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Art Hirahara: Balance Point
by Kyle Simpler
There are times in life when many of us try to find a sense of stability in an uncertain world. New York-based pianist Art Hirahara refers to this as homeostasis, or “a sense of balance within ourselves regardless of what is happening around us." With Balance Point, his fifth release for Posi-Tone Records, Hirahara uses the idea of homeostasis as his central concept. He presents his own “transformative journey," inviting listeners come along for the ride. Balance Point ...
Continue ReadingMelissa Aldana: Visions
by Serena Antinucci
L'ultimo progetto della sassofonista cilena Melissa Aldana, governato da invasioni e tensioni musicali, è il ritratto schietto della vita nel suo continuo divenire, fatto di stacchi improvvisi, passi indietro e sguardi critici sulla realtà. In Visions (Motéma Music, 2019) ci sono architetture sonore difficili da verbalizzare e, a volte, le parole scompaiono timidamente sommerse dai suoni. Gli undici brani del disco sono il risultato di un profondo studio, di una vitalità trascinante, a volte mista al dolore. Aldana, ...
Continue ReadingMelissa Aldana: Visions
by Friedrich Kunzmann
Compositional and instrumental virtuosity always walks along a razor's edge between self-indulgence and purposeful accomplishment. On Visions, sought after saxophonist Melissa Aldana proves that she doesn't only master balancing this edge but that she can also go beyond the complexities of structure, scales and improvisation and naturally create her very own musical aesthetic. In interplay with an all-star cast of equally dynamic sidemen—Sam Harris on keys, Pablo Menares on bass, as well as drummer Tommy Crane and Joel Ross adding ...
Continue ReadingMelissa Aldana: Back Home
by Vincenzo Roggero
Back Home, quarto disco da leader di Melissa Aldana, sassofonista cilena vincitrice del prestigioso Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competion 2013, ha tutte le caratteristiche per diventare un piccolo classico del genere. Per la maturità dimostrata dalla ventisettenne sassofonista, la rigorosità del repertorio, la solidità del trio, la definizione del suono. Le nove composizioni del disco, otto delle quali originali, pur nella loro specificità, possono essere viste come una unica suite caratterizzata per lo più da tempi medi, con minime variazione ...
Continue ReadingMelissa Aldana: Back Home
by Mark F. Turner
Saxophonist Melissa Aldana leaves an indelible impression of her musicality in Back Home, her fourth release as a leader. She was the first female instrumentalist and first South American to win the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition in 2013. One listen to her tenor's flowing birdsong and the symbiotic connection with longtime trio mates bassist Pablo Menares and drummer Jochen Rueckert it is understood the work she's put in and the gift she possesses. First there's Aldanas's ...
Continue ReadingMelissa Aldana: Living a Second Cycle
by Marta Ramon
Melissa Aldana may still be in her early twenties, but the tenor saxophonist already knows what it is like to play with big jazz names like saxophonists George Coleman, Benny Golson and George Garzone. In a short time, Aldana has found her own place in the difficult New York jazz scene because she has developed a new voice that has commanded the attention of both the public and her peers.An obvious talent, one which made Greg Osby stand ...
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