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Jerry Bergonzi: Extra Extra
by Alberto Bazzurro
L'italo-americano Jerry Bergonzi è notoriamente uno dei sommi sacerdoti del tenorsassofonismo contemporaneo--vogliamo definirlo post-coltraniano? nel suo caso più che mai--che sta a indicare di fatto l'ultimo mezzo secolo di musica afroamericana, in pratica ciò che è arrivato dopo lo svolgersi delle avanguardie storiche (in quanto tali, appunto, non perché dopo si siano esaurite, per buona sorte), alle quali non ha mai guardato con troppa attenzione. Il fatto che sia nato (a Boston) nel 1947 ci dice come questo ...
Continue ReadingPandelis Karayorgis Trio: The Hasaan, Hope & Monk Project
by Mark Corroto
Thelonious Monk is quoted as saying, “the piano ain't got no wrong notes." He most certainly said this in response to the criticism of his approach to both composing and performance. In what sounds blasphemous today, critics and other musicians in the early days of bebop flat out said he couldn't play. Perhaps the lesson here is that nonpareil outliers who maintain the conviction of their methods ultimately prevail. That most certainly is the driving force behind pianist Pandelis Karayorgis' ...
Continue ReadingJared Sims: Against All Odds
by Jack Bowers
Any tenor saxophonist with the surname Sims is certain to draw the attention of a seasoned reviewer, if only out of curiosity. The first name in this instance is Jared, not Zoot (well, not John). As it turns out, Sims has an impressive resume as a performer, writer, educator and leader; Against All Odds is at least his tenth album as foreman of his own group. Jared Sims is a capable player who knows his way around a horn; what ...
Continue ReadingPandelis Karayorgis Double Trio: CliffPools
by Neri Pollastri
Ateniese di nascita, ma ormai residente a Boston dal 1985, il pianista Pandelis Karayorgis riunisce in questo album i due piano trio—rispettivamente Cliff e Pools—con i quali aveva registrato per la Driff Records altrettanti lavori negli anni precedenti, dando vita a una formazione atipica: un quintetto con due contrabbassi e due batterie, formalmente un doppio trio che condivide il pianoforte. A fronte dell'organico e dei lunghi studi dedicati dal pianista a Thelonious Monk e Lennie Tristano, non stupisce ...
Continue ReadingPandelis Karayorgis Double Trio: CliffPools
by Mark Corroto
Visit any dog park and you'll notice canines need no instruction on how to play together. Chasing the ball, chasing each other, or investigating a pond is quite instinctive for our furry friends. Apologies for equating the master musicians heard on CliffPools with a pack of dogs, but a ferocious struggle for dominance this is not. Boston-based pianist Pandelis Karayorgis had the idea to merge two of his piano/bass/drums trios into one coterie of kindred spirits. His trio work with ...
Continue ReadingLawnmower: Lawnmower II
by Vincenzo Roggero
Lawnmower è un'idea musicale del batterista Luther Gray (Anthony Braxton, Ken Vandermark, Joe McPhee per citare alcune sue frequentazioni) che nel 2010 si concretizzò sulla label portoghese Clean Feed in un'inedita formazione completata da due chitarre elettriche e da un sassofono. Quattro anni dopo il leader si ripresenta con il fido Jim Hobbs al contralto (Bill Lowe, Taylor Ho Bynum, Joe Morris etc, ) sostituendo le due chitarre con violino e basso elettrico. Così quella miscela di ...
Continue ReadingLawnmower: Lawnmower II
by Troy Collins
Drummer Luther Gray described in the liner notes to West, Lawnmower's 2010 Clean Feed debut, that the record was an attempt to reconcile the various genres he'd worked in throughout his career--an all-inclusive approach that could be traced back to the stylistically diverse music he listened to on a Walkman while mowing lawns in his youth. Lawnmower II, the quartet's sophomore effort, reinforces Gray's initial inspiration, conjuring aural impressions of the lazy, hazy days of summer.The new album ...
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