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Sam Newbould Quintet: Blencathra
Blencathra, the debut album from British-born, Amsterdam-based saxophonist Sam Newbould's quintet, presents half a dozen of the leader's forward-leaning compositions and arrangements whose general point of view may be subdued, at times veering toward melancholy, but is never less than engaging. One of Newbould's strengths, even when the music is leisurely and pensive, lies in his ability to fully engage every member of the quintet in the ardent expression of its finer points. In other words, the group dynamic is ...
read moreBruce Jones: Growing Up With Jazz
The impact of living in a musical household, witnessing your dad and your uncles jamming in the basement can definitely create a positive and meaningful outlook for a young kid. Stories of growing up jazz come to mind for Bruce Jones, the eldest son of trumpeter, composer, and band leader Thad Jones. Bruce is also the nephew of pianist, arranger, composer and band leader Hank Jones, and nephew of drummer and band leader Elvin Jones.Bruce is the eldest ...
read moreAlberto Pibiri & Miriam Waks: So Many Stars
PIanist Alberto Pibiri and vocalist Miriam Waks' recording So Many Stars is a lesson in intimacy. They are an international couple, with Pibiri coming from Italy and Waks from the other side of the world, Australia. The two, married, make New York City their home. They obviously enjoy one another and performing together. They bring an intimacy to their performance. They are as fun as Broadway composers and lyricists singing their own show tunes, as smart as their polyglot song ...
read moreTim Stine Quartet: Knots
Guitarist Tim Stine leads a democratically oriented quartet with progressive/free jazz Chicago heavyweights, providing a bit of credence to the album moniker since many of these pieces are woven together with incongruent angles and geometrical designs. With false endings, scrappy breakouts and off-metered pulses, the leader's intricate chordal and single note developments assist with maintaining an unpredictable or suspenseful array of unconventional works. The band occasionally veers off into diametrical and intersecting discourses, often intensified by saxophonist Nick ...
read moreRuslan Sirota: A Journey Away
Ruslan Sirota would bristle against the classification of “pianist," “multi-instrumentalist," or “composer." He is, of course, all of these things... which is precisely the point. Raised on the songs of the Soviet and nurtured by the fusion alumni of the 1960s, Sirota has thus far navigated his professional career with an acute sense of sound, unencumbered by futile terminology. This disregard for straitjacketing semantics extends from his musical tastes to his job description. He casts such inhibitors aside in the ...
read moreAdam Berenson: Every Beginning Is A Sequel
Pianist/keyboardist/composer Adam Berenson--across more than twenty recordings--offers incontrovertible evidence that talent surpasses an affinity for category. He is equally at home with jazz, electronica, blues, or a string quartet. On his previous , fully-acoustic album, Stringent and Sempiternal (Dream Works, 2019) Berenson went in an unusual direction (for him), covering works of Miles Davis, Bud Powell, Wayne Shorter, Thelonious Monk, and Pat Metheny. His new solo box set Every Beginning Is A Sequel is an ambitious collection of electronic music ...
read moreNicolas Meier World Group: Peaceful
London-based Swiss guitarist Nicolas Meier (heard mainly on nylon string guitar here) leads his World Group quartet in a program of his compositions. The group is well named, as Meier takes inspiration from all over the world; Turkish music, Middle Eastern music, samba, flamenco and tango all mix with jazz in this sound. “Besiktas Cafe" opens the set with a sprightly waltz, Meier executing the first of many technically difficult passages with a smile and a dance step. ...
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Contest Giveaway
ELIGIBLE WINNERS: 1 | DAYS REMAINING: 22
Prize: GroundUP Music Festival Tickets
Enjoy Three Days on the Beach with Snarky Puppy, Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band, Lettuce, Cecile McLorin Salvant, Lila Downs, Michael McDonald Acoustic Quartet, Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, Flor de Toloache and more—February 14-16, 2020 at the North Beach Bandshell in Miami, FL.
The winner receives a 3-day pass for two. Excludes travel or lodging.
Acclaimed by the New York Times as one of the “Top 10 Definitive Moments of the Decade in Jazz Music,” GroundUP goes beyond the typical festival experience, breaking down the barriers between audience and artists...
