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INTERVIEW August 23, 2011

Patrick Brennan: Rhythms of Passion

Since moving to New York City in 1975, one-time bassist/painter Patrick Brennan has crafted a musical path that is open in its candor and indebtedness to all facets of black music. Much like trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith, the alto saxophonist brews a thicket of his own distinct musical language that “unlike much contemporaneous vanguard music is built specifically upon the potentialities of swinging and polyrhythm." For the astute lay person this means moving the expressive expansiveness of ...

MULTIPLE REVIEWS May 9, 2005

Patrick Brennan: Rapt Circle & The Drum is Honor Enough

By Javier AQ Ortiz

Altoist Patrick Brennan's latest two releases, under the ever-evolving and exploratory guise of Sonic Openings Under Pressure, aren't threaded the same way, even when weaving the same musical material as he does in Rapt Circle. The aforementioned documents live music from two different presentations in 2002. One of them included percussionist Juma Santos Ayantola, the other didn't. Therefore, aside from “Spin (that readily lends itself for a Cuban garabato ensemble if there were any left) and “Covert where ...

ALBUM REVIEW January 15, 2005

Patrick Brennan: Sudani

By Rex Butters

Blowing in like a hot dry desert wind, Sudani takes you aboard a Moroccan caravansari whose cargo includes soulful New York free alto sax and Mississippi blues. The Sudanis-Njib, Bujmaa, and M'barek-provide the Gnawa, playing hand drums and the guinbri, a low pitched string instrument. Their music provides soundtrack for an ancient night long ecstatic ritual, and jazz musicians from Pharoah Sanders to Maceo Parker have sought to jam with other musicians in the lineage. Here, hard blowing avant jazzer ...