michelle’s Theme” and “All My Heart,” poignant solo pieces that Culbertson uses effectively to tell wordless stories of romance and amorous contemplation.   

As he lovingly conceived the cozy collection depicting the many different “colors” of romantic love, Culbertson envisioned mounting an elaborate concert presentation utilizing video and lighting to present the cherished material in an immersive multimedia experience.

“I’m in the midst of creating a stunning-looking show, working closely with my lighting director and visual designer. We’re using a Visualizer to play each track to design and run the lighting and videos as if it was a live show right there on our computer screens. It enables us to dial in every little nuance of the music so that each video and light is precisely timed to the music. The detail is really amazing. I am loving the process of creating the production for the tour,” said Culbertson, who will begin ten days of production rehearsals in Nashville with his band in mid-March.

Culbertson’s Colors of Love Tour has already announced 66 shows in 50 cities with more soon to be added to the itinerary. The nationwide trek includes a June 7 performance at Culbertson’s seventh annual Napa Valley Jazz Getaway, a five-day music, wine and lifestyle experience held in the heart of California Wine Country.

“The ‘Colors of Love’ show will be staged in three acts. The first and third acts will showcase the new album along with romance-themed selections from my catalogue. In fact, we’re going to be drawing heavily from my ‘It’s On Tonight’ album,” explained Culbertson. “We’re not planning to do any big horn section pieces during this tour like I’ve done in the past and did extensively during last year’s Funk! Tour, but the second act will be a slamming funk set guaranteed to get everyone up and dancing.”

Joining the keyboardist-pianist-trombone player on tour are drummer Chris Miskel, bassist Joewaun Scott, guitarist Tyrone Chase, keyboardist-vocalist Eddie Miller, and Marqueal Jordan on saxophones, vocals and percussion.

“I asked Marqueal to bring his soprano sax for this tour. The sound fits the intimate ambience of the music we’re going to perform. It’s the first time in over a decade that I’ve used soprano sax in my live show,” said Culbertson, who describes the “Colors of Love” album as “textural ear candy cinematic in nature.” 

As Culbertson shares his anniversary and Valentine’s Day gift to his wife with the world on record and during the upcoming tour, expect the architect of 30 Billboard No. 1 singles as an artist, producer and/or songwriter to add to that stat.

For more information, including concert dates, please visit www.BrianCulbertson.com.

New York Jazz Workshop® 10th Anniversary Celebrations

Celebrating its 10th anniversary with 16 music programs and jazz camps for young adults and older musicians in New York City this summer

The New York Jazz Workshop® is celebrating its 10th anniversary with 16 music programs and jazz camps for young adults and older musicians in New York City this summer.

 

The program will launch with Marc Mommaas, the co-founder of the school who will be conducting the Summer Intensive in Jazz Improvisation on July 19-22. Musicians will sharpen their toolboxes broadening their musical vocabulary along with drummer Tony Moreno and vibraphonist Mark Sherman. This intensive will cover topics including ear training, rhythm, composition and more.

  

If percussion is a passion, there is a one-day West African/Djembe Intensive with Michael Markus on July 23 and a one-day Bata Intensive with David Ambrosioon July 25. These programs are open to beginner, intermediate and advanced musicians.

For Brazilian music lovers and practitioners, July 23-26 brings the Brazilian Music Intensive with pianist Vitor Goncalves and percussionist Vanderlei Pereira. During this intensive, students will learn about rhythms such as the choro, bossa nova, baiao, samba, maracatu and the xote.

Pianists, mark your calendars for July 30 to Aug. 1 for the Piano and Keyboard Intensive led by the world-class combo of pianists Amina Figarova, Frank Kimbrough and Jacob Sacks. They will cover topics such as reading, ear training, technique, solo piano, duo and sound.

Singers, the beginning of August boasts some incredible programs for vocalists of all levels. Olivia Foschi leads the Beginner's Vocal Intensive from Aug. 2-5. Topics include anatomy overview, breathing exercises, singing the major scale and melodies.

Aug. 6-8 features an Intermediate Vocal Intensive with Jocelyn Medina and guest Richard Boukas. Participants will learn about techniques for basic repertoire and are given vocal exercises based on their needs - styles will range from Jazz to Bossa Nova.

https://newyorkjazzworkshop.com/workshops/august-6-8-vocal-intensive-intermediate-level/

Aug. 9-12 brings forth the Vocal Intensive for Intermediate/Advanced students with vocalist Fay Victor. Students will learn about swing/time feel, breath and functional harmony as well as scatting and free improvisation.

