Jazz Articles about Michael Brecker

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Essential Michael Brecker

by Jason West
January 18, 2007

This article was originally published at All About Jazz in November 1999. Michael Brecker's contributions to music are generous and, like the pregnant ideas that flow from his tenor horn, they continue to grow. At 50, the saxophonist has found acceptance in a wide variety of musical settings, having performed with pop stars like John Lennon, Frank Sinatra, Bruce Springsteen, and jazz heavyweights the likes of Freddie Hubbard, Charles Mingus, and Jaco Pastorius. Brecker's resume includes extensive work ...

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Michael Brecker: Wide Angles

by Elliott Simon
November 15, 2003

Assembling fifteen top jazz musicians to play complex original material is risky business. The session could turn into a repetitive solo showcase or conversely lose its sharpness amidst overproduced arrangements. However, Wide Angles, from tenor saxophonist Michael Brecker, comes off as an adventurous presentation of new music in a format rife with possibilities. With a string section, English horn, bass clarinet, flute, French horn and oboe among the traditional big band mix of drums, bass and brass, Brecker keeps things ...

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Mike Pope: The Lay of the Land

by Alexander M. Stern
August 25, 2003

In a year that has already produced a number of excellent recordings, Mike Pope's The Lay of the Land may well be one of the best. It's certainly one of the most exciting new albums this reviewer has heard in a long time. Pope, who excels on both acoustic and electric bass, has surrounded himself with major label talent for this indie label release: both Randy and Michael Brecker make appearances, saxophonist Seamus Blake appears on two tracks; guitarist Mike ...

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Mike Pope: The Lay of the Land

by Phil DiPietro
November 15, 2002

Mike Pope plays a mean piano. He's also a noted inventor, designing and building pre-amps for the boutique bass builders Fodera. But really he's a bassist; and not surprisingly, a skilled, er... pontif--icator on both electric and acoustic. He's also a fine mainstream jazz composer and has assembled an all-star cast of musicians here, including heavy hitters the Brecker Brothers, Mike Stern, Joe Locke, Jeff “Tain" Watts and his doubling double John Patitucci to assist in expressing his vision. Bloomdaddy ...

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Sarah Jane Cion: Summer Night

by C. Michael Bailey
October 1, 2001

Ms. Cion's follow up to Moon Song will not disappoint; she is a major dynamo in a quiet and lyrical sort of way.

Sarah Jane Cion, the jazz pianist-composer, has a beautiful consistency about her. For her follow up to last year's well-received Moon Song, she has chosen another nocturnal title, Summer Night. Her compositions on both recordings allude to nature in all its manifestations. “The Pond Beneath the Moon," “Moon Song," and “Suncycle" from Moon Song parallel well with ...

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Sarah Jane Cion: Summer Night

by C. Michael Bailey
October 1, 2001

Ms. Cion's follow up to Moon Song will not disappoint; she is a major dynamo in a quiet and lyrical sort of way.

Sarah Jane Cion, the jazz pianist-composer, has a beautiful consistency about her. For her follow up to last year's well-received Moon Song, she has chosen another nocturnal title, Summer Night. Her compositions on both recordings allude to nature in all its manifestations. “The Pond Beneath the Moon," “Moon Song," and “Suncycle" from Moon Song parallel well with ...

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Michael Brecker: Nearness of You: The Ballad Book

by David Adler
July 1, 2001

There comes a time, it seems, when every major-label jazzer has to add a ballads album to his or her discography. That time has come for Michael Brecker, who enlists the formidable Pat Metheny as both producer and guitarist. Along for the ride are three players you may have heard of: Herbie Hancock, Charlie Haden, and Jack DeJohnette. The 11 tracks (divided into two five-track “chapters" and a one-track “epilogue") are flawlessly executed--practically airbrushed--and as mainstream as can be, but ...