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Julius Hemphill: The Boyé Multi-National Crusade For Harmony
by Mark Corroto
There is something inherently objectionable when a billionaire acquires an artistic masterpiece by say, Leonardo DaVinci or Claude Monet, only to sequester it from public view. You might feel the same about Julius Hemphill's recordings Dogon A.D. (Mbari, 1972) and 'Coon Bid'ness (Arista/Freedom, 1975). Both five star recordings, now out of print, cost a small fortune to acquire. Years ago saxophonist Tim Berne, a disciple of Hemphill, endeavored to rescue the saxophonist's Blue Boyé (Mbari, 1977) by rereleasing it in ...
read moreRova Orkestrova: No Favorites!
by Troy Collins
Ever since its formation in 1977, Rova, the pioneering West Coast saxophone quartet, has been augmenting its ranks to explore structured improvisation. No Favorites! pays homage to Lawrence D. “Butch" Morris, the inventor of Conduction, a revolutionary system for organizing large-ensemble improvisation using coded gestures. This ambitious album epitomizes a working relationship that Rova began with Morris in 1988, while also reflecting parallel working methods reaching back to the mid-1970s. Building on previous efforts in this milieu, the saxophone quartet ...
read moreMarty Ehrlich: A Trumpet In The Morning
by Dan Bilawsky
A Trumpet In The Morning is a first for multi-reedist Marty Ehrlich; it's the first album completely dedicated to his large group works and the first album under his name that's basically directed by his hand rather than his horn(s). The intrepid Ehrlich, who fell under the sway of St. Louis' Black Artists Group (BAG) in his formative years and fell in with the AACM crowd when he arrived in New York in the late '70s, has been putting out ...
read moreKyle Bruckmann: On Procedural Grounds
by Troy Collins
One of the most common methodologies embraced by the current generation of creative improvising musicians is polystylism--a seamlessly ingrained aesthetic sensibility that transcends the stylized post-modern dilettantism of earlier generations. Bay Area-based oboist Kyle Bruckmann has demonstrated the depth and breadth of this all-inclusive approach in myriad ways, from his art-damaged punk band Lozenge and genre-defying chamber group Wrack to electro-acoustic solo recitals. Accompanied by a handful of colleagues from San Francisco, as well as former associates from his Chicago ...
read moreScott Fields Ensemble: Samuel
by Troy Collins
The works of Samuel Beckett have been a recurrent source of inspiration for guitarist Scott Fields. Samuel is Fields' second effort at conveying the master's prose through pure sound, following Beckett (Clean Feed, 2007). Transposing the original text of Beckett's plays into precise pitches, chords and time signatures, Fields transforms Beckett's wordplay into melodies and harmonies that share more than a passing resemblance to jazz. Despite their cerebral origins and abstruse character, the ensuing works are in fact fairly accessible.
read moreTony Malaby: Paloma Recio
by Mark Corroto
To use a rock 'n' roll analogy, saxophonist Tony Malaby is the Mick Jagger to Joe Lovano's Paul McCartney. It's not that anyone has to choose sides, but if the classic Paul Motian band (featuring Lovano) was The Beatles, then Malaby's Paloma Recio quartet is the Rolling Stones.
Without having to choose sides, Paloma Recio--or Loud Dove"--has recorded an instant masterpiece of modern music on this self-titled disc.
Malaby, a regular in New York's jazz circles, ...
read moreTony Malaby: Paloma Recio
by Troy Collins
One of New York City's most in-demand tenor saxophonists, Tony Malaby has become one of the most distinctive artists of his time. A first generation Mexican-American born in Tucson, Arizona, Paloma Recio finds Malaby delving deeper into his own personal history, abstracting Spanish-tinged melodies with the support of some of the best improvisers working today.
Focusing on Malaby's penchant for unbound lyricism, Paloma Recio (Loud Dove) is the self-titled debut of Malaby's quartet of the same name. Inspired ...
read moreAnthony Coleman: Lapidation
by Kurt Gottschalk
After a recording career given over in large part to shtick and nostalgia, the last few years have seen a well-deserved spike for Anthony Coleman. His last two records for Tzadik showed him (on 2006's Pushy Blueness) as a strong composer and (also 2006, Shmutisige Magnaen: Coleman Plays Geburtig) a remarkable interpreter. Lapidation continues the documentation of the pianist as a strong composer. The five pieces included were written over the span of the last decade, ranging ...
read moreScott Rosenberg: Creative Orchestra Music Chicago 2001
by Rex Butters
Scott Rosenberg tickles, soothes, and bashes chaos with six performances by a 26 piece ensemble that knows how to rock and stare. Invoking demons like Braxton, Stockhausen, Cage, and Leo Smith begs for trouble--and trouble includes Kyle Bruckmann, Jeb Bishop, John Shiruba, Kyle Hernandez, Tim Daisy, and Jim Baker, to name a few. Rosenberg has his own well thought out ideas on how experimental composition and free improvisation should get along on a date, and these sessions demonstrate how much ...
read moreScott Rosenberg: Creative Orchestra Music, Chicago 2001
by John Kelman
What do you get when you combine the microtonality of Ligeti and Feldman, the atonality of Stockhausen, and the improvisational impetus of Anthony Braxton, Leo Smith and Muhal Richard Abrams? Composer Scott Rosenberg provides a clear answer with Creative Orchestra Music, Chicago 2001 , a challenging album of new music.
While precedents exist for this kind of work, most notably Braxton's Creative Orchestra Music 1976 and selections by the Globe Unity Orchestra, Rosenberg demonstrates a willingness to forego the jazz ...
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