World-renowned drummersDarrell Green, Tim Horner and Tony Morenohead up theAug. 13-15 Drums and Percussion Intensive. These musicians each have their own day to teach their unique concepts and approaches to rhythm, ear training and metric modulations.

Guitarists Kenny Wessel and Vic Juris cover topics such as chord voicing, improvisation and modal chord positions during their Aug. 16-19 four-day Jazz Guitar Intensive.

Trombonist Alan Ferber leads the Composition Intensive on Aug. 20.  Students will listen and analyze classic examples from the jazz repertoire and use the insight gleaned from that to enrich their own compositions.

Ferber will be also teaching the Counterpoint and Arranging Intensives on Aug. 21 and 22. Counterpoint, a basic compositional aspect, is essential for deeper understanding of arranging and composition. The Aug. 22 arranging intensive will focus on big and small band writing, reharmonization, orchestration and writing.

Saxophonist Darius Jones and drummer Vito Lesczak lead the Jazz Improvisation Intensive from Aug. 23-26. The intensive covers many compositional styles plus ideas on melody, harmony and rhythm.

The Guitar Intensive on Aug. 27-29 is taught by Sebastian Noelle and Nate Radley, covering topics such as chord voicing, improvisation and modal chord positions.

To close, the Jazz Composition for Beginners Intensive will be led by Marc Mommaas and special guest trombonist Doug Beavers on Aug. 30-31. The intensive will also answer questions on how to avoid compositional ruts and cover form, melodic considerations and melodic rhythm.

About the New York Jazz Workshop

Located in the heart of Times Square, the New York Jazz Workshop is one of New York's premier educational institutions, providing courses in improvisation, harmony, rhythm, individual instruments and composition. In addition to educational programs, the New York Jazz Workshop offers team-building exercises for corporations looking for a new perspective on creativity and teamwork, resulting in renewed creativity in the workplace. Clients have included companies such as GE, SWISS RE and Thomson Reuters. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJokFhMfH3M

Jazz pianist Ricardo Bacelar crafts a masterful celebration of Latin American music from a Brazilian perspective on “Sebastiana”

Last July, pianist-composer-arranger Ricardo Bacelar jetted from his home in Brazil to Miami, the place he calls “the center of Latin music in the world,” where he gathered an ensemble of Latin American musicians to honor the roots of Brazilian music while incorporating each musician’s unique culture on a jazz-centered album. An ambitious vision that he conceived with an international view with the project’s producer, Cesar Lemos (Ricky Martin, Paulina Rubio), the 15-track “Sebastiana” drops March 30 from Bacelar Productions. Preceding the sprawling set list of hallmark Brazilian reinterpretations and originals written or co-written by Bacelar is the ethereal “Nothing Will Be As It Was,” featuring two Americans - vocalist Maye Osorio and pedal steel guitarist Steve Hinson - on the multi-format crossover radio single portrayed in a striking animated video (http://bit.ly/2EUf7VL).       

              

Bacelar and Lemos had never worked together prior to “Sebastiana.” They authored a pair of tunes for the disc, “Suco Verde” and “Sernambetiba, 1992,” the latter being a swoon-inducer graced by Lemos’ celestial vocalizations on the track named for the street where the two friends first met and shared an apartment 25 years ago. The Brazilian duo’s comprehensive approach for the contemporary jazz and trippy fusion session included inviting musicians from Cuba, Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru and the U.S. to play on the date. The collective employed uniquely Latin American rhythms and instruments on the lushly-layered tracks such as vallenato (a Colombian rhythm performed using a diatonic accordion and vallenato box), sangueo (a Venezuelan rhythm constructed of cumaco and mina drums), bomba (a Puerto Rican genre originating in the West Indies and derived from the west coast of Africa using drums made from barrels), timba (an energizing Cuban rhythm), the Andean charango (a stringed instrument part of the lute family), and the bandoneon, a concertina with roots in Argentina.

“When I recorded the album, I wanted to pay homage to Brazilian music presenting the distinct performances of Latin American musicians, who put elements of their own cultures into the fusion of influences, giving a lot of personality to the work. I wanted to make a Brazilian music record for the international market, inserting other elements to add another point of view and extol the importance of this special repertoire,” said Bacelar. “Jazz is the language of improvisation and communication. The fusion of elements of cultures and influences in a recording turns the music into a transmission vehicle of knowledge.”

