Jazz Articles about Rob Mazurek

Starlicker: Double Demon

by Troy Collins
May 21, 2011

Since the turn of the Millennium, cornetist Rob Mazurek has been one of the most intrepid explorers in the field of electro-acoustic jazz improvisation. From the seminal efforts of his flagship collective, the Chicago Underground (Duo to Orchestra), to recent endeavors like Exploding Star Orchestra, Mandarin Movie and his own self-titled Quintet, all of Mazurek's projects have featured computerized and/or electronic sound manipulation as a key element--which makes his most recent venture, the acoustic trio Starlicker, all the more intriguing.

Rob Mazurek: Sound Is

by AAJ Italy Staff
September 28, 2009

C'è molto di quella che è stata fino a oggi la carriera di Mazurek in questo eccellente disco, registrato assieme ad alcuni suoi vecchi compagni di viaggio attraverso l'underground di Chicago e di San Paolo del Brasile. In effetti, il cornettista quarantaquattrenne riunisce in queste quattordici tracce uno sviluppo di suoni ipnotici che si susseguono nella consequenzialità sposata alla libertà espressiva di Bill Dixon e Sun Ra e all'uso essenziale dell'elettronica. Nella cosmogonia di Mazurek non sono certo secondari neanche ...

Rob Mazurek Quintet: Sound Is

by Nic Jones
June 16, 2009

On the surface, cornet and keyboard player Rob Mazurek doesn't seem to have a lot of time for the past. His commitment to music outside of any overt “jazz" continuum helps keep him fresh and avoid the sterility of a neo-conservative stance, so that even when the experimental nature of the music misfires, the degree of commitment still shines through.

All of this is apparent when his cornet comes to the fore on “The Earthquake Tree," where soloist and band ...

Rob Mazurek Quintet: Sound Is

by Troy Collins
March 24, 2009

Currently residing in Brasilia, Brazil, but making frequent returns to his hometown of Chicago, cornetist Rob Mazurek is the quintessential international artist, and one of the Windy City's most prolific scene leaders. A former hard bop prodigy, Mazurek long ago took the road less traveled, developing into one of today's most creative sound sculptors. Moving beyond the confines of traditional performance, he has expanded his reach as a multi-media artist while continuing to lead the Chicago Underground, Exploding Star Orchestra, ...

Rob Mazurek's excellent adventures in Brazil and France

by Mark Corroto
November 17, 2008

Like bassist Williams Parker or fellow midwesterner, reed player Ken Vandermark, trumpeter and cornetist Rob Mazurek is a hub around which much creative activity revolves. He is a musician, musical organizer and visual artist whose hunger for invention is seemingly limitless. After his early (1990s) foray into bebop, he began to realize the possibilities of modern sound in the hotbed of the creative Chicago scene. He was a force behind the Chicago Underground collective bands and Tigersmilk, and a key ...

Chicago Underground Trio: Chronicle [CD - DVD]

by AAJ Italy Staff
September 3, 2007

Filmare della musica da vivo e aggiungervi un apporto creativo è cosa maledettamente difficile. La cosa più ostica è trovare innanzitutto l'equilibrio tra la documentazione di ciò che viene girato e l'idea originale del filmmaker. Ripreso allo Spazio Culturale Tedesco di Chicago, questo nuovo lavoro [in DVD, ma anche in CD] del Chicago Underground Trio [che assomma in uno tre primati: è il loro primo dal vivo, il primo con al contrabbasso Jason Ajemian, il primo completamente improvvisato] trova così ...

Exploding Star Orchestra: We Are from Somewhere Else

by AAJ Italy Staff
March 19, 2007

Per potere vivere davvero su una stella che esplode, bisogna esplorarla a fondo e negli ultimi anni Rob Mazurek lo sta facendo con una curiosità e un'energia creativa davvero singolari, infilando il suono acuminato della propria cornetta nelle fessure tra i mondi e aprendone i meccanismi in un'esplosione di colori e suoni davvero straordinaria. Così, dopo avere spostato a sud, in Brasile, l'asse delle proprie geometrie “underground" - e il progetto Sao Paulo Underground è stato tra le cose più ...