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Art Hirahara: Open Sky
by David A. Orthmann
At the close of each track of Art Hirahara's Open Sky it feels like the slate gets wiped clean and the record begins anew. The disc is rife with turnabouts and the contrasts in character of the thirteen performances are often startling. In the first four cuts alone, an insistent post-bop line ("Groundswell") gives way to elegant, deep-seated swing ("Inimitably, Mr. B."), followed by the leader's deliciously slow, almost fragile solo piano ("Peony"), and a decidedly percussive conversation between four ...
Continue ReadingLisa Hilton: Transparent Sky
by Mike Jurkovic
It is a real wonder why a genuinely and generously creative spirit such as pianist Lisa Hilton hasn't broken through to a larger audience. Her philosophy of new ideas tied to older heartbeats, countered effusively by an actively improvisational impressionism, has resulted in a discography brightly colored with real beauts such as Chalkboard Destiny (2019), Oasis (2018), Escapism (2017), Day & Night (2016) and Nocturnal, (2016) (all on her own Ruby Slippers Productions.) Now add Transparent Sky to ...
Continue ReadingRudy Royston: In This Moment
by David Bixler
Drummer and composer Rudy Royston has created new music for his band Flatbed Buggy for the In this Moment concert series at St. Peter's Church in NYC which will be streamed May 1st at 2pm EST. The music is loosely programmatic, representing a day in the life of the composer in the time of Covid. In the episode of Liner Notes, Rudy sheds light on how the pandemic has affected him both as a person and as a ...
Continue ReadingAmina Figarova: Persistence
by Maurizio Zerbo
Il pregio della varietà sostanzia la cifra artistica della pianista Amina Figarova, non circoscritta entro i soli confini del jazz. Dopo il progetto orchestrale del penultimo CD, la musicista azera residente a New York apre la finestra del suo etereo pensiero compositivo verso i territori della fusion, del funk, del rap. Da queste premesse discende un disco ibrido nella sua eccellente realizzazione, che testimonia la continua evoluzione del jazz e la nobiltà dei suoi migliori protagonisti. A far da tessuto ...
Continue ReadingBehn Gillece: Still Doing Our Thing
by Kyle Simpler
2020 was an unusual year to say the least, much in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This resulted in global restrictions, causing people to make drastic changes in everyday life. The situation was particularly challenging for musicians. For one thing, live performances were on hiatus, creating new problems for players who relied on performing live. In spite of these challenges, however, many musicians were persistent, finding ways to make the best of an unfortunate situation. Vibraphonist Behn Gillece is ...
Continue ReadingAlexa Tarantino: Firefly
by Dan McClenaghan
The twenty-first century sees many of us talking to a cloud-based artificial intelligence: “Alexa, play my music." And so she does. The time frame also sees the emergence of a talented human Alexa--Alexa Tarantino, who plays her music, on Firefly, the woodwindist's third album release on Posi- Tone Records, an evolutionary leap forward— conceptually and compositionally—from her debut, Winds of Change (2019), and her second outing, Clarity (2020), both on Posi-Tone Records. Fronting a quintet which includes vibraphonist ...
Continue ReadingDan McCarthy: A Place Where We Once Lived
by Friedrich Kunzmann
In light of Dan McCarthy's stunning new effort, the vibraphonist's last two outings, Abstract City (Origin Records, 2019) and Epoch (Origin Records, 2019), can be regarded as statements of intent. Both more than noteworthy musical offerings at opposite ends of the jazz spectrum (discussed on All About Jazz here ), the two albums give followers a good idea of Dan McCarthy's flawless craftsmanship and wide range. On A Place Where We Once Lived the Canadian vibraphonist combines the lyrical melodic ...
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