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Wayne Shorter: Emanon
by Ian Patterson
Just the fifth release from Wayne Shorter's celebrated acoustic quartet in its near two-decade career, the triple-CD plus graphic novel that is Emanon marks something of a creative high point in its journey. The first CD, a four-part suite for quartet and the thirty-four-piece Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, is Shorter's first studio recording since Alegria (Verve, 2003), while the second and third discs capture the quartet live in London. The accompanying forty-eight page comic-book, co-written by Shorter and Monica Sly, with ...
Continue ReadingBrian Blade and the Fellowship Band at Sculler's Jazz Club
by Nat Seelen
Brian Blade and the Fellowship Band Sculler's Jazz Club Cambridge, MA November 10, 2017 I walked into the lobby of the Doubletree Hotel, home of Sculler's Jazz Club, at 9:40pm to find it packed, swarming with fans of Brian Blade eager to snap up a copy of his new album before the 10 o'clock set. In the middle of that swarm, I noticed Jeff Prystowsky, the mustachioed empresario behind the Low Anthem, ...
Continue ReadingBrian Blade & The Fellowship Band: Body and Shadow
by Mark Sullivan
Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2017. Body and Shadow is only their fifth album: they have not recorded prolifically, but each one has been worth the wait. The group occupies a unique space: the sound of Americana (chiefly folk music) is dominant, but played with a jazz sensibility. Despite the considerable technical firepower in the band, it has always kept the focus on the ensemble sound rather than on soloists. For this outing drummer ...
Continue ReadingMike Holober: Balancing Act
by Angelo Leonardi
Non è facile coniugare raffinatezza formale e tensione emotiva, meticolose orchestrazioni e libertà individuale, sottigliezze cameristiche e momenti jazzisticamente impetuosi. A capo del suo ottetto, Mike Holober offre un appassionante esempio di tutto ciò, realizzando il suo lavoro più maturo e ricercato, a distanza di sei anni dal precedente con la Gotham Jazz Orchestra (Quake, Sunnyside 2009). Pianista, compositore e insegnante al City College e alla Manhattan School of Music di New York, Holober s'è ...
Continue ReadingMike Holober: Balancing Act
by Mark Sullivan
Pianist/composer Mike Holober has had an active career with big bands (including HR Big Band Frankfurt, WDR Big Band Cologne, Stockholm Jazz Orchestra, and the Westchester Jazz Orchestra in the U.S.). So he brings a refined approach to the composing and arranging on this octet recording. He set himself an ambitious goal: to feature a vocalist, but as another frontline instrument rather than the primary focus. “I wanted to use a singer and lyrics in extended form compositions--not wrapped up ...
Continue ReadingMike Holober: Balancing Act
by Dan Bilawsky
Conceptualizing and creating music is a delicate balancing act, leaving composers to strive for symmetry between head and heart, reasoning and intuition, and structure and freedom. Who better to understand that than Mike Holober? Whether penning a piece or playing piano, Holober has always shown himself to be mindful of the need to find harmony between those and other opposing principles. It's his ability to do so that, in large part, has made him such a hot commodity in the ...
Continue ReadingBrian Blade: Fellowship - More Than Just a Word
by John Kelman
In the 21st century, few drummers have managed Brian Blade's kind of crossover success. Beyond playing in saxophonist Wayne Shorter's quartet for nearly 15 years, beyond being a first-call drummer for producer/singer/songwriter Daniel Lanois--whether it's for his own projects like Black Dub or working with everyone from Bob Dylan to EmmyLou Harris--and beyond also being on-call with some of the most important names in modern music (not just jazz, but music) like Joni Mitchell, Norah Jones, John Scofield and Kenny ...
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