Jazz Articles
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Dave Douglas: Gifts
by Glenn Astarita
Dave Douglas' Gifts emerges not merely as a collection of tracks but as an opulent gala in honor of the eternal essence of music, welcoming audiences across the spectrum of generations to partake in its celebration. This project is akin to a masterfully blended concoction of shared human emotions and experiences, articulated through the universal dialect of melodies that defy time constraints. It is a sonic tour de force, intricately weaving together the threads of history, the present and what ...
read moreMareike Wiening: Reveal
by Mark Sullivan
Mareike Wiening is a German drummer/composer who began her career in New York, and now divides her time between there and Köln, Germany. On her third album, she continues making music with her New York-based working band, an increasingly rare situation in contemporary jazz. It provides her an opportunity for more compositional experimentation with each release. “Time for Priorities" begins abstractly, a duet between drums and guitarist Alex Goodman's spacey electronics, before introducing the swinging theme and the rest of ...
read moreItamar Borochov: Arba
by Jerome Wilson
Trumpeter Itamar Borochov is originally from the Middle East but is part of the New York jazz scene. He plays a quarter-tone trumpet which helps bring an unusual expressiveness and calm to his sound, This is well-suited to the music he plays which is steeped in the chords and scales of the Mediterranean area where he grew up. Tracks such as “Abraham" and “What Broke You?" spotlight the ethereal beauty of Borochev's sound as he broods over Rob ...
read moreChristian Dillingham: Cascades
by Hrayr Attarian
Chicago bassist Christian Dillingham is a truly versatile musician. In addition to excelling at various genres, including jazz, western classical and gospel, he appeared on singer Kirk Franklin's Grammy winner Long Live Love (RCA 2019). Dillingham is also an accomplished educator, composer and bandleader. He demonstrates these skills as he leads his quartet on his debut Cascades, a cohesive and original work which is intense, thought-provoking, and soulful. A dramatic ambiance permeates the captivating “South State Line Road"; ...
read moreKaisa’s Machine: Taking Shape
by Hrayr Attarian
On her captivating second release, Taking Shape, Finnish bassist Kaisa Mäensivu demonstrates her singular talents as a composer and a bandleader. She is again at the helm of her cohesive group, Kaisa's Machine. It has been six years since her debut, years during which she established herself in her new hometown of New York. Her writing has transformed as she draws inspiration from the vibrancy of the city on this set of originals. Mäensivu sets the album's mood ...
read moreDave Douglas Quintet: Songs Of Ascent Book 1—Degrees
by Dan McClenaghan
“Devotion is not a singular expression. I wanted to come at this from as many directions as the psalms do." Dave Douglas. Trumpeter Dave Douglas released one of the finest recordings of his career in 2010, Spark Of Being (Greenleaf Records), a musical immersion into Mary Shelley's pioneering horror & science fiction novel Frankenstein. Douglas is at his best when he bites into themes--Frankenstein, the films of Fatty Arbuckle, the music of pianist & composer Mary Lou Williams, ...
read moreDave Douglas: Secular Psalms
by Jerome Wilson
Trumpeter Dave Douglas has worked with religious themes in the past, notably on Be Still, (Greenleaf Music, 2012), and he gets back into that realm on this wide-ranging 2022 album. The music is a suite commissioned by the city of Ghent, Belgium to commemorate the 600th anniversary of the creation of an altarpiece for its St. Bavo's Cathedral. For this occasion Douglas assembled a group of young European musicians along with cellist Tomeka Reid who, because of the pandemic, had ...
read moreJulieta Eugenio: Jump
by Hrayr Attarian
Listening to saxophonist Julieta Eugenio on the engaging Jump it is hard to believe this is only her debut. Her confident playing, warm, brassy tone and intelligent, spontaneous ideas belie her relative youth. Eugenio penned most of the music on Jump, so the release also showcases her superlative compositional skills. The poetic, loose-knit originals are perfectly suited to a trio with ample room for both individual expressions and collective performances. The taut and intriguing “Efes" opens the album ...
read moreJulieta Eugenio: Jump
by Dan McClenaghan
Aspiring jazz artists who pull up roots and make the “jump" to New York City have a lot of backbone. The uncertainty involved in the attempt to elbow into a hyper competitive situation which can boost a career must make for sleepless nights. For non-Americans, dealing with culture shock and struggling with the English language, things are even more challenging. But, in 2013, saxophonist Julieta Eugenio was undeterred, leaving her home in Argentina to make the pilgrimage that thousands have ...
read moreMareike Wiening: Future Memories
by Mark Corroto
It is interesting that in today's creative music world, a jazz drummer cannot just be a jazz drummer. There are so many great drummers that they have to also be composers, band leaders, and sometimes van drivers. A short list includes Tyshawn Sorey, Allison Miller, Ches Smith, and Terri Lyne Carrington. Add to that list Mareike Wiening, the German-born artist with (now) deep New York roots. Her release Metropolis Paradise (Greenleaf Music, 2019) brought her music critical attention and acclaim, ...
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