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Article: Album Review

John Surman: Saltash Bells

Read "Saltash Bells" reviewed by John Kelman

by John Kelman
June 19, 2012

There's no denying the “the sound of surprise" of group recordings; working solo, however, provides its own possibilities, despite meaning different things to different people. Pianist Keith Jarrett views it as a means for pulling form from the ether: one man, one piano, in real time. Multi-instrumentalist Stephan Micus, on the other hand, considers it a ...

Article: Opinion

BAM: Bremen Art Music?

by Francesco Martinelli
May 14, 2012

[Editor's Note: It's been quite a few years since Italian writer, music educator and general provocateur Francesco Martinelli last contributed to All About Jazz. Having recently returned home from Jazzahead! 2012 in Bremen, and with the current debates about the meaning, future and relevance of the word “jazz" fresh in his mind, Martinelli posits an alternate ...

Article: Extended Analysis

Michael Gibbs and the NDR Bigband: Back in the Days

by John Kelman
March 15, 2012

Michael Gibbs and the NDR BigbandBack in the DaysCuneiform Records2012Jazz may be filled with reharmonizations, reinventions and reimaginings of songs from across its entire history; few artists have, however, made their names solely as composers and arrangers. Relative youngsters like Maria Schneider, Vince Mendoza and Darcy James Argue ...

Article: Extended Analysis

Giovanni Pessi / Susanna Wallumrod: If Grief Could Wait

by C. Michael Bailey
March 11, 2012

Giovanni Pessi, Susanna Wallumrod, Marco Ambrosini, Jane AchtmanIf Grief Could WaitECM2012 Manfred Eicher's Edition of Contemporary Music label (aka ECM) has three creative foci: “classical" music, jazz and folk music. The last of these is often overlooked in discussions of ECM, but folk music, particularly that of ...

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Article: Interview

Jack DeJohnette: Time and Space

by John Kelman
January 9, 2012

It begins with the sound of a resonating bell, followed by a gently cascading piano solo that gradually assumes shape and form, hovering around two chords and creating an inviting ambiance that resolves with another ringing of the bell, segueing gently into the groove-heavy “Salsa for Luisito." The track is “Enter Here," and the album is ...

Article: Album Review

Yoni Kretzmer: Overlook

Read "Overlook" reviewed by Eyal Hareuveni

by Eyal Hareuveni
January 1, 2012

The third solo release by Yoni Kretzmer, now based in New York, features the young Israeli saxophonist leading the recorded debut of a quartet of close friends who have been working together for few years now. As can be heard on his previous releases, Kretzmer is a highly skilled composer and arranger, and an excellent improviser. ...

Album

The Rainbow Band Sessions

By John Surman

Label: Losen Records
Released: 2011
Track listing: Bedrocks Inn; The Wizard; Lopsided; Going for a Burton; My Sketchy Spanish; Off Minor; One Last Waltz; Longing.

Album

Flashpoint: NDR Jazz Workshop - April '69

By John Surman

Label: Cuneiform Records
Released: 2011
Track listing: Mayflower; Once Upon a Time; Puzzle; Gratuliere; Flashpoint.

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Article: Album Review

John Surman: The Rainbow Band Sessions

Read "The Rainbow Band Sessions" reviewed by John Kelman

by John Kelman
December 27, 2011

It's been nearly two decades since British saxophonist/clarinetist John Surman last did a large ensemble disc, with the exception of Free and Equal (ECM, 2003), which teamed the duo of Surman and drummer/pianist Jack DeJohnette with the London Brass ensemble. But the last time Surman did a swinging session beyond a quartet was The Brass Project ...

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Article: Interview

Dave Douglas: A Creative Consciousness

by Dave Wayne
December 5, 2011

Considering trumpeter Dave Douglas' musical career, one word that comes to mind is “consistency." Sure, he's led a dizzying variety of bands playing in all sorts of styles. Yet, of the 30-odd recordings he's led, not one veers from the central mission of presenting challenging, original jazz. An inveterate musical risk taker, Douglas has always led ...