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Edward Simon: 25 Years
by Dan McClenaghan
Pianist Edward Simon immigrated to the United States from his native Venezuela while still in his teens. He stayed, and carved out a successful career in music. His fiftieth birthday rolled around, and the artist decided it was time to take a look and listen back. In a musical journey that spans the titular 25 Years, Simon has crafted a lot of music, employing a Latin/jazz/classical approach with a seemingly effortless refinement, making sounds that are unfailingly engaging and beautiful. ...
Continue ReadingEdward Simon: Sorrows & Triumphs
by Angelo Leonardi
La figura di Edward Simon ha punti di contatto con quella di Guillermo Klein. Entrambi sudamericani sono pianisti, compositori e bandleader residenti da decenni negli Stati Uniti (Simon s'è trasferito dal Venezuela a 12 anni per studiare alla Performing Arts School di Filadelfia) e realizzano personali sintesi tra jazz contemporaneo, folklore dell'America Latina e raffinate soluzioni colte. Dopo giovanili collaborazioni con Greg Osby, David Binney Kevin Eubanks, Bobby Watson e Terence Blanchard, il pianista ha guidato piccoli ...
Continue ReadingEdward Simon: Sorrows & Triumphs
by Friedrich Kunzmann
Following in the footsteps of the critically acclaimed eponymous debut record (Red Records) and subsequent sophomore outing Océanos (Criss Cross Records), in 2007, Edward Simon has now once more gathered together the power quartet Afinada, featuring Brian Blade on drums, David Binney on sax and bassist Scott Colley. With the addition of the Imani Winds chamber quintet and the striking presence of guests Gretchen Parlato on vocals and guitarist Adam Rogers Sorrows & Triumphs proves one of the most intricate ...
Continue ReadingEdward Simon: Sorrows & Triumphs
by Jerome Wilson
This project by pianist Edward Simon blends together many diverse elements. The music combines classical formalism with jazz energy and is performed by a combination of Simon's jazz quartet, Afinidad, and the woodwind quintet, Imani Winds, with some guest musicians added in. The compositions themselves are movements of two separate suites written by Simon, “Sorrows And Triumphs," inspired by Buddhist philosophy, and “House Of Numbers," inspired by numerology, rearranged into a cohesive set of music. The end result of all ...
Continue ReadingEdward Simon with Afinidad & Imani Winds: Sorrows & Triumphs
by Dan Bilawsky
Pianist Edward Simon's sensitivity, eloquence, strength, and intelligence stand in full view throughout this gorgeous collection of material plucked from two different suites. “Sorrows and Triumphs," the older of the two, which draws inspiration from Simon's study of Buddhism, first surfaced in 2009. “House of Numbers," taking cues from numerology and weaving cross-cultural implications into its fabric, saw its debut in 2016. Here, four numbers from the latter, three from the former, and a wondrously flowing opener originally penned for ...
Continue ReadingEdward Simon: Latin American Songbook
by Angelo Leonardi
Dall'attuale residenza di San Francisco, Edward Simon rammenta le musiche che hanno segnato la sua infanzia. “Uno dei vantaggi di essere cresciuto in Venezuela--scrive nelle note del CD--sono stati i differenti influssi musicali provenienti da tutte le parti del continente americano e dai Caraibi. C'è tanta grande musica esistente in questa parte del mondo che si potrebbe facilmente dedicare un album ad ogni Paese e senza essere all'altezza di rendergli giustizia." Per questa ragione il pianista ha deciso di scegliere ...
Continue ReadingEdward Simon: Venezuelan Suite
by Angelo Leonardi
"Venezuelan Suite--ha detto Edward Simon--è nata dal desiderio di consolidare la mia eredità culturale, l'amore per la musica classica e la mia esperienza di musicista jazz." L'opera documenta anche il debutto discografico dell'Ensemble Venezuela, formazione fondata dieci anni fa dal pianista venezuelano che riunisce alcuni dei massimi strumentisti di quella nazione, il più famoso dei quali è l'arpista Edmar Castaneda. Nata grazie a una sovvenzione di “Chamber Music America," Venezuelan Suite svela le alte doti di compositore ...
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