jazzglobalbeat@gmail.com
martes, 30 de junio de 2015
The arrival of summer heated spaces for jazz festivals in Europe - This week:
jazzglobalbeat@gmail.com
domingo, 28 de junio de 2015
Original winner Rudresh Mahanthappa
|
|
|
Rudresh Mahanthappa in his presentation earlier this year in New York Winter JazzFest:
Braithwaite & Katz Communications
ann@bkmusicpr.com
jazzglobalbeat@gmail.com
martes, 23 de junio de 2015
Dion Parson - CD Release Gig - Dizzy's Club - June 23-25!
|
|
martes, 16 de junio de 2015
Chuck Israels - Legendary Jazz Bassist - Now Bandleader - New Release!
Chuck Israels
Bassist/Bandleader/Arranger/Composer!
Joyful Noise
Bassist/arranger/composer Chuck Israels steps out front as the bandleader in this exciting new release,Joyful Noise (SoulPatch Music). Having honed his chops working with masters including John Coltrane, Billie Holiday, Stan Getz and more, including the Bill Evans Trio, for which he is best known. Israels relocated years ago from the bustle of the city to the peaceful solitude of beautiful Portland, Oregon. Israels' jazz spectrum spans much of the history of modern jazz.
What Others Are Saying...
"Israels' charts are the heart of his band's unique personality. Israels has fashioned an orchestra that flows in beautiful channels, and beauty is something jazz can use these days...This is a band to check out. The originals, the standards are freshly reworked, and they are played with passion and understanding. The pulse, never bombastic, moves the listener as surely as it moves the band. Israels deserves a lot of credit, but more importantly, the opportunity to be widely heard."
Joyful Noise
The Music of Horace Silver
The Chuck Israels Jazz Orchestra
Release Date: July 17, 2015
The Chuck Israels Jazz Orchestra
Release Date: July 17, 2015
Bassist For the Bill Evans Trio,
John Coltrane, Billie Holiday, Stan Getz...
Bassist/arranger/composer Chuck Israels steps out front as the bandleader in this exciting new release,Joyful Noise (SoulPatch Music). Having honed his chops working with masters including John Coltrane, Billie Holiday, Stan Getz and more, including the Bill Evans Trio, for which he is best known. Israels relocated years ago from the bustle of the city to the peaceful solitude of beautiful Portland, Oregon. Israels' jazz spectrum spans much of the history of modern jazz.
was founded to showcase some of the best jazz instrumentalists and singers in the Northwest playing finely crafted and demanding arrangements of the most exciting and durable music on the planet. The band was recently showcased at the Detroit Jazz Festival and appears regularly regionally. Their debut CD, Second Wind, received a 4-1/2 star review in DownBeat magazine and is a Grammy® nominee. This new project, Joyful Noise - the music of Horace Silver, promises to bring national attention to the magical compositional skills of Chuck Israels. He brings great wisdom as a leader.
What Others Are Saying...
"Israels' charts are the heart of his band's unique personality. Israels has fashioned an orchestra that flows in beautiful channels, and beauty is something jazz can use these days...This is a band to check out. The originals, the standards are freshly reworked, and they are played with passion and understanding. The pulse, never bombastic, moves the listener as surely as it moves the band. Israels deserves a lot of credit, but more importantly, the opportunity to be widely heard."
- Ira Gitler, DownBeat
"...thrilling, nearly perfect...old-school in the best sense... tightly disciplined unit."
- Allen Morrison, DownBeat
"This band is worthy of being on a festival main stage." - Doug Ramsey, Arts Journal Blogs
"...thrilling, nearly perfect...old-school in the best sense... tightly disciplined unit."
- Allen Morrison, DownBeat
"This band is worthy of being on a festival main stage." - Doug Ramsey, Arts Journal Blogs
Chuck Israels Contact
Management: SoulPatch Music
Booking: Dow Artists
Press Contact: Scott Thompson PR
scott@scottthompsonpr.com / 203-400-1818
jazzglobalbeat@gmail.com
lunes, 15 de junio de 2015
The Jazz festivals in Europe continue tomorrow
www.jazzglobalbeat.blogspot.com
jazzglobalbeat@gmail.com
sábado, 13 de junio de 2015
Perry Beekman New CD S'Wonderful Sings and Plays Gershwin + Live Appearance @ The Maverick!