Along with the two new Bacelar-Lemos tunes and three stirring solo piano pieces from Bacelar – “River of Emotions,” “Parts of Me” and “The Best Years” – “Sebastiana” revisits songs from Brazilian composers Gilberto Gil, Ivan Lins, Flora Purim, Luiz Gonzaga, Lo Borges, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Milton Nascimento, Ronald Bastos, Tom Jobim, Vinicius de Moraes, Victor Martins and Jose Roberto Bertrami, and were given sparkling arrangements by Bacelar. The record includes vocal drops of the late Jackson do Pandeiro, an influential Brazilian percussionist and singer, adding character and cultural impact to the offering.      

In the 1980s and 90s, Bacelar was a member of the popular Brazilian rock band Hanoi Hanoi before dramatically changing musical directions to release his intimate solo debut, “In Natura,” in 2001. Preoccupied with his work as a lawyer focused on the staunch defense of copyrights and intellectual properties, he didn’t release another album until 2016’s “Concerto Para Moviola,” a concert DVD and CD recorded live with an eight-piece band. For more information, please visit http://ricardobacelar.com.br.

       

“Sebastiana” contains the following songs:

“A Volta da Asa Branca”

“Suco Verde”

“Nothing Will Be As It Was”

“River of Emotions”

“Menina Baiana”

“Somewhere in the Hills”

“Partido Alto”

“Parts of Me”

“Sambadouro”

“Oh Mana Deixa Eu Ir (Caico Cantiga)”

“Sebastiana”

“Depois dos Temporais”

“Vento de Maio”

“Sernambetiba, 1992”

“The Best Years”

NEW RELEASES: SHELDON FERGUSON – SOUL SEARCHING; JAZZTRONIK – BB1; DAVID GARFIELD - JAMMING

SHELDON FERGUSON – SOUL SEARCHING

In the six years since he released his debut album while still in high school, Atlanta-based composer and electric guitarist Sheldon Ferguson has done a lot of musical Soul Searching – the perfect name for a set list infused with crackling string intensity, bright pop-jazz melodies, nonstop grooving and cool, sensual R&B. Inspired by gospel, blues and guitar greats George Benson, Ernie Isley and Norman Brown, Ferguson’s journey of self-discovery is a revelation that will get you Souls Searching with the volume turned up! ~ smoothjazz.com

JAZZTRONIK – BB1

The first music we've heard in quite awhile from Jazztronik – and a set that has them sounding even more funk-oriented than before! We've always loved the creations of leader Ryota Nozaki – even his mellower moments – but this time around, he really steps into new territory by working with a larger group that's heavy on horns, and which has some especially strong bass and drums – all to create a vibe that's more 70s funk than you might expect! But there's also some richer, more sophisticated currents too – that strong sense of arrangement that Nozaki has really developed over the years, worked out here in live horn charts that can be extremely beautiful. Some tracks feature soul-styled vocals by singers Eliana and Aisha, and some are instrumental – and tracks include "Dolphin Smile", "Spotlight", "Caprice", "Sanctuary", "Deja Vu", and "Meguru (2017 version)". ~ Dusty Groove

DAVID GARFIELD - JAMMING

The follow up to David Garfield's #1 smash version of “Go Home,” this instrumental version of the Bob Marley classic, “Jamming,” was cut at the legendary Village Studios where many iconic artists’ classic recordings have been made such Fleetwood Mac (Tusk), Steely Dan (Aja), and many others. This track features two long-term members of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, Mike Campbell on guitar and Steve Ferrone on drums and founding member of The Rippingtons, Brandon Fields on sax. The track was arranged and produced by David Garfield at the helm with piano and electric keyboards. Jamming is the second in a series of single tracks that Garfield is releasing from his upcoming all-star studio project “Jammin’ - Outside The Box," an expansive work that will feature numerous genre superstar collaborators: George Benson, David Sanborn, Smokey Robinson, Oleta Adams, Rick Braun, Marcus Miller, Michael McDonald and Chuck Loeb in his final performances. ~ smoothjazz.com

Bobby Previte Explores Transit in the Second Part of his Terminals Trilogy - All-Star Band Featured on Rhapsody

Highly respected drummer and prolific composer Bobby Previte continues his Terminals trilogy with Rhapsody, an acoustic song cycle on the subject of transit and migration. Subtitled Terminals Part II: In Transit, Previte's newest work is scored for acoustic sextet and features fellow composer-improvisers guitarist Nels Cline, harpist Zeena Parkins, pianist John Medeski, alto saxophonist Fabian Rucker, and vocalist/er hu player Jen Shyu. This latest major work, released on RareNoiseRecords in February 2018, comes on the heels of Previte's powerful November 2016 RareNoise release, Mass, a nine-part work scored for choir, pipe organ and heavy metal trio.   

