Jazz Articles

Vinson Valega: Biophilia

by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
May 14, 2010

Vinson Valega is a devoted environmental and progressive activist who seems engaged with his craft on an aesthetic level but also, it seems, in a profoundly logical, moral way. The drummer's compositions sound significant, as if every note were saying something, down to the slightest tap of the drumstick. This is not to say his records are wholly serious products: Valega demonstrates that quirk and laughter have their place alongside order and gravitas. The strength of Biophilia ...

Vinson Valega: Biophilia

by Vinson Valega
February 26, 2010

Biophilia We are in love with life and can't get enough of it! Life forms fascinate us and nature beckons with its mind-blowing “Wow!" factor as we experience first-hand its every possible shape, size, color, smell, and feel. We contribute money to preserve it and we even watch it on TV. This elemental human phenomenon was described eloquently in a 1984 book by the great socio-biologist, E.O. Wilson, entitled “Biophilia," where he details our “innate tendency to focus on life ...

Vinson Valega: Awake

by Mark F. Turner
May 27, 2007

The underlying message inside Vinson Valega's Awake summons a quiet call to social and political awareness, just as past artists have done like saxophonist Sonny Rollins' Freedom Suite (Riverside, 1958). But for the activist and the pacifist alike, the message in this new release is clear and to the point--with music that is conscientious, alive, and immersive. A few things have changed since Valega's last recording Consilience (Consilience Productions, 2003). As the previous release featured the drummer ...

The Vinson Valega Trio: Consilience

by Mark F. Turner
February 20, 2004

Contrary to popular belief, it's not always size that matters. This is definitely true of the jazz trio. The combination of connection, interaction, and execution can produce magic in the hands of just three focused musicians just as well as a large ensemble. Jazz great Bill Evans sums the goal of the jazz trio as follows: “Especially, I want my work, and the trios if possible, to sing."

Consilience features the Vinson Valega Trio: drummer Vinson Valega, saxophonist/flutist Anton Denner, ...