 Saturday | July 11 | 8 pm
Perry Beekman, guitar and vocals
Lou Pappas, bass • Peter Tomlinson, piano “Making old school new cool.”–Brent Black, Critical Jazz NEW CD  |
 |
| For the third part of his continued quest to fully explore the Great American Songbook, the remarkable guitarist/vocalist Perry Beekman embraces George and Ira Gershwin with the very aptly titled ‘S Wonderful. Following up on the critical and popular success of the first two albums in the series – Bewitched (Rodgers & Hart) and So in Love (Cole Porter) – Perry and his longtime associates, pianist Peter Tomlinson and Lou Pappas on bass, offer 15 of the Gershwins’ best loved classics. With each new recording project and the prolific live performing schedule they maintain, the trio’s synergy and unity of purpose become increasingly apparent. The sheer joy and the sparkling sense of discovery they exhibit in playing together has never been more palpable than on this album. The easygoing and joyous nature of the music almost obscures the sophistication and inventiveness of Perry’s brilliant arrangements, which perfectly frame these familiar songs. While remaining totally faithful to the composers’ visions, they provide a freshness and flair that makes them new again. One of the most captivating elements of the arrangements is the creation of written improvisational lines and chordal passages played in unison by guitar and piano that link the imaginative solos with the return to the theme on a number of tracks. The effect is exhilarating and further enhances the constant lyricism in the solos, tying them in even more seamlessly with the unforgettable melodies. Perry always cites the enormous influence that the immortal Nat ‘King’ Cole has had upon both his music and his singing. The former is manifested in the use of the master’s guitar/piano/bass format – a constant in Perry’s live performances and all his recordings. As for the singing, while Perry’s dulcet voice is not like Nat’s (although in the lower tones that sound of liquid velvet is manifested), his impeccable phrasing and flawless intonation both hold true to the great man’s style. Instrumentally, Perry’s consummate guitar artistry is consistently on display, but so perfectly entwined with the songs that his virtuosity is understated. The fluidity of the Barney Kessel/Herb Ellis style of swing; the blazing Johnny Smith-tinged runs and that Grant Green soulfulness are all inextricably coiled into the music. Tomlinson’s mastery is a perfect complement to Perry’s, his solos consistently inspired and their interplay always exemplary, while Pappas’ deeply wooded tone, rhythmic vibrancy and consistently tasteful musicality provide the core to every piece. There’s something about the way that Perry sings the lyrics that also calls to mind the man whose name was on George Gershwin’s lips as his last utterance – Fred Astaire. Like Astaire – a vastly underrated vocalist – Perry’s delivery of Ira’s wonderful lyrics allows them to tell the story on their own, unobscured by stylish invention for its own sake. And his guitar and vocals are so symbiotic that they resemble the right and left hand of a pianist in their singularity of purpose. The 15 songs contained here are all staples of the majestic Gershwin legacy, but of course only a small part of it – a further reminder of the depth and scope of the prolific composer’s output in his tragically short life. Many of them have been played by jazz artists for more than 75 years; and many more have been adapted into now-classic jazz originals – none more often than I Got Rhythm. Here Perry offers his own variation, slotted into the innards of his faithful rendition with one of those aforementioned guitar/piano unison items. A somewhat ironic atmospheric rubato intro sets up this unabashedly swinging version, also marked by his beautifully constructed solo. On another rhythm note, Fascinating Rhythm is one of two instrumentals, treated with almost jump-style buoyancy, with fluid guitar and piano solos, and a lively trading of fours with the bass, all further stoked by some of Perry’s guitar body “conga” percussion. But Not for Mefeatures a nicely suspended version of the winsome melody and a guitar solo that covers the full range of the instrument. It’s just voice and guitar on I’ve Got a Crush on You, featuring a highly compelling chord melody arrangement followed by a poignant vocal interpretation. Beautiful balladry is on tap for two more pieces. How Long Has This Been Going On lets Perry demonstrate that low-range Nat-like silkiness with his touching vocal. Someone to Watch Over Me includes its often-ignored intro, used here to build a tantalizing tension before Perry offers the utterly gorgeous melody, stretching his tones languorously along the bridge. A beauteously delicate piano solo is another highlight on this highly emotive and deeply moving piece. In true tribute to the Gershwins, Perry includes intros on three other pieces as well, both in a talking/singing style. Nice Work If You Can Get It talks its way into a bluesy groove, with baroque unison lines punctuating a soulful guitar solo, the piano flirting with barrelhouse and a nicely rhythmic bass solo over Freddie Green-ish comping. Love is Here to Stay follows the intro with an easy swinging vocal over a walking bass before joined by deep blue piano. Perry’s subtly deliberate solo is rooted in potent chordal style; and Peter’s blues-drenched turn follows a similar route. The intro to Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off transforms the whimsical piece into a playful jaunt, with a spirited angular guitar solo. Whimsy of a more classical sort is heard on Oh Lady Be Good, with a quote fromRhapsody in Blue rolled into the introduction, and a fresh take on the chord structure with a touch of big band sound. Audaciousness is at play on ‘S Wonderful, with its bossa feel, bold suspensions and daringly elongated rhythms on the head; and features a crystalline guitar solo that falls like a gentle rain. Undiluted swing is the recipe for the other four pieces. Liza is in a punchy, vigorous mood featuring an articulately melodious guitar solo. Love Walked In struts in an easy but emphatic gait with Perry in glowing single note runs on the first chorus and cascades on the second. Soon is a surging kicker, with briskly punctuated vocal, a fiery guitar solo and smoking piano (with some more “conga” accompaniment); and They All Laughed is an infectiously buoyant jaunt with a terrific guitar solo that blends blistering runs with deliciously suspended chords, and Tomlinson cooking in Teddy Wilson swing fashion. With the huge Gershwin repertoire, one can only hope that this album is a volume one, as there’s really just one way to properly describe it: ‘S Wonderful.
