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Matthew Whitaker: Connections
by La-Faithia White
Multi-instrumentalist Matthew Whitaker opens up and shares some personal moments on Connections. The journey begins with the light, suave “Journey Uptown." The tune grabs attention right away with an energetic upbeat feel which takes one on a magical journey of percussion and piano. “Bye-Ya" features Jon Batiste on piano. Written by Thelonious Monk, Batiste and Whitaker display their talents on piano and other keyboards. The sound is theatrical and has an Art Tatumish feel. “Stop Fighting" has ...
Continue ReadingAnne Mette Iversen Quartet + 1: Racing a Butterfly
by Friedrich Kunzmann
A working collective since 2002, Anne Mette Iversen's quartet—saxophonist John Ellis, pianist Danny Grissett, drummer Otis Brown III and Iversen herself on bass—has developed a unique musical language, which transcends typical stigmas of the genre and demonstrates a special sense of light-footedness in navigating through the different bars and meters, all the while evading the self-indulgent. Augmented to a quintet with the addition of trombonist Peter Dahlgren, Racing A Butterfly sees Iverson building on concepts introduced on past outings Milo ...
Continue ReadingAnne Mette Iversen: Racing a Butterfly
by Mike Jurkovic
Many can surely recall the sunny, childlike fervor and bounce chasing a butterfly. Whether it was the park behind the projects or a rolling, rural vista, a feeling of wonder and wander settled into our core memory, only to be summoned in up from the subconscious to displace the current. Even if but for a moment. Even if but for the forty-eight or so minutes of Racing a Butterfly's capering wit. No one is afraid to follow a ...
Continue ReadingOtis Brown III + Revive Big Band at Central Park Summerstage
by Ernest Barteldes
Otis Brown III + Revive Big Band Blue Note Records 75th Anniversary at Central Park Summerstage August 3, 2014 New York, NY On an evening dedicated to the 75th anniversary of Blue Note Records (now a subsidiary of Universal Music), drummer Otis Brown III began the proceedings by leading his quintet through hard-bopping original material, opening with “The Way to the Light," a rumba-based tune with a simple structure that became fodder ...
Continue ReadingEsperanza Spalding: Esperanza
by AAJ Italy Staff
Ha un nome che è una dichiarazione d'intenti: Esperanza. Ha bruciato le tappe di una carriera che a soli 24 anni può dirsi formidabile. Contrabbassista, insegnante di contrabbasso a 20 anni al Berklee College, ha suonato con Stanley Clarke, Pat Metheny e Joe Lovano, per citare i più grandi. Poi ha pensato di fare da sé. E per il suo esordio, Esperanza, non ha badato a fronzoli. La Heads Up le ha dato credito e “speranza". Niño Josele, James Haddad, ...
Continue ReadingEsperanza Spalding: Esperanza
by Woodrow Wilkins
From a guest appearance on Stanley Clarke's The Toys of Men (Heads Up, 2007) to her self-titled debut, Esperanza Spalding is turning heads, and opening lots of ears. After an appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman, the host called the 23-year-old vocalist/bassist/composer “the coolest guest" he'd ever had. Spalding is indeed cool, having enrolled at Berklee College of Music at 16, and ultimately becoming the institution's youngest professor in its history. She landed gigs with Patti ...
Continue ReadingEsperanza Spalding: Esperanza
by Ernest Barteldes
On this major label debut, bassist/vocalist Esperanza Spalding demonstrates plenty of eclecticism, taking on styles ranging from samba, hard-driving jazz and R&B, a risky combination in less confident hands. However, Spalding revels in the multiple directions without ever sounding pretentious. The Berklee College alum opens the disc singing in fluent Portuguese, with a small hint of an accent, on “Ponta de Areia," a Milton Nascimento/Fernando Brandt composition originally featured on Wayne Shorter's Native Dancer and often covered ...
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