In 2015, Previte was awarded the Greenfield Prize for Music at the Hermitage Artist Retreat to create a new work. Rhapsody is the result. Rhapsody had its world premiere on April 21, 2017 at New College in Sarasota, Florida. "The Greenfield Foundation not only commissioned the work, but gave me a residency at the Hermitage to write it, 20 paces from the Gulf of Mexico," says the composer. "It was a rapturous place to write, and to be.

Beginning from the point of view of a passenger sitting comfortably in an airplane, Rhapsody twists, turns, and migrates until the passenger arrives in the dead of night at an unfamiliar shore. As Previte proposed in his artist's statement for Rhapsody: "What is the experience of being in transit? Separated from your home but not yet at your destination, you are neither here nor there, confined with strangers in an intimate environment for a predetermined amount of time, uncomfortable, yet somehow free. To travel is to be bound with these strangers by faith-faith in the vessel which carries you, faith in the people who operate it, and ultimately, faith in the strangers waiting at your destination."

"I began thinking about the fact that I come from a family of immigrants. My mother was born in Sicily because my grandmother, pregnant with my mother, was denied entry into the United States and sent back; and how there are people today, trying to escape far worse situations, being denied asylum."

Rhapsody is perhaps Previte's most ambitious work to date in that it marks his debut as a lyricist. "The lyrics are really at the center of this piece. Having composed only instrumental music my entire life, writing words was quite terrifying. There is no hiding behind abstract sounds, no equivocating. The words are there and have an obvious meaning to everyone. They are tangible, and very real. You cannot walk back from them. You have to own them, fully."

Rhapsody is the second in a three-part series exploring the experience of travel. Terminals Part I: Departures, was a set of five concertos written for the visionary percussion group SO Percussion and five master improviser soloists. Terminals Part I: Departures premiered at Merkin Hall in New York City in 2011, and the recording was released on Cantaloupe Music in 2014.

  

Rhapsody is a compelling, thought-provoking work that places vocalist Shyu in the role of narrator and showcases brilliant solos by each member of the sextet. Says Previte, "This ensemble of found objects, of musicians thrown together and forging new relationships in this instrumentation of chance, mirrors the experience of movement, of migration, of whom you may find yourself next to, of venturing into the unknown because you cannot stay where you are."

And while three of the musicians in the ensemble have had a wealth of experience in electric settings - Nels Cline with Wilco, The Ring Nebula Project, The Nels Cline 4, and his longstanding Nels Cline Singers; John Medeski with Hudson, MadSkillet and the longstanding trio Medeski, Martin & Wood; Zeena Parkins with Gangster Band, Phantom Orchard, and Zeena and the Adorables - Previte chose to focus strictly on the acoustic side of their playing. "In a way, it's easier to write electric music when you have geniuses like that in the band," says Previte. "You can just write 'Nels Cline solo, 15 minutes' and you get a brilliant 15 minute electronic piece that you 'wrote.' But each acoustic guitar note dies away in seconds. Then what? As for John Medeski, of course he's a master organist, but he's such a beautiful piano player that I thought it would be cool to just let him play the piano for a change. Ditto for Zeena. I wanted to hear her on acoustic harp, no electronics. She's awesome on acoustic harp." 

Previte had similar accolades for the remaining members of his Rhapsody ensemble: "Fabian Rucker is my favorite young sax player and all around sound guru. He took the music and brought it into the street. And, by the way, Fabian mixed the album, too. And finally, what to say about Jen Shyu? Jen lifted the vocals, and so the entire ship, up to a higher plane. She is mesmerizing. I couldn't even have begun the piece without Jen."

Meanwhile, the ever-restless, ever-creative Previte is already making plans for his Terminals Part III: Arrivals. "It might be for baritone voice and So Percussion on four analog sythesizers and taiko drums. Then again, it might be a 6-LP set where each record is myself solo, performing live on a different instrument, one on which I have limited skills, (i.e., an instrument I am 'visiting'). Then again, it might be neither of these. Or somehow, both of them."

Stay tuned. Until then, join Previte and his intrepid crew on Rhapsody.

