Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Roberto Magris Quintet: Mating Call

286

Roberto Magris Quintet: Mating Call

By

View read count
Roberto Magris Quintet: Mating Call
In 2008, Italian jazz pianist Roberto Magris came to Kansas City to record Kansas City Outbound (PCAMI 2008) in a trio setting with the late bassist, Dr. Art Davis. Mating Call builds on that success; a straight-ahead project reconnecting with the area on the upstart Kansas City-based J-Mood Records, another evolution from Paul Collins of PCAMI Records. This time, Magris returns to the area, bringing with him jazz drummer Idris Muhammad from New York, saxophonist Paul Carr from Washington, D.C., tenor saxophonist Michael O'Neill from San Fransisco , and Charlotte, NC-based bassist Elisa Pruett. A pure straight-ahead project, the pianist borrows four vibrant charts and contributes only three originals—surprising, considering his knack for creative composition.

Magris' "Optional Man" opens the set with a catchy melody, led by Carr's soprano and a call-and-response from O'Neill, as the music moves briskly to include inevitable solos from the pianist and bassist, who sets up a calm finale. Magris plays electric piano on "Hill of Illusions," as the band begins in semi-funky territory and turns to a more hard bop settting on the wings of Carr's devilish soprano lead. O'Neill digs right into the music with a challenging phrasing of his own, with Magris eventually taking over with a taste of wizardry on the keys.

J.J. Johnson's "Lament"—originally written as a slow ballad—is rearranged here as an up-tempo piece with a Latin-tinged bounce and plenty of swing, featuring Muhammad's slow rumbling drum solo with the reed men playing in harmony. One of the lighter moments occurs on a gorgeous interpretation of Fred Lacey's ballad, "Theme For Ernie," marked by O'Neill's soulful, floating tenor lines. The pianist uses this occasion to demonstrate his appreciable chops with a notable performance.

Tadd Dameron's title piece takes on an entirely new twist, revisited here in a darkly hypnotic, medium tempo rhythm, extending past thirteen minutes in length in what seems like a departure from the album's main course. In stark contrast, "Europlane Blues" delivers a lively upbeat texture, incorporating a snappy swinging rhythm led by Magris' bluesy chords. Leonard Bernstein's closing "Lonely Town" is all Magris, performing a solo piece whose light touches turn into a breathtaking, command performance as his right hand covers the keys in blazing speed.

A remarkable performance by one of the world's finest jazz pianists, Magris continues to impress jazz audiences from Europe to Kansas City with Mating Call, providing another shining example of this artist's boundless potential. The music here is not typical or ordinary; it is creative, quite entertaining and superbly performed by all.

Track Listing

Optional Man; Hill of Illusion; Lament; Theme For Ernie; Mating Call; Europlane Blues; Lonely Town.

Personnel

Roberto Magris: piano, electric piano; Paul Carr: soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone; Michael O'Neill: tenor saxophone; Elisa Pruett: acoustic bass; Idris Muhammad: drums.

Album information

Title: Mating Call | Year Released: 2010 | Record Label: J-Mood Records

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.