Jazz Articles about Jane Bunnett

Jane Bunnett: Embracing Voices

by Tomas Pena
November 12, 2008

Jane Bunnett, the Toronto soprano saxophonist, flutist and bandleader and her husband, trumpeter Larry Cramer have built their careers at the crossroads between Cuban music and jazz. Twice nominated for Grammy Awards and a fixture at the nominations for Canada's Juno Awards, their bands are virtual showcases for the finest musical talent from Canada, the United States and Cuba.Bunnett has long held an ongoing love affair with the human voice. Embracing Voices (Blue Note, 2008)--one of her most ...

Jane Bunnett: Embracing Voices

by Raul d'Gama Rose
August 13, 2008

Jane Bunnett Embracing Voices EMI Canada/Blue Note 2008

Jane Bunnett is never afraid to push the envelope. She did so with her 1988 album, In Dew Time, the now out-of-print vinyl that was produced privately by the Toronto imprint, Dark Light, on which producer, husband and trumpet/flugelhorn player Larry Cramer scooped both keyboard player Don Pullen and saxophonist Dewey Redman. Then followed an extraordinary slew of records, from those featuring Pullen--New York ...

Jane Bunnett: The Spirit's Dancing in the Flesh!

by Raul d'Gama Rose
April 24, 2008

"The ant's a centaur in his dragon's world.Pull down thy vanity, it is not manMade courage, or made order, or made grace,          Pull down thy vanity, I say pull down.Learn of the green world what can be thy placeIn scaled invention or true artistry,Pull down thy vanity,          Paquin, pull down!The green casque has outdone your elegance."

Jane Bunnett: Radio Guantanamo: Guantanamo Blues Project Vol. 1

by George Kanzler
October 10, 2006

This album from soprano saxophonist/flutist Jane Bunnett and her trumpeter husband, Larry Cramer, is a rich musical gumbo not only exploring the ancient Afro-Haitian-influenced changüi music of southeastern Cuba, but also stirring it up with jazz and the music of New Orleans. Most tracks feature one of two Cuban traditional bands, Grupo Changüi de Guantánamo or Grupo Changüi de Santiago. They each include hand drums, shakers, rattles and the guitar-like tres. On traditional changüi songs, the jazz ...

Jane Bunnett: Radio Guantánamo: Guantánamo Blues Project Vol. 1

by Jeff Dayton-Johnson
September 4, 2006

Canadian saxophonist/flautist Jane Bunnett's latest installment in her long and amply requited love affair with Cuban music directs our attention to changüi, a precursor to son from the eastern part of the island that dates back to the late eighteenth century. Two changüi ensembles, from Santiago and Guantánamo (the latter featuring the incredible singing of José A. Moreaux Jardines on “Vamos Para Guaso Compay ), are featured on several tracks. The complex history of the music makes for interesting liner ...

Jane Bunnett: Red Dragonfly

by Ken Franckling
June 5, 2005

Toronto-based soprano saxophonist Jane Bunnett has built a solid career that for more than a decade has been focused on exploring traditional jazz and folk music from Cuba, touring with her Spirits of Havana band and also working to bring or send instruments to needy young Cuban players. Red Dragonfly is both an extension of and a departure from her Cuban projects, and it's also her most ambitious and intriguing work to date. Primarily it consists of ...

Jane Bunnett: Red Dragonfly

by Jerry D'Souza
May 23, 2005

For a long time now Jane Bunnett has been a champion of Cuban musicians and their music. What's more, she has several albums that showcase both. This time around, Bunnett expands her parameters to play folk music from several countries. Besides a core jazz band, she also includes a string quartet. Together they take the music beyond jazz to add lush orchestral textures, and at times a tad too much sweetening. This happens on “Heaven's Gate," where the quartet is ...