Jazz Articles about Dave Douglas

Dave Douglas & Keystone: Spark Of Being: Expand

by Mark Redlefsen
September 8, 2010

Just as summer comes to a close, another great release from trumpeter/composer Dave Douglas comes along. Expand is the second part of a trilogy of music, performed by Dave Douglas & Keystone, for the Bill Morrison film Spark of Being (2010). The film and related music bring Mary Shelley's iconic novel, Frankenstein (1818), and the relationship between science and humanity in the future, into a modern light. The first part, Soundtrack (Greenleaf, 2010) , was released earlier in the summer, ...

Dave Douglas: Constellations

by Martin Longley
February 4, 2010

This reissue harks back to a time when trumpeter Dave Douglas seemingly operated within a more extreme zone of jazz improvisation. When this 1995 set was recorded at Radio DRS in Zurich, the trio had been together for three years, Douglas having built up a tight bond with guitarist Brad Shepik and drummer Jim Black but such a lightning closeness didn't tend to occlude the threesome's unique playing characters. To compartmentalize loosely each member's area of expertise ...

Dave Douglas Tiny Bell Trio: Constellations

by Mark Corroto
January 22, 2010

With trumpeter Dave Douglas' 21st century star continuing to rise, the hatOLOGY reissue of his Tiny Bell Trio recording Constellations serves as a reminder of the not too distant past. Hearing Douglas, guitarist Brad Shepik, and drummer Jim Black circa 1995 provides the context in which to consider their more recent efforts.

At the time of this recording, Douglas' restless sound found avenues for expression in John Zorn's Masada, Parallel Worlds (a string group), the chamber ensemble Charms Of The ...

Dave Douglas' Tiny Bell Trio: Constellations

by Chris May
December 15, 2009

When hatOLOGY put it out back in summer 2009, pianist Horace Tapscott's mother lode of groove, The Dark Tree, originally released in 1991, looked like a serious contender for best reissue of the year. It's still a player--but so too is trumpeter Dave Douglas' Tiny Bell Trio's Constellations, which slips under the wire at the eleventh hour. First released in 1995, Constellations catches Douglas on the cusp of elevation to international downtown fame, and Tiny ...

Dave Douglas: A Single Sky

by Martin Longley
December 9, 2009

Here is yet another facet of Dave Douglas, an artist who is constantly seeking fresh discoveries. This album benefits from the full forces of the Frankfurt Radio Big Band (FRB), brashly realizing the composer's large lyricism. Douglas now turns his auteur skills to writing inflated-scale compositions, although his own soloing role is not diminished. His features are frequently the kernel of the operation. The FRB are conducted and arranged by Jim McNeely and the most familiar player ...

Dave Douglas: A Single Sky

by Troy Collins
October 30, 2009

On his first big band recording, award winning trumpeter, composer, bandleader, and Greenleaf Music label founder Dave Douglas is joined by the Frankfurt Radio Bigband, conducted by composer/arranger Jim McNeely, with whom Douglas studied in the mid-1980s. Presenting a previously unheard facet of Douglas' artistry, A Single Sky features new compositions written expressly for big band, as well as McNeely's nuanced arrangements of a few of Douglas' older tunes, which sheds new light on his earlier work without obscuring the ...

Dave Douglas & Brass Ecstasy: Spirit Moves

by Martin Longley
June 10, 2009

Dave Douglas' combo, Brass Ecstasy, follows the spirit-trail of Lester Bowie's Brass Fantasy, at once looking way back to the old New Orleans street traditions then picking up moves from the Rebirth and Dirty Dozen Brass Bands. Douglas is joined by Luis Bonilla (trombone), Vincent Chancey (French horn) and Marcus Rojas (tuba) with Nasheet Waits manning the drum set. It's an inspired lineup, drawn from diverse stylistic quarters. Indeed, Chancey and Bonilla were actually members of Brass Fantasy.