TRACKS

1. Casting Off

2. All The World

3. The Lost

4. When I Land

5. The Timekeeper

6. Coming About

7. All Hands

8. Last Stand / Final Approach

9. I Arrive

All music composed, arranged, and conducted by Bobby Previte

Published by RareNoisePublishing (PRS)

Produced by Bobby Previte

Executive Producer for RareNoiseRecords: Giacomo Bruzzo

Recorded April 24, 25, 2017 at Figure 8 Studios, Brooklyn, NY, by Eli Crews

Mixed by Fabian Rucker at Three Horses in a Wood, Claverack, NY

Mastered by Horst Pfaffelmayer at Gold Chamber, Austria

Cover Image: Untitled #188, 2016 © Simon Johan

Graphic Design: Graham Schreiner

Rhapsody was commissioned by the 2015 Greenfield Prize for Music at the Hermitage Artist Retreat

 

The Unknowable Featuring Dave Liebman,Tatsuya Nakatani, Adam Rudolph

The word magic comes up time and again when speaking of The Unknowable. Both Dave Liebman and Adam Rudolph use the term when describing their "beautiful alchemy" that also included Tatsuya Nakatani, all three acclaimed artists working as one for this project. Nakatani may not have been using the word "magic" when he refers to this trio's unique chemistry; but when he speaks of "living life with sound spirit world," I infer that he's pointing to the same "voodoo of spontaneous high level musical communication" Liebman so aptly describes.

That "beautiful alchemy" Rudolph talks of could only have come about in light of previous separate and shared musical experiences between all three. Essentially drummers, Rudolph and Nakatani, and Liebman the all-around reed player, have traveled their respective "spaceways" with just a few overlaps. But, to back it up even further, as Rudolph states, "In one way, your entire life as a human being and as an artist is the prep[aration]. That is, you have to come to a creative situation like this with open ears, an open heart, and free-flowing imagination. The preparation is also years and years of practice, composing and performance so that we can be free to play anything we can imagine to play."

The genesis of this threesome coming together seemed to be a quite natural one. "I invited Dave to play duo with me at the Stone [on New York's Lower East Side] during my residency there in May, 2016," says Rudolph. "He agreed, and it was magic. He has always dug drummers and he knows how to listen and dialogue with the drums." Liebman concurs, stating separately, "I love drummers!" As for Nakatani, Rudolph recalls, "Tatsuya and I had played several trio concerts together with Kaoru Watanabe [who plays in Rudolph's Go: Organic Orchestra] several years ago. We had a wonderful connection and also really complemented each other by our unique approaches. He is a fantastic musician; there is no one who sounds quite like him. As for Dave with Tatsuya," he continues, "they performed together in the summer of 2016, and Dave loved playing with him. So when we talked about recording, Dave had the idea - which I loved - for the three of us to record together."

"A totally improvised program," as Liebman refers to it, might have one wondering how it all came together, and how much conversation preceded each piece. "It was intuition," says Rudolph. "Each of us had ideas about how to approach every composition. That is, we all understood how to improvise form, which not all musicians can do, even those who improvise inside of form. I call what we did spontaneous composition," a term Rudolph prefers rather than calling it "improvisation." According to Liebman, "This was a completely spontaneous happening, with instruments chosen on the spot, with, of course, a nod to variety, with the usual suspects that make music meaningful." Similarly, there was the question of what to call each piece; all of the music, while consistently divergent from track to track, still shared magically abstract qualities. "I came up with the titles as I listened to the mixes," Rudolph remembers. "Everyone liked what I came up with, as the titles were not too literal. In a way, this music doesn't even need titles. It exists on its own terms. What's thrilling for me is that the music sounds prototypical, like itself."

The Unknowable, made up of 13 completely improvised, group-composed pieces and available in both CD and double-LP configurations, provides distinct expressions from track to track, most of the selections ranging from between three and four minutes, the longest, the heliocentric, serene "Cosmogram," clocking in at just under five. How the three of them landed in Orange Music Sound Studio in New Jersey for a day recording in December 2016 can only be (hopefully) understood by brief backward glances of each artist that preceded their "fated" music meeting. In the end, though, we must be content with that "unknowable" element that courses through life and is certainly at the heart of this music.

At home as both a solo performing artist as well as collaborator, the Osaka-born Nakatani has made a name for himself as a world-touring artist. Having been a resident of the U.S. since the mid-1990s, Nakatani has been prolific, having recorded over 80 albums, but has also distinguished himself as an educator and instrument maker. His master classes and workshops at colleges and universities point to his ease with students as he goes from being a performer to one who's desire to share and instruct others becomes obvious. In addition, and not independent of his status as a teacher, Nakatani has invented his own instruments as a means of demonstrating his own developed techniques as a player of experimental music, a music that touches on elements of free-jazz, noise as well as traditional Japanese folk music. Certain of those instruments (some heard on The Unknowable) include conventional percussion given new formations such as gongs, wooden sticks, singing bowls and cymbals, as well as various handcrafted mallets, bows and metal objects. Nakatani is also heard playing the conventional drumset on The Unknowable.

