Jazz Articles about Neo Bass Ensemble

The Neo Bass Ensemble: Bebop Meets Bass

by Elliott Simon
July 7, 2006

Granted, you wouldn't want a steady diet of a band fronted by five double bassists and a cello, but Lisle Atkinson's Neo Bass Ensemble more than accomplishes its stated goal on Bebop Meets Bass. As the title implies, these tunes are played in the bebop tradition with unique arrangements designed to fit the unorthodox instrumentation. Many of these chestnuts have been played every which way over the years, but Atkinson is able to use the fronting strings, two female vocalists ...