Jazz Articles about Myriam Alter

Myriam Alter: Crossways

by John Ephland
December 20, 2015

There's a soulful melancholy to much of this music. Composer/pianist Myriam Alter has created yet another collection of her songs that have the potential to evoke feelings of yearning, sadness and perhaps a deep buried joy with Crossways. Akin to a previous outing on enja, the elegiac Where Is There, Crossways can be heard as a kind of movie soundtrack, where the listener is swept up in another world full of imaginings and wonder across 11 tunes. One of the ...

Myriam Alter: If

by Elliott Simon
October 7, 2003

When read as prose, the song titles on If become a poetic tribute to composer Myriam Alter's idealized concept of “Home.” Ten new compositions make up If and are in part inspired by Ms. Alter’s Judeo-Spanish heritage. The arrangements further expand upon her musical lineage by additionally acknowledging modern jazz and classical while prominently featuring Jewish music’s long time relationship with the Argentinean tango. The result is a coherent personal musical statement whose roots run deep and is a breath ...

Myriam Alter: If

by Farrell Lowe
April 2, 2003

Myriam Alter's latest album is attractive; like radiant sunshine through a winter window, it pulls you gently closer with nuance and charm, then seduces with intelligence, style, and grace. Following the blueprint of her earlier albums, Alter has once again written all of the compositions here. Instead of playing on the album herself, she chose to be content with composing and left the realization of the pieces in the very capable hands of others.

The album begins with the dark ...