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Jazz Articles about Shelly Berg
Kenny Wheeler Legacy: Some Days Are Better: The Lost Scores
by Francesco Varriale
A distanza di pochi mesi dal decennale della scomparsa di Kenny Wheeler (avvenuta il 18 settembre 2014) e in prossimità di quello che sarebbe stato il suo novantacinquesimo compleanno, la Greenleaf Music pubblica un omaggio al musicista canadese, le cui composizioni vengono proposte secondo arrangiamenti dell'autore che mai erano stati eseguiti in questa forma. Si tratta di un ambito--quello della musica per ensemble allargati--che Wheeler ha più volte curato nella sua vasta produzione artistica, a cominciare da Windmill ...
Continue ReadingShelly Berg: Alegria
by Pierre Giroux
Shelly Berg's Alegria is a journey through the landscapes of love, joy and reflection. Joined by longtime collaborators bassist Carlitos Del Puerto and drummer Dafnis Prieto, along with tenor saxophonist Melvin Butler on a couple of tracks, Berg creates a sound that is bustling and approachable. The eleven tracks release are predominately Berg originals, with two reinterpretations of classics from Leonard Bernstein and The Beatles, each designed to offer a narrative that reflects Berg's connection to ...
Continue ReadingLorraine Feather's Language Turns A Witty Phrase
by Ken Dryden
I got to know Lorraine Feather through reviewing several of her CDs, amazed by her gifts as a lyricist and singer, who was equally at home with witty songs and tender ballads. I first met Lorraine when she was performing at the late lamented Manhattan club Danny's Skylight Room with pianist Shelly Berg. We would chat during IAJE conferences and I was delighted when she invited me to write the liner notes for this CD. This release stands the test ...
Continue ReadingChris Walden: Missa Iubileum Aureum: Golden Jubilee Jazz Mass
by Jack Bowers
First things first: there is no doubt that Chris Walden's reverential Missa Iubileum Aureum ("Golden Jubilee Jazz Mass") is beautifully written and wonderfully performed by the LMR Jazz Orchestra, St. Dominick's Schola Cantorum and cantors Kurt Elling and Tierney Sutton. Is it jazz? That is another question, one not so easily answered. While there are elements of jazz, they are incidental and generally overshadowed by the more doctrinal aspects of what is essentially an homage to devotion and piety. And ...
Continue ReadingVarious Artists: Ella 100 Live at the Apollo
by Jim Worsley
To be taken back in time within the scope of a period piece movie has long been a staple. Some journeys feel much more real than others, but the concept is commonplace. Venturing into the past with only the audio of a CD or record is, as they might have said back in 1934, “a whole different kettle of fish." A live audience first laid eyes and ears on this 100th birthday celebration honoring the sensational Ella Fitzgerald (born on ...
Continue ReadingShelly Berg and David Finck: The Deep
by Dr. Judith Schlesinger
So it happens that pianist Shelly Berg and bassist David Finck were hired by Chesky Records to play on a Livingston Taylor album. After they finished that session, with the high-end audiophile equipment still in place, David Chesky suggested the two stay and make a duo album themselves. And so they did, virtually on the spot. Since Berg and Finck play so well together, and know a lot of tunes, it was easy to come up with a ...
Continue ReadingKen Peplowski: Noir Blue
by AAJ Italy Staff
Ken Peplowski con questo disco sa come comunicare emozioni all'ascoltatore in quanto, come giustamente viene notato nelle note di copertina, “è ispirato" e non perchè deve fare qualcosa per essere presente sul mercato discografico a tutti i costi. Noir Blue costituisce una prova insolita, rivolta ad ascoltatori piuttosto smaliziati, che oltre agli standards di Ray Noble, Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn e Hoagy Carmichael offre anche un original come “Little Dogs," brano senza un preciso centro tonale ed ispirato ad Ornette ...
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