It's hard to imagine the impact an artist can have on those whose lives he or she touches during their time here. The pianist/educator Charlie Banacos made an indelible impression on those students and musicians he worked with over the years. As a sought after educator/composer he worked at such esteemed institutions as the Berklee School of Music, The New England Conservatory of Music, Longy School of Music in Boston, The New School and The Manhattan School of Music in NY, to name a few. It is an understatement to say that that Banacos was treasured as a teacher. At one time, there was a five year waiting list to study with Charlie in person. Banacos created over one-hundred courses of study for improvisation and composition. Since the nineteen-fifties, these influential studies have become part of the lexicon of jazz education.
Cahrlie Banacos (photo credit unknown)
Banacos transitioned after a short bout with cancer on December 9, 2009. Back in January of 2024, pianist Garry Dial, a product of Banacos's mentorship, and his friend drummer/arranger Rich De Rosa, assembled a star studded cast of musicians to celebrate the life, memory and music of Charlie Banacos titled Keep Swingin' . The album features ten Banacos compositions as reimagined and rearranged by Dial and DeRosa, and over thirty of the jazz world's most diverse and impressive practitioners. Having listened to this posthumous musical letter of love to one of the art's true innovator/educators of the last half century, one can only imagine how proud Banacos would have been by this work of joy and love.
The music predominantly features a core group of Dial on piano and De Rosa arranging and providing some of the drum work. There is the horn section that includes Nick Marchone (trmpt & flugel), Andrew Gould (alto sax and flute), Chris Oatts (tenor sax & flute), Ryan Keberle (trombone), and Gary Smulyan (baritone sax.)
The opening number, the title track "Keep Swingin' ," is a funky 12 bar blues that remains pretty true to Banacos' original composition. As the name implies this one swings and features some great horn section work. There is an in-the-groove bass line by Jay Anderson, piano work by Dial and complimentary accompaniment by De Rosa on the drums. The highlight is the rousing solos by Dick Oatts on his expressive alto and a gut- wrenching, plunger-driven solo by Terell Stafford. As Charlie would say Keep Swingin'!
"The Great Awakening" is a Banacos tune that is reimagined by one of his students, electric bass master Joe Hubbard. Hubbard is joined here by fellow Banacos student and electric guitar master Wayne Krantz. Hubbard's bass opens with a searching rubato solo over some synth work by David Witham. Hubbard's bass takes the line into funky world along with drum work by Thomas Brechtlein, as the horn section deftly accompanies. Hubbard's fluent Jaco-like bass is countered by Krantz's aerial guitar lines. Krantz's work is unique and add another element to this funk fantasy.
Banacos's office was called the "Bat Cave" and so the next composition gets its name. This one, another blues-based tune, features pianist Gerald D'Angelo whose opening just kills it. Jay Anderson on bass and a percolating John Riley on drums keeps the music on track, as the horn section add color and punctuation. The charging baritone saxophone of Gary Smulyan just light it up increasing the level of the fire on this one.
"Pine Needles" is a slow-paced beauty that features Mike Stern's evocative electric guitar probing. DeRosa's horn section utilizes two C flutes and Anne Drummond's alto flute along with Keberle's trombone and Marchione's Flugelhorn for a more romantic sound that's perfect for this one. Dial on piano, Anderson on bass and De Rosa on drums round out the personnel on this moving song.
The great saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi was one of Banacos' favorites as a friend who often played, practiced and goofed around together. The album's booklet includes many of Charlie's cartoons-he was a frequent doodler- that feature Jerry in some funny scenes and speak volumes to just how close these two master's were. Bergonzi brings in his quintet for "The Mummy's Curse" and includes Jerry on tenor, Phil Grenadier on trumpet, Plamen Karadonev on piano, Matt Stavrakis on bass and Luther Gray on drums. Gary Dial took bars 5 and 6 of Charlie's blues and turned it into a 16 modal intro, interlude and ending. The beauty of this one is it allows Bergonzi to play in his own inimitably inventive way. Jerry's playing never ceases to surprises and this one is a the treat. Grenadier also adds an impressive trumpet solo. Stavrakas' bass solo is sweet and Gray's drum solo is explosive. This is just top notch all the way.
The remainder of the album continues with "Burnie Burnola" that Dial reimagined as a samba. This finds four Brazilian musicians Helio Alves on piano, drummer Maurico Zottarelli, Itaiguara Brandão on bass and soprano saxophonist Paulo Levi. Two musicians who are no stranger to Brazilian music are Paul Meyer on guitar and Anne Drummond on flute are also on this piece. The solos by Alves, Drummond, Levi and Zottarelli are a delight. it has a breezy swing that just grabs you and makes you want to have one of those umbrella drinks in you hands as you sway to the vibe.
Electric bassist Jeff Berlin brings his own progressive arrangement of "A-440." "Nero" a fine piano waltz trio piece that features Dial, Anderson and Riley is also great.
"Pluto Language" is perhaps the most musically challenging of the group. Steel pan master Victor Provost uses the music of Zouk, a music originated in the French Antilles, into a ostinato driven piece that uses one of Barnacos' compositions and takes it to another world. Pluto language was created by Banacos to express certain of his concepts. It is fitting Provost envisions this song as a jumping point for proving just how international the music and its language can be. Oatts' soprano sax solo is sinewy and creative. Drummond's flute work floats in the air with suppleness and Provost's pan work is sublime.
The finale is a classic piece that Banacos wrote for two pianos title "Pelaghia". The word means "Of the Sea' and Dial and De Rosa collaborated with Charlie's wife Margaret and his daughter Barbara to play this beautiful piece as a fitting closing to this love letter to Charlie. It was last played at a concert at Carnegie Hall back in July of 1984 which Gary Dial attended and it was timely to include this as a coda for this wonderful album.
No comments:
Post a Comment