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Jasmine Myra: Rising
ByHorizons was an auspicious debut. Recorded with a nonet augmented by a string quartet, the music on it is lush and melodic, calm and centred, and blissful without being blissed-out. If it has a weakness, it is that the vibe is so resolutely consonant and at ease with itself that at times the music risks being misread for ambient, drifting in and out of the listener's attention, emptying and refreshing rather than filling and stimulating the mind. But one imagines this is Myra's intention, at least in part.
Myra's follow-up, Rising, was recorded by much the same line-up, and once again benefits from Halsall's empathetic, ears-on-the-detail production. (It would be premature to liken Halsall to ECM's Manfred Eicher, but give him another few decades in the control room and we will see.) The only significant change in the line-up is that Horizons' second horn player, soprano saxophonist Anna Chandler, has been replaced on Rising by bass clarinetist Arran Kent, depped on one track by Joel Stedman. There are changes, too, in the string quartet's personnel, heard on four of the six tracks, but the string arrangements are by Carmel Smickersgill as before. Myra's core groupkeyboard player Jasper Green, harpist Alice Roberts, guitarist Ben Haskins, double bassist Sam Quintana, drummer George Hall and percussionist Greg Burnsis unchanged.
Rising is in much the same blissful without being blissed-out bag as Horizons (check the YouTube below). But there is one significant and welcome development: this time out we get to hear more from Myra as a soloist, which brings a corresponding uptick in sonic surprise and (whisper it) even suggestions of edginess.
Track Listing
Rising; Still Waters; Knowingness; Glimmers; From Embers; How Tall The Mountains.
Personnel
Jasmine Myra
saxophone, altoArran Kent
fluteJasper Green
keyboardsJoel Stedman
fluteBen Haskins
guitarAlice Roberts
harpSam Quintana
bass, acousticGeorge Hall
drumsGreb Burns
percussionIsabella Baker
violinLisa Meech
violinSophia Dignam
violaAwen Blandford
celloAdditional Instrumentation
Jasmine Myra: alto saxophone, flute; Arran Kent: bass clarinet (1,3,5,6); Joel Stedman: bass clarinet (2); George Hall: drums, percussion; Greg Burns: congas, triangle, percussion; Isabella Baker: violin (2,3,5,6); Lisa Meech: violin (2,3,5,6); Sophia Dignam: viola (2,3,5,6); Awen Blandford: cello (2,3,5,6).
Album information
Title: Rising | Year Released: 2024 | Record Label: Gondwana Records
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