Jazz Articles about Steve Wood

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Sven Anderson: Doc's Holiday

by Jack Bowers
April 29, 2022

Teachers are often unaware of the impact they have on students' lives and careers. That is clearly the case with pianist Sven Anderson's album, Doc's Holiday, whose title number is dedicated to Marvin (Doc) Holladay, one of Anderson's teachers many years ago at Michigan's Oakland University. Holladay, who has been on “holiday" in Ecuador with his wife, Diane, since 2006, says that not only was he completely unaware of the dedication, at age ninety-three he was unable to recall Anderson ...

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Stéphane Spira, Giovanni Mirabassi: Improkofiev

by Thomas Fletcher
June 26, 2020

Dwelling on previous influences and past concepts to construct a fresh approach to an idea is a common approach in jazz. The title of this album indicates a pathway into the art of giving classical repertoire some jazz characteristics. Introduced to Prokofiev around 2005 by a Turkish jazz presenter and radio host, Stéphane Spira was fascinated by the Russian composer's dense and rich harmonies. “As soon as I heard the Violin Concerto," says Spira, “I was struck by ...

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Spirabassi: Improkofiev

by Jack Bowers
June 23, 2020

There haven't been many jazz quartets whose front line consists solely of a soprano saxophone (Wayne Shorter's is the only one that springs readily to mind). The cleverly named Spirabassi pairs French-born soprano saxophonist Stephane Spira with Italian-bred pianist Giovanni Mirabassi in a group whose other members are bassist Steve Wood and a second Frenchman, drummer Donald Kontomanou, with Yoann Loustalot's radiant flugelhorn added on Part 1 of the album's centerpiece, the “Improkofiev Suite." Spirabassi is also the name of ...

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Stephane Spira: Improkofiev

by Edward Blanco
June 19, 2020

French soprano saxophonist Stephane Spira and Italian-born pianist Giovanni Mirabassi recorded their first album together back in 2009. Improkofiev is the pair's first collaboration since then. After a ten-year period spent in New York, where he developed a flourishing musical career, Spira returned to France and continued his jazz career, reuniting with friend Mirabassi. This album is the duo's attempt to recapture their shared past and a provide little reinvention in both their lives and music. The co-leaders ...

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Brad Felt Nu Quartet Plus: First Call

by John Barron
May 26, 2010

Veteran Detroit jazz musician Brad Felt has been championing the role of the euphonium and tuba as front-line instruments for over thirty years. Felt has an extensive sideman résumé, having performed with notable artists such as Roy Brooks, Martha Reeves and Howard Johnson's Gravity. First Call is an introduction to Felt's progressive jazz ensemble Nu Quartet Plus, featuring saxophonist and longtime musical associate Steve Wood.

Felt composes with an intriguing playfulness, building on rhythmic motifs and cleverly engaging euphonium and ...