Jazz Articles about Michael Dessen

Michael Dessen Trio: Forget the Pixel

by AAJ Italy Staff
September 7, 2011

I brani sono sette ma l'ora di musica contenuta in Forget the Pixel (bel titolo preso dalla prima riga del poema di Phillis Levin “Open Field") può essere vista come un'unica suite, concepita già all'origine per una esibizione senza interruzioni del trio. Il trio, per l'appunto, ma dovremmo parlare di quartetto perché l'elettronica utilizzata dal leader, il trombonista Michael Dessen, è a tutti gli effetti il quarto strumento utilizzato per la registrazione. Già da diversi anni studioso degli sviluppi nell'uso ...

Michael Dessen Trio: Forget The Pixel

by Robert Bush
July 28, 2011

Trombonist Michael Dessen once studied with George Lewis, hung with Ray Anderson, and has ascended to their level on the creative improvising scene. Dessen has his own distinct style, one that values nuanced gestures as highly as it does exuberance; therefore his music creates a micro world of detail and organically developed themes. The music for this album was actualized over the course of a year of experimentation. Dessen's trio-mates live in NYC, and he would visit ...

Michael Dessen Trio: Forget The Pixel

by Glenn Astarita
July 18, 2011

This jazz trio, manned by Southern California-based slide trombonist Michael Dessen, sports a full-sized sound and abides by a rather springy group-centric mode of attack. Dessen's solo work, co-leader outings, and stints with major progressive-jazz artists complement his educational duties at the University of California, Irvine. The trombonist parlays a worldly and comprehensive stance on Forget The Pixel, where the musicians share equal footing amid rousing passages, bustling rhythms, and the leader's bizarre, yet sagacious electronics overlays. The ...

Michael Dessen Trio : Irvine CA, May 7, 2011

by Robert Bush
May 26, 2011

Michael Dessen TrioUC Irvine, Winifred Smith HallIrvine, CaliforniaMay 7, 2011 Michael Dessen is, according to a frequent employer, the contrabass virtuoso Mark Dresser, “a black-belt trombonist." He is, in fact such a consummate sideman in so many contexts that the opportunity to hear him as a leader is a rare treat, indeed. Dessen was able to bring his NYC trio-mates out for this concert : on double-bass, the phenomenal Christopher Tordini, ...

Michael Dessen Trio: Between Shadow and Space

by Greg Camphire
November 20, 2008

Between Shadow and Space is an aptly named release from trombonist and computer manipulator Michael Dessen’s trio, which creates oblique and evasive soundscapes that can’t be easily categorized. As Dessen writes in the album’s liner notes, “the past half century has produced a staggering array of improvisational music…my music draws energy from overlapping musical communities and histories.” 

Michael Dessen: Between Shadow and Space

by AAJ Italy Staff
September 16, 2008

Ecco un Cd attuale, piuttosto vario, senza dubbio interessante, anche se non convincente dall'inizio alla fine. In quasi tutti i brani Dessen affianca al trombone l’utilizzo del computer, deformando ed integrando con sonorità filamentose la pronuncia classica dell'ottone. Fra i trombonisti dell'avanguardia storica Grachan Moncur III è quello il cui insegnamento traspare maggiormente nel linguaggio di Dessen: l'attacco delle note, inizialmente deciso e screziato, nelle parti finali delle frasi evolve verso un ripiegamento un po' malinconico. Ciò è evidente soprattutto ...

Michael Dessen Trio: Between Shadow and Space

by Troy Collins
July 30, 2008

A trombonist with strong roots in the acoustic tradition and a fondness for cutting edge electronic experimentation, Michael Dessen straddles the line between the avant-garde and the accessible better than most. A dauntless sonic explorer, Dessen has bolstered his extensive academic career studying with icons like Anthony Davis, Yusef Lateef and George Lewis.

In addition to numerous projects involving solo trombone performances augmented by live electronics, Dessen is a member of the West Coast quartet Cosmologic, whose recent ...