Béla Fleck, Edmar Castañeda and Antonio Sanchez Defy Genres on "BEATrio"

 

BEATrio-Béla Fleck, Edmar Castañeda and Antonio Sanchez- Fleck Productions

The American Banjo master Béla Fleck was born in New York City in 1958. His full name, Béla Anton Leoš Fleck, is a combination of three of his father’s favorite classical composers, the Hungarian Béla Bartok, the Austrian Anton Webern, and the Czech Leoš Janacek. With such a namesake imposed on the young Fleck, there is no wonder why he has found his path creating a new level of respectability for his unlikely instrument through his inventiveness, imagination and virtuosity.

Fleck didn’t take up the banjo until he was fifteen, after a failed run at mastering the French horn. He was initially inspired by the bluegrass sounds of Earl Scruggs that he heard on the theme of the show The Beverly Hillbillies which ran on national television from 1962 through 1971. The song “Dueling Banjos” which was played for the 1972 film Deliverance by Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandell also made its impression.

Never satisfied with just brilliant mastery of his six-string acoustic/electric banjo, or with the artificially created boundaries that limit the banjo to its bluegrass roots, the genre-bending Fleck has envisioned expanding the possibilities where his instrument could be creatively used and succeeded.

Over the years, Fleck went beyond his bluegrass projects that included his groups like Tasty Licks, Spectrum and New Grass Revival, and his duet project with mandolinist Chris Thile. In 1988 he formed his jazz/fusion/Americana inspired group Béla Fleck and the Flecktones with Howard Levy, Victor Wooten and Roy Wooten. Despite many sojourns along the way, the group is reuniting this season, now celebrating close to forty years of collaboration. Fleck would create classical projects, like his double concerto for banjo and bass with bassist Edgar Meyer, where the two played their debut with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. Béla also created a trio concerto for the Nashville Symphony Orchestra, this time with bassist Meyer and the late table master Zakir Hussain. Insatiably driven to create for his instrument and to obliterate boundaries, Fleck collaborated and toured with the late piano master Chick Corea on three duet albums, "The Enchantment", the live recording "Two" and "Remembrance" between 2015 and 2024. With all this on his plate and an astounding nineteen Grammy awards under his belt, Fleck has time to have a continuing banjo duet collaboration with his wife and fellow banjo player/singer-songwriter Abagail Washburn. These two artists are also parents and are raising two sons in the Nashville area.

Antonio Sanchez, Edmar Castañeda, Béla Fleck 

Fleck’s newest group collaboration BEATrio is an acronym for the members first names, Béla, Edgar, and Antonio. Edgar is the Colombian harpist Edgar Castañeda whose has leant his brilliant virtuosity on this instrument to jazz and pop projects that featured Wynton Marsalis, Paquito D’Rivera, John Scofield and Sting. His heavenly harp work can also be heard on the Disney animated film Encanto from 2023.

Antonio Sanchez is a fluid drummer/percussionist, originally from Mexico City, whose work has previously been seen as a member of guitarist Pat Metheny’s Trio with bassist Christian McBride between 2005 through 2008. He has also worked with the late pianist Chick Corea, with rockers Trent Reznor and Dave Mathews, and has composed and played the drum-based musical score for Alejandro Iñárritu’s 2014 film Birdman.

This latest project, BEATrio, is just one more piece in the genre-defying puzzle that seems to drive Fleck’s musical aspirations. He has said that it is often rhythm that drives his playing, and he is often aware of how an orchestral scope to his work makes it more expansive. These elements are clearly on display on this collaborative album.

There is a global feel to this album. The three instruments seem to melt together in a symbiotic, organic way. There are elements of bluegrass, jazz, fusion and world music on display on this album. It’s a cultural feast of styles, sounds and colors that can’t be ignored.

The opener “Archipelago” sways with a Latin inspired feel. The rhythmic drive comes from a bass line that is maintained by Castañeda’s facile left hand and Sanchez’s deft percussive accompaniment. Fleck’s melodic banjo weaves in and out like a hummingbird quickly hovering over the nectar flower of the enticing melody. Just beautiful.

The group got a chance to work out some of the kinks on this mostly collaborated music when they performed at NYC’s Blue Note Jazz Club in 2024. “Each night felt like an adventure,” says Castañeda, “and it was special to see the audience experience the music’s evolution.”

“Pellucidar” is a stop/ start piece that seems to have the feel of theme to a detective mystery. Sanchez’s cadenced drum work and Castañeda’s harp create the stepped rhythm as Fleck’s banjo dances across the floor. Castañeda’s harp has a weightless feel as he explores the tonal possibilities of his instrument. Sanchez is particularly creative in his rhythmic magic that he skillfully manipulates seamlessly.

“Kaleidoscopes” is exactly that, a rhythmic and tonal Kaleidoscope that has an Afro-Caribbean dance feel. The trio move in synch with virtuosic sections that show joyous and impossibly fleet lines from three artists at the top of their game. Fleck’s Banjo lines are clean, precise and Castañeda’s harp hums with celestial buzz. Sanchez’s trap work is perfectly timed and explosively expressive. If this doesn’t raise your pulse, then see a doctor.

