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INTERVIEWS November 20, 2018

Rain Sultanov: Putting Baku On The Jazz Map

The Baku Jazz Festival has been a labor of love for its founder and Artistic Director, Rain Sultanov. And, like most love stories, there have been a few bumps along the road. Thirteen editions in, however, the Baku Jazz Festival is well established as one of the highpoints of Azerbaijan's annual cultural calendar. It mightn't draw the crowds or the sponsors of the Baku Formula 1 Grand Prix, but the Baku Jazz Festival is driven by something other than the ...

ALBUM REVIEWS June 17, 2018

Rain Sultanov & Isfar Sarabski: Cycle

By Ian Patterson

The church organ has been a bit player in jazz history, impacting about as much as an Alfred Hitchcock cameo--blink and you'd miss it. Jan Garbarek and Kjell Johnsen's meditative duo album Aftenland (ECM, 2000) and a trio of gothic jazz recordings by Asaf Sirkis and the Inner Noise spring to mind, but after that you'd really have to dig. Cycle sees Azerbaijan's leading jazz musicians, soprano saxophonist Rain Sultanov}] and pianist/organist {{Isfar Sarabski embrace the solemnity of church organ ...

ALBUM REVIEWS July 14, 2017

Rain Sultanov: Inspired by Nature

By Ian Patterson

Azerbaijani saxophonist/composer Rain Sultanov has long drawn inspiration from his country's rich culture and stunning landscapes. On Inspired by Nature--Sultanov's eighth release as leader--the saxophonist toggles between lyrical balladry and passionate exposition as he takes Azerbaijan's nature as his muse. And it has been an epic venture. With a band of trusted musicians, Sultanov led an expedition around Azerbaijan, recording the natural sounds they encountered in the great mountains, by the Caspian Sea and on the flat plains. These recordings ...