For more information visit www.perrybeekman.com
|
 |
NATIONAL RADIO CAMPAIGN: KATE SMITH PROMOTIONS of CHICAGO 814.482.0010 katesmithpromotions.kate@gmail.com
jazzglobalbeat@gmail.com
|
miércoles, 10 de junio de 2015
Billy Lester New CD "Unabridged" + Live Appearances In Italy!
| Billy Lester New CD "Unabridged" + Live Appearances In Italy  JAZZ CONCERTS IN ITALY with Billy Lester July 8th 2015 Sala d’Armi,Castello di Panzano in Chianti Billy Lester on piano Marcello Testa on bass Carlo Fagiani on drums July 15th 2015 Winery Fattoria Le Fonti, Panzano in Chianti Billy Lester on piano Nicola Stranieri on drums Marcello Testa on bass July 28th 2015 Villa Pecille (Winery Fontodi) Panzano in Chianti Billy Lester on Piano Gary Levy on Alto Sax  |
|
| Pianist Billy Lester is a musical original. That’s obvious from the first, oh, 17 seconds of Unabridged, his sixth album and second all-solo recording. Listen to the unusual, brief motif with which Lester opens “Overture: Passionate Musings,” then develops, complicates and completes it faster than you’d tie a shoelace. Pause -- and he continues. Not to just recapitulate or elaborate the cell-like theme through variation, but to expand it as a theme in a concentrated, melodically flowing way that’s not exactly “songlike,” or modal, either. Call it the genre of no genre. Because what Lester does here contains sonic elements that might be identified with compositional modernism, contemporary “classical” music, or sounds that seem to exist as if only sprung from themselves – it’s not so obvious that he arrives at his singularity through decades of deep devotion to and teaching of the music we all call jazz. Swing, the blues and American songbook standards, jazz icons as well as major composers of the Western classical tradition are Lester’s touchstones, regardless of that fact that what he’s creating now ignores, sidesteps, bypasses or abstracts virtually all American music’s basic conventions. But Lester is secure in his identity. “At times I’ve played for people and they’re very surprised to find what I do is jazz, and that it’s improvised,” says the pianist, who started at his instrument when he was four, and has kept at it for some 60 years. “My music here is entirely improvised,” he asserts. “This is simply the first time I’ve released anything free-form.” Free-form -- “free jazz”? -- isn’t typically what we associate with such of Billy Lester’s heroes as Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Lester Young, Charlie Parker, Lennie Tristano and Sal Mosca, his most directly influential teacher. They all jazzed, advanced and fans believe improved strains of repertoire familiar in their day. Although Tristano, whom Lester met during his teens and hung out with, did record the first freely improvised jazz sides, “Intuition” and “Digression,” in 1949, he and his acolyte Mosca, too, insisted that their students thoroughly absorb a canon of classic performances before venturing to establish voices much less styles of their own. After half a century of effort, Billy Lester has reached the level of accomplished self-possession to do that. Notice: If there is no canonical gesture or typical structure involving chord progressions or constraining scales in “Musings” (or “Jamba Swing,” “Spree-ing,” “Self-Encounters” or the first half of Unabridged’s “Finale”), there is instead throughout these pieces a seemingly organic unfolding of an inherently individualistic ideas that return or reappear, transformed, as they evolve. In “Musings” Lester keeps his fingers on that idea, lets them loose to circle around it, comes to an element of it that attracts him (though he does not precisely restate it) again and again and concludes with a chord which hasn’t been voiced this way before, but has certainly been foreshadowed, or even fated. Hard to tell. Listen again. Or go on to “Jamba Swing,” which Lester describes as his breakthrough into unselfconscious spontaneity, recorded in 2013 at Oktaven Audio, the Yonkers, NY studio of Ryan Streber which has become a conducive setting for his most introspective efforts. Billy says that on the occasion he played that, “For the first time in my life, my music felt like just my music. Even though I’m indebted to so many wonderful artists of the past, I felt I’d become independent. There had been so much jazz in my head that I had yet to express because I felt in some way restricted by the tunes, by the