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Jacob Varmus Septet: Aegean
by Dan Bilawsky
The existence of this album is firm proof that you never know just when or how a benefactor can come into view. Lifelong jazz fan Apostolos Georgopoulos was passing through upstate New York and he had the opportunity to spend a weekend with Connie Casey and Harold Varmus. Upon hearing some music at their home that piqued his interest, Georgopolous learned that their son, Jacob Varmus, was a jazz trumpeter. Then, after being exposed to Jacob Varmus' All The Things ...
read moreJacob Varmus: Terminal Stillness
by Dan Bilawsky
Jazz is always caught up in the idea of looking forward or backwards, but whatever happened to the idea of looking around? Much ado about movement--toward the future, the past, the next chord in the progression or the next stage of a career--often gets in the way of the simple act of creation. The jazz community, by-and-large, prefers the time-lapse version of music, but that doesn't mean that some within this tight-knit club aren't fond of stills. Take trumpeter Jacob ...
read moreJacob Varmus: All the Things We Still Can Be
by Dan McClenaghan
Some influences are readily apparent on trumpeter Jacob Varmus' debut disc, All the Things We Still Can Be, especially Chet Baker and Miles Davis, circa mid-'50s to mid-'60s. The set opens with a buoyant Varmus original, “Ecstatic Little Porpoises." Varmus' tone is warm and round and a bit soft-tufted, like Baker's, as he blows a bright and engaging melody.The title tune explores gentle mid-tempo lyicism, while “Untimely Intrusion" slips into darker territory, with an insistent rhythm and an ...
read moreJacob Varmus: All The Things We Still Can Be
by Michael P. Gladstone
On Jacob Varmus' debut recording he proves to be an exciting trumpeter, composer and bandleader. Hailing from San Francisco by way of the University of Iowa, Varmus originally planned to be a poet but was also drawn to the music of jazz trumpeters, of whom Chet Baker and Woody Shaw were early favorites. He has worked with local guitarist/bandleader Steve Grismore, gigged with Tom Harrell and studied with Iowa trumpeter Paul Smoker. Varmus placed first in the International Trumpet Guild's ...
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