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John Stowell / Dave Glenn & The Hawcaptak Quartet: Violin Memory
ByThe Seattle-based guitarist's follow-up finds him teaming with trombonist Dave Glenn, a longtime collaborator, and bringing in a classical string quartet to enhance the atmosphere. The results are a unique (a word often overused, but not here) sound.
The album opens with a stately, all-strings, one-minute beginning from the Hawcaptek String Quartet entitled "Social Butterfly Intro," which leads into the guitar/trombone pairing on "Social Butterfly," written by Stowell. The crispness of Stowell's guitar seems to punctuate the round smoothness of Glenn's horn, in the crafting of a time-stands-still, chamber music recital of sorts.
Sequencing is important in any presentation of multiple compositionsin a live show setting or on an albumand things are laid down beautifully here, featuring an alternating of the string quartet interludes, masterfully arranged by Glenn, with the guitar/trombone pieces, all of the resulting sounds seemingly highly influenced by classical music.
The overall elegance and understated majesty of the string quartet's flexible precision going back and forth with Stowell's and Glenn's sometimes jazzy ("Lonely Blue Angle"), sometimes playful ("Mottball") playing makes for an entrancing listening experience, closing with the Glenn-penned "Foundation's Edge Intro" and "Foundation's Edge," which may or may not be a nod to the classic 1982 Isaac Asimov novel of the same name.
Track Listing
Social Betterfly Intro; Social Butterfly; Remembering Laurie Frink Intro; Remembering Laurie Frink; Ghost In The Corner Intro; Ghost In the Corner; I Wish Intro; I Wish; Stay Right There; Nanti Glow; Collage; Lonely Blue Angel; Mottball; Fun With Fruit Intro; Fun With Fruit; Violin Memory Intro; Violin Memory; When Jsper Grows Up Intro; When Jasper Grows Up; Foundation's Edge Intro; Foundation's Edge.
Personnel
John Stowell
guitarDave Glenn
tromboneAdditional Instrumentation
John Stowell: nylon string guitar, fretless baritone guitars; Maria Sampen: violin; Steve Miahky: violin; Tim Christie: viola; Norbury Lewandowski: cello.
Album information
Title: Violin Memory | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Origin Records
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