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Cuong Vu: Vu-Tet
by Jerry D'Souza
Cuong Vu has long established his reputation as an adventurous musician who takes his compositions and his trumpet playing into constantly evolving worlds. His is a constant forging of the new and different, traits that he wraps in thought-provoking schematic concepts that include jazz, rock and whatever else that grabs his fancy, as long as it stimulates the framework of his composition.
The elliptical force of the band is seen in all its majestic power on “Accelerated Thoughts. ...
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by Dan McClenaghan
One could wonder why in the world these people are wiring up their trumpets, instruments that, acoustically, make such beautiful sounds. Ingrid Jensen plugs in her horn, notably (and beautifully) on The “Pretty Road" from Maria Schneider's Sky Blue (ArtistShare, 2007) and Natsuki Tamura on Hada Hada (Libra Records, 2003) sucks up enough electrons to keep Las Vegas lit up for a year. To take things a step further, John Swana, on Cycles (Vector Disc, 2006) eschews the brass altogether ...
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by Troy Collins
Vietnamese-born trumpet phenomenon Cuong Vu has been melding electronic soundscapes and rock-oriented structures with jazz improvisation since his debut, Bound (Omnitone, 2000). Following in the footsteps of the critically acclaimed It's Mostly Residual (ArtistShare, 2005), Vu continues to explore the fertile territory between electronic and acoustic music.
Joined by fellow New York Downtown scene veteran, multi-reedist Chris Speed, Vu's fifth album as a leader features an expanded variation on his regular trio with bassist Stomu Takeishi and drummer ...
Continue ReadingCuong Vu: Vu-Tet
by John Kelman
On Vu-Tet, his follow-up to It's Mostly Residual (ArtistShare, 2005), trumpeter Cuong Vu continues to mine similar turf, ranging from the deeply lyrical to the aggressively hardcore. But with considerable touring under the belt of his regular working trio, featuring bassist Stomu Takeishi and drummer Ted Poor--with and without Vu-Tet's guest saxophonist/clarinetist Chris Speed--there's an emerging group identity as concerned with texture and color as it is playing that is at times delicate and ethereal, elsewhere visceral and fervently propulsive.
Continue ReadingCuong Vu: It's Mostly Residual
by Terrell Kent Holmes
Cuong Vu's trademark as a composer is gradually building tunes that intensify toward the middle and include elements of free jazz and jazz-rock. The key is to have a band that can pull off the demands of such superficially simple yet ultimately complex music. Having the right players makes Vu's It's Mostly Residual a success. Ted Poor's percussion and Bill Frisell's initially subtle guitar give the title tune an elegiac feeling. Then Vu soars and a percussive ...
Continue ReadingCuong Vu: It's Mostly Residual
by AAJ Italy Staff
Il jazzista, quando si confronta con l'elettronica, è un po' come un bambino nella stanza dei balocchi. Sperimenta, gioca, si diverte, con l'ovvio rischio di girare anche a vuoto, senza una direzione precisa. I bambini nella stanza dei balocchi sono, nella circostanza, Cuong Vu e Bill Frisell. Due che, quando c'è da smanettare, non si tirano indietro. Il chirarrista di Baltimora ultimamente sembrava aver messo la testa a posto da questo punto di vista, ma forse gli mancavano gli stimoli ...
Continue ReadingCuong Vu: This This and That
by John Kelman
When Vietnamese-born/American-raised trumpeter Cuong Vu was recruited by the Pat Metheny Group in 2001, Vu was a complete unknown to most fans of the guitar icon. In truth, however, Vu had already been quite active. Since moving to New York in 1994, Vu has become an increasingly visible presence on the downtown New York scene, working with forward-thinking artists including Bobby Previte and Dave Douglas. His work with singer/songwriter Ron Sexsmith also demonstrated a penchant for song that may not ...
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