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Jazz Articles about David Kikoski
Gerald Cannon: Live At Dizzy's Club: The Music of Elvin & McCoy
by Jack Bowers
In June 2022, bassist Gerald Cannon assembled an all-star septet to perform compositions by his late friends and musical colleagues, drummer Elvin Jones and pianist McCoy Tyner, in concert at Dizzy's Club in New York City. It is a respectable blowing session, with capable solos by all hands, albeit a tad less than one might expect from such an esteemed ensemble. That is not to say anything on the menu is bland or unsavory. Still, expectations are ...
read moreGerald Cannon: Live At Dizzy's Club: The Music of Elvin & McCoy
by Pierre Giroux
In the heart of the jazz universe, bassist Gerald Cannon pays homage to a couple of legendary figures Elvin Jones and McCoy Tyner with his album Live at Dizzy's Club: The Music of Elvin & McCoy. Not only is the recording an acknowledgement of the many years Cannon spent playing with Elvin and McCoy, but it is also a virtuosic tribute to the drummer and pianist who defined their dynamic interplay as part of the John Coltrane Quartet during the ...
read moreRichard Baratta: Off The Charts
by Jack Bowers
Drummer Richard Baratta's third album, Off the Charts, is a play on words, as he and his bandmates have taken lesser- known themes from a number of jazz masters that flew under the radar--in other words, were off the charts"--and given them a fresh coat of paint, so to speak, to help redeem them from what Baratta considers an undeserved obscurity. The composers in question are Bobby Hutcherson, Joe Farrell, McCoy Tyner, Joe Henderson, Wayne Shorter, Charles ...
read moreRichard Baratta: Off The Charts
by Pierre Giroux
The premise for Richard Baratta's Off The Charts is to give new life to some of the lesser-known works by boldface composers such as Wayne Shorter, Bobby Hutcherson and Chick Corea, among others. Assisting in this voyage of rediscovery are several top-notch jazz luminaries such as tenor saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi, pianist David Kikoski, bassist John Patitucci and percussionist Paul Rossman. All of the arrangements are by Baratta, save one, and that is the opening Hutcherson number Herzog," which ...
read moreRichard Baratta: Off The Charts
by Neil Duggan
After more than three decades as a Hollywood film producer, drummer Richard Baratta seemed ideally placed to bring together the worlds of film and jazz, releasing two albums focusing on songs from the movies. The first of these, Music In Film: The Reel Deal (Savant Records, 2020) gained a Grammy nomination for pianist Bill O'Connell's arrangement of the Euphemia Allen composition, Chopsticks." Baratta followed this up with Music in Film: The Sequel. His third album, Off The Charts, changes focus ...
read moreAlexander Claffy: Music From Big Orange
by Pierre Giroux
Alexander Claffy has released an impressive album entitled Music From Big Orange" which showcases his skills as a bassist and composer, and captures the essence of contemporary jazz while paying homage to the rich traditions of the genre. Switching seamlessly from acoustic bass to electric, depending on the sonic flow of any given tune, it is clear that Claffy's bass playing is the foundation upon which the entire album is built. On this orange-coloured vinyl LP, ...
read moreWayne Escoffery: Like Minds
by Dave Linn
Wayne Escoffery was born in London and raised in New Haven, Connecticut. He began playing the saxophone at the age of 11, later studying at the Educational Center for the Arts in New Haven and the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. In the late 1990s, Escoffery started gaining recognition on the jazz scene with his tenure in the Eric Reed Septet and later joining the Mingus Big Band. After completing his studies, Escoffery moved to New ...
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