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Bill Frisell: Harmony
by Franz A. Matzner
Renowned guitarist Bill Frisell's Blue Note Records debut Harmony is a pleasant album. This does not imply lack of innovation, the saccharine sound or the absence of bite and sorrow. These hues of bite and sorrow actually dominate the fourteen selections, which in patented Frisell manner run the gamut from traditional Americana to Elvis Costello to classic jazz. The album's appeal comes from its utter listenability and sumptuous delivery. It also proffers an innovative, drum-less configuration of strings, lead, and ...
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by Mark Sullivan
Iconic guitarist-composer Bill Frisell has chosen to primarily emphasize the Americana side of his music for his debut as a leader for Blue Note Records. When Frisell organized his new band with vocalist Petra Haden, cellist Hank Roberts and guitarist-bassist Luke Bergman he was struck by the fact that all of the band members but him sang, so their vocal blend became the group's signature sound as well as the inspiration for the name Harmony. Upon first hearing, the album ...
Continue ReadingEmpoli Jazz Summer Festival 2019
by Neri Pollastri
Empoli Jazz Summer Festival 2019 Giardino del Torrione di Santa Brigida Empoli 9, 17, 23.7.2019 Programma di grande prestigio e qualità per Empoli Jazz Summer Festival 2019, che tra le diverse date ne includeva tre con protagonisti di primissimo livello della scena statunitense. Ha iniziato la serie, il 9 luglio, il trio di Bill Frisell, che vedeva il chitarrista a fianco del contrabbassista Thomas Morgan e del batterista Rudy Royston, suoi abituali ...
Continue ReadingBill Frisell, Thomas Morgan: Epistrophy
by Mario Calvitti
Il ritorno di Bill Frisell nel 2017 in casa ECM come titolare, anche se in coabitazione col contrabbassista Thomas Morgan, era stato accolto con entusiasmo, e il loro disco Small Town, registrato dal vivo al Village Vanguard di New York, unanimemente considerato uno dei migliori album dell'anno. Viene pubblicato ora, preannunciato dallo stesso chitarrista nel corso di un'intervista che ci aveva concesso nell'estate 2017, un altro album con materiale tratto dagli stessi concerti, il che non potrà che far piacere ...
Continue ReadingBill Frisell | Thomas Morgan: Epistrophy
by John Kelman
When ECM Records released Small Town in 2017, beyond capturing the profound intimacy and musical ability to “finish each other's sentences" shared by the first recorded document of guitarist Bill Frisell and bassist Thomas Morgan in a duo setting, one of the biggest walk-aways was the hope that this would not be a one-off. Two years later, Epistrophy captures another 68 minutes (running literally 34 seconds longer than Small Town) of intimate interaction, culled from the same March, 2016 run ...
Continue ReadingBig Ears Festival 2019
by Mark Sullivan
Big Ears Festival Knoxville, TN March 21-24, 2019 The major focus of this year's Big Ears Festival was a celebration of ECM Records' 50th anniversary, which included a number of live performances (representing both the main label and the classical music imprint ECM New Series) as well as a panel discussion “ECM @ 50" (covered in a separate article here). There were about 20 concerts, the largest group of ECM artists under one banner ...
Continue ReadingBill Frisell Trio at Dublin's National Concert Hall
by Ian Patterson
Bill Frisell Trio National Concert Hall Dublin, Ireland February 21, 2019 It was a swift return to the National Concert Hall stage for Bill Frisell, following his guest appearance in May 2018 at the finale of fiddler Martin Hayes' residency. This time Frisell was leading his trio of Tony Scherr and Kenny Wollesen, long-time collaborators in the guitarist's on-going quest to celebrate music without borders. This concert was just that--a celebration of music pure ...
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