 

While he's been known to collaborate in intimate settings, saxophonist Dave Liebman is perhaps best known for his own work as a bandleader of both small groups as well as big bands. His sound on both soprano and tenor saxophones but also flute (all three present on The Unknowable) has become almost like a trademark of jazz saxophone over the past 50 years. Hiis initial claims to fame came from working with Miles Davis and Elvin Jones but more importantly by leading his own groups with, among many others, John Scofield, Richie Beirach, Billy Hart and Terumasa Hino. An award-winning artist, Liebman has, like Nakatani, also maintained a substantial career as a music educator. A tireless musician who never seems to stop, a recent recording as of this date includes yet another example of Liebman's love of collaborating on an intimate scale, this time with fellow legendary artist and friend, French pianist Martial Solal. The CD, the aptly titled Masters In Bordeaux, finds them visiting the Great American Songbook playing six standards with much tenderness and verve.

Adam Rudolph's various journeys all started with an impassioned dedication to drums, drumming and, especially, percussion. Like Liebman, Rudolph has made a name for himself leading aggregates large and small, presenting his unique brand of improvised conducting as well as forming a recognizable sound on various instruments as an instrumentalist: kongos, djembe, thumb piano, sintir, among many, many others. Add to this arsenal overtone flutes, some nifty Fender Rhodes along with some live electronic processing (all heard on The Unknowable) and you are listening to an artist who has become a master at multiple levels of instrumentation. Referring to just two of the more notable groups Rudolph has formed over the years, his 30-plus-member Go: Organic Orchestra and Moving Pictures octet, each seems to reflect important, different sides to his musical personality, the former a great illustration of his love of conducting and working with a variety of artists and instruments. Indeed, there's deep curiosity with world culture with Go, but also with his first love as a player and improviser within a small group setting, beautifully expressed through Moving Pictures. Rudolph's most noteworthy small-group collaboration was the long-term one he had with the late multi-instrumentalist Yusef Lateef, an artist/mentor whose spirit no doubt permeates the vibe heard on The Unknowable.

Coming from three different generations, the music all three players perform on The Unknowable can likened to "living with sound," as Nakatani states. Nakatani is talking about three "artists of life with sound," another apt description and summation of each brief bio given above. It is a music that, at its best, seems to exist in the natural world, alongside and in our lives as naturally as the air we breathe, the feel of our footsteps as we walk down streets or touch the earth in an open field at under a moon-lit sky. A piece such as "Late Moon" breathes, is sonically porous, mysterious, the wooden flute and percussive punctuations presenting a relaxed, pulseless feel. The music seems to meander but with some organizing principle that can only come from three musicians capable of "deep listening." We are invited in, to join as fellow listeners to some of that "magic."

There are other such openings on The Unknowable, "Skyway Dream" another similarly created piece, this time with Liebman on flute, the percussion now coursing through Liebman's fluid lines like a slow-moving stream. The rare presence of a pulse somehow comforts and is in-synch with a music that seems to be going nowhere in particular, "the going," in essence, the destination, with no sense of urgency.

By way of contrast, there are the more fervid selections, some of them playful, such as the title track, others a bit more frantic, somewhat scattershot, like "Transmutations," a piece that seems to invite listener participation, what with its back and forth ways of opening and closing, this all-percussion number essentially saying anything with hands-reach can be added to the sound already rolling out of your speakers. Technique, proficiency and style are irrelevant. Only honest, direct expression matters. Incidentally, and to keep things intimate beyond the studio, the sound quality produced by all three members (with more than able assistance from engineer/longtime Bill Laswell/Rudolph collaborator James Dellatacoma) is excellent: you feel as if, when closing your eyes, you could be there in the same room with them.

By way of yet another contrast, "Iconographic" is reminiscent of another intimate collaboration put down many years ago: 1973's Ruta and Daitya, an exceptional (and rare) recording. The music, with Keith Jarrett playing electric piano alongside Jack DeJohnette on percussion, seems to offer an historic precedent to certain musings heard on The Unknowable. The contrast within The Unknowable comes in the form of divergent sonics, and similar to "Cosmogram" (where Rudolph is heard playing Fender Rhodes), this time it's Liebman on Fender Rhodes (and playing chords) while the percussion team is busy dancing and prancing. The open-ended fun of "Iconographic" sets the stage for the remaining three selections, which also include forceful tenor work from Liebman and yet more organized percussive scrambling.