standards. It took me up until that day to realize that I had the freedom and permission to just let it all pour out.” Paradoxically or ironically or naturally enough, pouring it out as Lester does it results not in thunderous exploding energies, but rather incisively focused explorations. In his entirely unmediated pieces here – including “Spree-ing,” “Self-Encounters” and the first half of “Finale” -- his pulse may become urgent, his left hand may abandon comping to take an independent along its own course, his right might track tunefulness in the uppermost register, but somehow this is all tethered to the jazz roots with which he began instead of some negating or revolutionary impulse. Similarly in “One After Another,” where he refers at least in his own mind to Harry Warren’s 1942 hit “There Will Never Be Another You”; in “Blues for Charlie Christian” which is, indeed, a blues if an altered one; in “Songbook Harmonies,” based on Richard Whiting’s “Too Marvelous for Words” (of 1937) and “Finale,” which slips into Gene de Paul’s “I’ll Remember April” (also from ‘42). There is no gulf separating Lester’s performance of the wholly imagined – spontaneous composition or free-form improvisation, call it what you will -- from his ostensible interpretations of others’ compositions. All this music is his own. “I suppose my improvisations arise from an accumulation of the listening I’ve done, attaching that music to my own feelings,” Billy explains. “When it’s working, it’s not a conscious effort, it just keeps coming, and I’m always surprised. Much as I’ve practiced certain exercises or chords, they all get thrown to the wind, and I’m the edge. Stuff comes out that I’ve never played before. “For the past 25 or so years I’ve had a discipline where I’ll sit at the piano, all the lights out, and look into myself to find in what part of my body my feelings are. Sometimes I’ll sit for a half hour before anything happens. But if I wait long enough, that sense of where the feeling is turns into a sound. I’ll sing that sound and try to find it on the piano. This has become a very pleasurable and meaningful exercise to me. I know that whatever sound I hear is mine, without doubt. That’s become the bottom line for my approach to the piano and to jazz.” Lester’s earlier albums -- Four Into Four, Visceral, At Liberty and Captivatin’ Rhythm -- were small group projects involving quartets and trios. Around 2010 he stopped playing with other people, to devote himself to solo expression, and his album Story Time was his first set by himself. “I started thinking that Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, Lennie Tristano and Sal Mosca were all soloists,” he recalls, “and I started pursuing that direction. When I’m playing alone I can pick the key, change the tempo, play free, pick a tune – do whatever’s in my head. I don’t need to worry if someone’s coming along with me. The piano, as I conceive of it, is an orchestra. I’m using all my knowledge and love of music to express my self. “My music doesn’t come out of the sky. I’m a big fan of Bach, Beethoven, Bartok and Chopin as well as the classic jazz titans. But I can say now that what I’ve always respected about all these people is that they were individuals and didn’t feel they had to be anything but themselves. That’s a message I got from them: That they were free. I’ve always wanted to be free, even though I knew for me that it would be a long journey, requiring a lot of work. “Now I hear certain phrases I’ve played – without trying isn’t the word for the experience, it’s just happening – that remind me of my personality. I hope my music will be a bit of a window into people knowing who I am. That’s always been my intent: to offer listeners something of the subjective part of the person creating the music. If the listener recognizes something of themselves from the notes I strike in myself, if they can see themselves with me or through me – that’s very gratifying.” To find such resonant chords, meant to stir listeners where we ourselves really live, Billy Lester has sought the wisdom of musical masters, purged himself of artifice and honestly offered his intimate all. What we get is something precious, one man’s art: Unabridged. -- Howard Mandel, ArtsJournal.com/JazzBeyondJazz President of the Jazz Journalists Association
Artist Website:
www.billylester.com |
|
BILLY LESTER "AN OLD FRIEND" |
 |
|
jazzglobalbeat@gmail.com
|
