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Jazz Articles about Mary Halvorson
Susan Alcorn Quintet: Pedernal
by Troy Dostert
Pedal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn has achieved the enviable feat of commanding her own instrumental niche in the jazz world. Much like Toots Thielemans' harmonica, Gary Versace's accordion or Béla Fleck's banjo, she seems to have a unique role all to herself, at least until her substantial talents eventually spawn a host of imitators. From her beginnings playing traditional country and western in the 1980s, she has branched out considerably, in the last decade forging creative partnerships in the free ...
Continue ReadingMary Halvorson: Artlessly Falling
by John Sharpe
Not content with having scaled the heights of the guitar pantheon, with the second release from Code Girl, Mary Halvorson also cements her place in a unique genre of her own design. As befits someone who has taken to heart Anthony Braxton's dictum to find her own musical voice, she presents something which is part art song, part indie rock, part mainstream jazz and part free form, but all Halvorson. Mirroring the progression of her trio, first to ...
Continue ReadingMary Halvorson: Artlessly Falling
by Franz A. Matzner
Released by Mary Halvorson's Code Girl, Artlessly Falling presents eight new compositions, each of which is structured around a specific poetic form with accompanying lyrics/poems by Halvorson herself. The forms represent a significant diversity of cultural origins and eras, including Japanese Tanka, 12th century Sestina, French Villanelle, and Malay Pantoum. With each of the above sources arguably requiring deep study to become well-versed in, this central conceit might feel like a daring experiment, hubris, or a bit of ...
Continue ReadingMary Halvorson At 40
by John Eyles
Guitarist Mary Halvorson enrolled to study Biology at Wesleyan University, but she soon dropped the subject after sitting in on one of saxophonist Anthony Braxton's music classes there, instead studying jazz. By November 2004, shortly after her twenty-fourth birthday, Halvorson played guitar at the Royal Festival Hall, London, as a member of Braxton's quintet, the first of many appearances with the saxophonist. In addition, Halvorson played with or--from 2008--led a burgeoning number of groups, often including other Braxton alumni such ...
Continue ReadingMary Halvorson's Code Girl: Artlessly Falling
by Vic Albani
Esistono due donne nel mondo del jazz moderno che hanno mostrato di conoscere e capire in toto il genio musicale di Robert Wyatt. La prima, molto tempo fa e quindi in tempi non sospetti, è stata Carla Bley e non c'è altro da aggiungere. La seconda, che è invece colei di cui vogliamo scrivere, è Mary Halvorson, chitarrista newyorkese di Brooklyn, da almeno una dozzina di anni indicata dalla critica più attenta e intelligente quale una delle più intriganti personalità ...
Continue ReadingMary Halvorson's Code Girl: Artlessly Falling
by Troy Dostert
Aside from her most obvious musical talents, including her phenomenal guitar chops and her budding talent as a lyricist, Mary Halvorson has a special gift for understanding the abilities of her bandmates and drawing out their strengths to the fullest. Part of it is the way she tends to keep the same company in her assorted projects: bassist Michael Formanek and drummer Tomas Fujiwara are the leading examples, having recorded extensively with her in their trio Thumbscrew, as heard on ...
Continue ReadingThumbscrew: The Anthony Braxton Project
by Mark Sullivan
The Thumbscrew trio celebrates avant-garde legend Anthony Braxton's 75th birthday with this project. Given access to the Tricentric Archives of Braxton's work, they focused on previously unrecorded pieces by the composer, multi-wind master and bandleader. In addition to their playing history together guitarist Mary Halvorson, double bassist Michael Formanek and drummer/vibraphonist Tomas Fujiwara have all had extensive experience working with Braxton, making them ideally suited to these interpretations of his music. Seeking scores that fired their imaginations (as ...
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