The Unknowable fittingly begins and ends with two pieces called "Benediction." They serve as sonic tapestries that welcome and bid farewell. They suggest more open sky, with complementary sounds that, in their respective serenities, allude not just to sky but to the sky beyond the sky, into the cosmos. Like the cosmos, this music has no north, south, east or west, combining as it does what Nakatami refers to as a music "beyond nationality, generation, style, personality, education."

TRACKS

1. Benediction (Opening) 4:14

2. The Simple Truth 3:47

3. Late Moon 3:41

4. The Unknowable 3:25

5. Skyway Dream 4:24

6. Transmutations 4:34

7. The Turning 3:39

8. Present Time 3:25

9. Distant Twilight 2:57

10. Iconographic 2:05

11. Cosmogram 4:44

12. Premonition 4:08

13. Benediction (Closing) 3:48

Recorded July 2016 at Orange Music Sound Studio, New Jersey

Recorded, mixed and mastered by James Dellatacoma

Published by RareNoisePublishing (PRS)

Design by Sylvain Leroux

Artwork by Adam Rudolph

Produced by Adam Rudolph, Dave Liebman, Tatsuya Nakatani

Executive Producer for RareNoiseRecords: Giacomo Bruzzo
Special thanks to Bill Laswell

A Cappella Jazz Sextet ACCENT, an Internet Phenomenon, Record in the Same Zip Code

“These guys are exceptional musicians… a signature sound that is sure to delight audiences for years to come.” - Cedric Dent, TAKE 6

In the world of a cappella singing groups, the international group Accent has carved out its own jazzy niche. Inspired by the wizardly harmonies of TAKE 6 and, before them, The Hi-Lo’s, the six men of Accent, all of them accomplished singer/arrangers in their own countries, decided to take their love of close-harmony jazz singing as far as it could go. Hailing from the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, France and Sweden, the six met and began recording together online in 2011. They have since come together to record and tour, becoming an International vocal supergroup. Their amazing blend and arrangements have been acclaimed by a cappella fans, jazz fans, and fellow musicians. With IN THIS TOGETHER, they have far surpassed the usual a cappella group fare of pop covers with an all-original program that displays their peerless blend and fearless jazz harmonies. But this is no mere display of technical acumen: their impeccable skills are in the service of accessible, memorable melodies and passionate lyrics.

In addition to three songs by members James, Simon and JB, the album includes a brilliant, previously unrecorded song written by TAKE 6’s Mervyn Warren and Mark Kibble, as well as contributions by Michael Jackson-collaborator Siedah Garrett and Denmark-based jazz vocalist/bassist Kristin Korb. It also represents a milestone in the way they work: It’s the first time they have actually recorded together in the same studio, after years of collaborating remotely On YouTube videos and their first album.

LISTEN ONLINE:

SOUNDCLOUD:https://soundcloud.com/accent-vocal/sets/accent-in-this-together-promotional-use-only/s-Rt6Dn

Marion Meadows Releases Soul City Featuring Peabo Bryson, Peter White, Norman Brown, Will Downing Maysa + More

"Growing up, I learned that it ain't SOUL if you don't feel it in your bones and get that tingle down your spine," declares saxophonist, composer and producer Marion Meadows.  It is this creed coupled with Meadows' consummate musicianship and quest to connect with his audience that have earned him a place as a mainstay on the Contemporary Jazz charts for several decades.  "I always hope that people will feel inspired by my recordings," shares the strikingly handsome saxophonist, who has been known to moonlight as a brilliant digital designer/photographer and semi-professional cyclist. "My purpose is to keep humanity moving forward," shares Meadows who has collaborated with such luminaries as Stevie Wonder, George Benson and The Temptations among others.  Meadows' earnest desire to offer his music as a force of positivity coalesces on his new and 14th recording as a leader, Soul City. It is a star-studded affair that unites the saxophonist with such luminous talents as vocalists Will Downing, Peabo Bryson and Maysa, guitarists Peter White and Norman Brown, among others. Imagine a city defined by soul, where the rhythms of the city keep all things moving in the right direction. Marion Meadows has created the soundtrack for such a world on Soul City.  Surrounded by an all-star line-up and co-produced by Meadows along with Chris "Big Dog" Davis, and Rahni Song, Marion Meadows takes us on a euphoric journey.  Meadows, whose mantra is "Health, Happiness and Love" says, "When we get into the studio each song is a canvas, on which we all paint and create."

