Jazz Articles about Andy Biskin

Andy Biskin Quartet: Early American: The Melodies of Stephen Foster

by AAJ Italy Staff
November 9, 2006

Clarinettista atipico, assai poco assimilabile ad altri illustri conterranei come Don Byron o Chris Speed per citarne alcuni, Andy Biskin si colloca in una sorta di terra di nessuno, un piede nel cosiddetto jazz creativo e l’altro nel solco di tutto ciò che è tradizione storia, cultura e radici americane. Con questo Early American - The Melodies of Stephen Foster, Biskin rende omaggio ad un autore tanto sfortunato, morì negli stenti a soli 36 anni, quanto fondamentale nella formazione di ...

Andy Biskin: Trio Tragico

by AAJ Italy Staff
November 9, 2006

Delude questo Trio Tragico. C’erano almeno tre motivi che portavano ad attendere un album di ben altra fattura e caratura. La strumentazione atipica, tromba clarinetto e contrabbasso, faceva intravedere combinazioni timbriche avvincenti e ricche di sfumature. Al contrario il clima generale del disco rasenta la monotonia se non addirittura la noia, con rarissimi scarti timbrici ed un uso minimo delle dinamiche. Poi la caratura dei musicisti, da sempre impegnati in un idea di musica totale senza barriere e senza preconcetti, ...

Andy Biskin Quartet: Early American: The Melodies of Stephen Foster

by Jeff Dayton-Johnson
October 30, 2006

In the October 2006 issue of Jazzman magazine, Vincent Bessières documents the explosion of jazz renditions of compositions by Björk, pointing to versions by artists like Geoff Keezer, Marcin Wasilewski, Greg Osby, Eric Legnini, Jason Moran, Larry Goldings and Dave Douglas. (If he'd waited another month or so, he could have included a lovely reading of “New World" on Florian Weber's new trio record Minsarah, Enja/Justin Time, 2006.) Jazz musicians' salutary interest in Björk's songs reflects a ...

Andy Biskin Quartet: Early American: The Melodies Of Stephen Foster

by Jim Santella
October 23, 2006

Clarinetist Andy Biskin leads his creative quartet through an interesting program of Stephen Foster songs and several originals. As much as possible, he's tried to capture the composer's original intentions.

Stephen Collins Foster (1826-64) was born and raised just outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the North. His songs, however, reflected life along the Mississippi River of the old South. His work for his brother's steamship company in Cincinnati undoubtedly had a large influence on the songwriter's trade. He ...

Andy Biskin Quartet: Early American: The Melodies Of Stephen Foster

by Mark Corroto
October 5, 2006

From the bandstand, the leader calls out, “...and now, folks, we're going to play you a tune written 150 years ago. Wait. What? Are you kidding? Nobody wants to hear the Britney Spears track that was huge five years ago!

But then again, in the cultural evolutionary battle of the fittest, the music of Stephen Foster (1826-64) continues to survive. “Camptown Races, “Oh!, Susanna, and “Old Folks At Home swim upstream into the collective consciousness of generation after ...

The Andy Biskin Quartet: Early American: The Melodies of Stephen Foster

by Dan McClenaghan
September 28, 2006

The songs of Stephen Foster (1826-64) seem to have seeped into our American DNA, especially for those of us of a certain age. We sang “Oh! Susanna," “Old Folks," “Camptown Races" and other Foster gems in elementary school--badly, if memory serves me, with an unrestrained, window-rattling youthful gusto on “Oh! Susanna." Those melodies are part of us now.New York-based clarinetist Andy Biskin discovered the simple beauty and straightforward storytelling aspects of Foster's melodies after a chance playing of ...

Andy Biskin: Trio Tragico

by Troy Collins
September 27, 2006

Released in tandem with Early American (an exploration of the music of Stephen Foster), Trio Tragico showcases clarinetist Andy Biskin working within the confines of an unconventional chamber-jazz trio. With characteristic wit, the composer delivers an album that is not nearly as melodramatic as the title implies.

Biskin enjoys a sublime foil in the rich and classically pure trumpet of Dave Ballou. Ubiquitous Downtown bassist Drew Gress is the fulcrum on which the two horn players pivot. With ...