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Horace Tapscott: 60 Years
by Danen Jobe
In the world of the Pan-Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, it is impossible to separate community and music. The band is all from the South Central LA community, and they are playing for the community. They are composing songs about family, about people they see, about overcoming immense adversity. There is a distinct sound to this band, which first and foremost is the sound of its founder and leader, Horace Tapscott. It is deep, often accompanied by two or three ...
read morePan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra: 60 Years
by Chris May
The 2 x LP 60 Years celebrates the history of the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra (PAPA), which was founded by the pianist, composer and community activist Horace Tapscott in South Central Los Angeles in 1961, and directed by him until he passed in 1999. The release, albeit of archive material, also reminds us that the Arkestra remains active in 2023, now under the direction of drummer Mekala Session, son of the Arkestra's veteran alto saxophonist Michael Session. There are six ...
read morePan-Afrikan Peoples Arkestra: Live at I.U.C.C. 11/26/1978
by Danen Jobe
In November of 1978, Horace Tapscott had some advantages that any other iconoclastic, idealistic, idiosyncratic jazz bandleader would greatly desire. For one, he was approached by a socially minded professional gambler named Tom Albach about starting a label (Nimbus West) devoted to Tapscott's music, allowing complete creative control, never expecting to make a dime of profit, and providing living money to keep the band going. Another was a steady gig in the only area in the nation that Tapscott truly ...
read moreA World of Piano
by Jerome Wilson
This is two hours of piano played by icons including Thelonious Monk and Cecil Taylor, overlooked figures Hasaan Ibn Ali and Horace Tapscott, and current stars Brad Mehldau and Fred Hersch. Playlist Henry Threadgill Sextett I Can't Wait Till I Get Home" from The Complete Novus & Columbia Recordings of Henry Threadgill & Air (Mosaic) 00:00 Juliet Kurtzman/Pete Malinverni Davenport Blues" from Candlelight: Love in the Time of Cholera (Saranac) 1:05 The Thelonious Monk Orchestra Crepuscule With Nellie" ...
read moreHorace Tapscott Quintet: Legacies for Our Grandchildren: Live in Hollywood 1995
by Karl Ackermann
Since its founding in 2011, the French record label Dark Tree has been issuing a Roots Series" documenting previously unreleased performances of the Los Angeles jazz avant-garde from the 1970s through the '90s. Among the best of those releases have been several from Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra led by pianist/composer/conductor Horace Tapscott. Legacies for Our Grandchildren: Live in Hollywood 1995 is one of only two quintet albums led by the pianist. A community activist in South Central LA, Tapscott often ...
read moreRoberto Miranda's Home Music Ensemble: Live at the Bing Theater; Los Angeles, 1985
by Karl Ackermann
Roberto Miranda has appeared on almost one-hundred albums but has been lightly recorded as a leader, and inexplicably struggled to generate interest among labels. Dark Tree Records has released some great Horace Tapscott performances from the '70s and '80s. The label resurrected a Miranda-led session on Live at the Bing Theater; Los Angeles, 1985. Recorded at the USC campus auditorium, the sound is pristine, and the ambiance, eclectic and dynamic. Miranda studied bass with Ray Brown and Red ...
read moreRoots Magic, Audio Cave Artists & Alan Braufman
by Maurice Hogue
A new release by the Italian Quartet Roots Magic is always welcome. Their contemporary and improvisatory approach to old blues tunes and the way they always put their own touch on the music of avant-garde jazz composers is kind of unique on the European scene. Take Root Among the Stars, out on Clean Feed, should be right up there with the best of 2020 releases. Also from Italy comes music by the The Auanders, a larger ensemble formed initially for ...
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