  "I came up listening to Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Duke Ellington but at the same time musicians like Earth Wind & Fire, Chaka Khan, Chicago and Parliament Funkadelic," confesses Meadows who early on cut his teeth playing in Avant-Garde jazz groups alongside heavyweights Rashied Ali and James Blood Ulmer. Hailing from West Virginia and raised in Stamford, CT, Marion Meadows began his musical endeavors at age eight, studying clarinet. At age 15, after hearing iconic saxophone masters like Sidney Bechet, Coleman Hawkins, Johnny Hodges and Stanley Turrentine, Marion Meadows' switch to saxophone was imminent. The stars aligned for Meadows one evening at New York's Grand Central Station.  While waiting for the trian, Meadows took out his sax and started playing. His saxophone was mysteriously overheard reverberating through the Big Apple's oldest railway.  Emmy-winning TV composer Jay Chattaway (Star Trek fame) was headed for his train and was so enchanted by the sound that he introduced himself  and shortly after introduced Meadows to Grammy-winning pianist, producer and label owner Bob James, who helped Meadows to launch his career as a solo artist.

Meadows initially had his sights set on medical school and a career as a veterinarian. Upon high school graduation, he attended the renowned Berklee School of Music in Boston, later transferring to SUNY Purchase School of the Arts.  While still a student, the ambitious saxophonist worked steadily as a sideman. He jokes that he "got a graduate degree playing clubs." He was also fortunate to study with the best including Joe Henderson, Dave Liebman and Eddie Daniels. While at Berklee, Meadows had another serendipitous encounter, this time with drummer producer extraordinaire Norman Connors, who was then playing with legendary saxophonist Pharaoh Sanders. Meadows says, "Norman Connors was really the guy who discovered me as an artist.  The man who gave me my first shot." Connors recorded Marion's song "Invitation" and later extended an invitation to Marion to join his band.  Connors, who collaborated with many of R&B and jazz's greatest singers, afforded Marion the opportunity to work alongside such dynamic voices as Jean Carne, Phyllis Hyman, Glenn Jones, Angela Bofill, and many others. "That was a nice graduate school, so to speak," laughs Meadows. After graduating with honors from 'Connors' University,' the well-rounded saxophonist spent time honing his chops on the avant-garde circuit in the ensemble "Aboriginal Music Society," which featured guitarist James Blood Ulmer, percussionist Juma Sutan and pianist Kasa Allah.

In 1990 Marion Meadows made his recording debut, For Lover's Only, featuring Eliot Lewis, Porter Carroll, Brian Keane and Average White Band alumnus Alan Gorrie. Two years later he joined forces with Will Downing, Bob Baldwin, Angela Bofill and Norman Connors for his sophomore recording Keep It Right There. Further solidifying his rightful place in the pantheon of great saxophonists, Meadows released Forbidden Fruit in 1994. He was joined by special guests Eric Benet, Dave Grusin and Dori Caymmi, among others. Body Rhythm followed in 1996 and Pleasure was released the following year. Around this time Marion Meadows relocated from Connecticut to the Valley of the Sun - Phoenix, AZ. He also settled at a new recording home, Heads Up International, where he released his sixth album, Another Side of Midnight in 1999, calling on a little help from some friends Bob Baldwin, Omar Hakim and Norman Brown, followed by Next To You in 2000 and In Deep in 2002. Player's Club in 2004 spawned two hit singles, "Suede" and "Sweet Grapes," which have gone on to be Marion's signature songs. Dressed To Chill (2006) included memorable renditions of hits by R Kelly and Luther Vandross and joined Meadows with Chuck Loeb and his longtime touring keyboardist and vocalist Will Brock, among others. Secrets and its title track topped the Smooth Jazz charts in 2009.  The anticipated Whisper followed in 2013 showcasing the stunning Top Ten Billboard hit "Black Pearl" and in 2015 Meadows released Soul Traveler featuring another Top ten hit, "Humanity."

Several decades into Marion Meadows' enviable career, a string of radio hits under his belt, scores of sold out international shows, a catalogue of critically heralded albums, and the saxophonist is still inspired."Each recording is a continuation of my journey," concludes Meadows. "I feel as though I have grown as a musician and a storyteller. It is all about my life and the fellowship of sharing." So get ready for the ride of your life and come on into Marion Meadows' Soul City.

Click To Listen + Share "Soul City" featuring

Norman Brown and Joey Somerville

Click To Listen+Share "Samba De "Playa"featuring Will Downing