Jazz Articles about Andy Middleton

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Ron van Stratum: Swingin' In The Swamp

by Gina Vodegel
December 13, 2010

It's a generally accepted misconception that those who earn a living as a teacher in the arts must either not be good enough a performer, or are compelled to satisfy a wretched sense of envy, while clipping the wings of very talented students. Some of the stories out there may be true, but drummer/percussionist Ron van Stratum's Swingin' In The Swamp defies all such horror tales. Van Stratum has been a drum teacher since 1993 at The Netherlands' Maastricht Conservatory--recruited ...

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Andy Middleton: The European Quartet Live

by AAJ Italy Staff
October 30, 2008

Il titolo potrebbe trarre in inganno, perché non si tratta di un quartetto europeo e neanche di un americano che si fa accompagnare da una ritmica del vecchio continente. Sono semplicemente degli statunitensi che hanno deciso di emigrare in Europa: il leader risiede a Vienna, Paul Imm e Alan Jones in Germania. A completare il gruppo c'è il giovane pianista tedesco Tino Derado, che risiede a Berlino. Il disco impressiona per tutte le qualità che Andy Middleton da anni ci ...

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Andy Middleton: The European Quartet Live

by Michael P. Gladstone
October 25, 2008

The last time that saxophonist Andy Middleton was heard from he was providing a pro-environmental message on Re-Inventing The World, (Intuition, 2003) with such titles as “Three Mile Island," “Atlas Shrugged" and “At The Foot of The Hill." Middleton's most recent outing, The European Quartet Live (Q-Rious music, 2008), seems to have shifted gears with only one environmental warning ("Up The River").

A lot has occurred in Middleton's life since 2003. He is now living in Austria where ...

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Andy Middleton: The European Quartet Live

by Jerry D'Souza
June 14, 2008

Andy Middleton is an intense saxophonist. He focuses on the core of the melody and then extrapolates it through its musicality and in the freer inventions of his imagination. Middleton who now lives in Vienna, has picked a new working band. They help forge interesting vignettes, with pianist Tino Derado bringing in his own tasteful expressions to blood the music even more.

Middleton takes his compositions, as well as the two that stem from traditional sources, on lengthy ...

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Andy Middleton: Reinventing the World

by Michael P. Gladstone
December 25, 2003

Based upon the packaging, I suspected that this disc would contain avant-garde or at the very least cutting-edge, Knitting Factory-type jazz. There are no liner notes, just photos of the personnel and trumpeter Kenny Wheeler's name staring me in the face. Well, my guess couldn't be further from the truth. Reinventing the World is a well-thought-out, mainstream combo recording with many fine moments.

Several critical opinions on this album have cited Mr. Middleton's environmental concerns. Perhaps these themes ...

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Andy Middleton: Reinventing the World

by Dan McClenaghan
December 16, 2003

Reedman Andy Middleton's Reinventing the World could be a companion piece to another “theme" CD released earlier this year, pianist Mike Holober's Canyon (Sons of Sound, 2002), which celebrated the composer's love of canyoneering, hiking, and the outdoor experience with a set of finely crafted and highly melodic originals. Reinventing the World, with a broader palette and some Spanish and Middle Eastern sounds – but much the same sensiblity – voices Middleton's concerns for the environment.On this octet ...

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Andy Middleton: Reinventing The World

by Jim Santella
December 6, 2003

Recorded nearly three years ago in Cologne, Germany, this session features a group of modern mainstream jazz artists who’ve got their eyes set on the future. Saxophonist Andy Middleton dedicates the album, his fourth, to his young daughter, who certainly deserves a better world. Ecological concerns and other global social issues would drive any responsible parent. Can we make a difference? Middleton hopes so.

Look at the titles he’s chosen for his original pieces. A moody “Three Mile ...