“Countryside” perhaps comes the closest to Fleck’s bluegrass roots, but even with a name like Countryside, Castañeda’s harp, Sanchez’s drum work and Fleck’s otherworldly banjo makes you believe this music is at home at a location that could be anywhere in the world. A feast of music cultures, colors and ideas combined so skillfully that it is a class by itself.

“Cloak and Dagger” is the most cinematic of the compositions. The music walks you through a scene of suspense and mystery. You feel you are sneaking around trying your best not to being discovered by the evil forces. Fleck spells out the theme and Castañeda has the dual role of bass lines from his left hand and harmony with his right hand. Castañeda eventually gets a chance to show his own expressiveness when he trades ideas in a give and take with Fleck. Sanchez takes his turn to make his own percussive statement close to the coda. This one is fun!

“Whispers of Resilience” opens with some slow, softly played string sounds from Castañeda before being matched by Fleck’s banjo strings. The trio create a wispy, hushed approach to creating the almost whispered, repeating melody. The three slightly intensify their playing in a sustained tonal approach to a simple melody. The cut seems to strangely end abruptly on my copy.

The album continues with “Coda” and its repeated, descending Banjo lines that send us to a peaceful place with sensitive playing by Fleck and some shimmering cymbal work by Sanchez. Castañeda maintains a steady bass line that anchors the piece.

“Walnut and Western” could easily be a theme song to a whimsical spaghetti western. Castañeda’s harp projects with sounds that seem to be from a fairy tale and Sanchez’s adds propulsion and fire. Fleck’s banjo creates a sustained whirl of sound, the armature of this song’s structure.

As the title implies, “Three Is Not a Crowd” is almost like a proclamation about how these guys feel playing together. The three work in synch, repeating each other’s line like musical Swiss movements. They change up the rhythmic time effectively always keeping the listener on their toes. Fleck and Castañeda exchange improvisational ideas like they share the same mind and Sanchez maintains a rhythm that just ebbs and flows as the music requires.

The album ends with “Hooligan Harbor” a stirring collaboration that has a driving beat that has some of the audaciousness of Irish folk music. You feel yourself getting up and doing a jig. Castañeda’s harp almost does a bass solo before allowing the higher register of his instrument to cover you with a blanket of joyous plucked notes. Fleck, always at his best when in his element, plays with vigor and panache that often accompanies Irish folk or dancelike bluegrass style music. Sanchez offers a powerful solo with rolling tom-tom and splashing cymbal work that just kills it.

“Touch and Go” is a bluegrass inspired hootenanny. Castañeda creates waves of flourishing notes against Fleck’s bubbling banjo and Sanchez creates the percussive counterpoint. Get ready to kick up your heels.

Drummer Adam Nussbaum's "The Lead Belly Project"

Adam Nussbaum's The Leadbelly Project Sunnyside Records SSC 1500

The drummer Adam Nussbaum is one of those journeyman percussionists whose grounded beat can be heard on over one hundred-seventy recordings. He has worked with the likes of John Abercrombie, Michael and Randy Brecker, Jerry Bergonzi, Steve Swallow and Carla Bley to name just a few.  I have always found his work to be interesting, if slightly under the radar, and was particularly impressed with his work in his band  BANN with saxophonist Seamus Blake, bassist Jay Anderson and guitarist Oz Noy from back in 2011.

As a youngster growing up in Norwalk. CT, Nussbaum became exposed to the music of the folk/blues artist Huddie William Ledbetter, better known as Lead Belly, from his parents record collection.  The music inspired young Nussbaum but as he says “…he listened, loved and forgot those old recordings.” It was a long time coming, but the drummer decided to assemble a group of like-minded musicians and dedicate a record to this legendary folk/blues artist, one who left such a lasting impression on him during his formative years. The Leadbelly Project is a project that honors the music of Americana as represented by the music of Ledbetter. There is a deeply authentic feeling that this music elicits and it is only enhanced by the musicianship and fervor that these four artists bring to this endeavor.

Adam Nussbaum

Recorded in Brooklyn in March of 2017, Nussbaum garnered the services of two guitarists, Steve Cardenas and  Nate Radley, and one saxophonist, Ohad Talmor. Led by Nussbaum’s agile drums, these guys re-invigorate the simple but powerfully moving blues/gospel based-folk music of Lead Belly. They inject their own sensibilities into the repertoire, contemporizing it and re-introducing this wonderful music to a whole new generation of listeners.

The album features seven songs composed by Ledbetter, two traditional songs “Green Corn” and “Good Night Irene” and two Nussbaum Originals “Insight, Enlight” and “Sure Would Baby.”

Just sit back and listen to these guys interact. It is a communal love fest for this fiercely original, American roots music and if you listen intently you will be transported to a simpler time.  

The dual voices of Radley and Cardenas seamlessly mesh through each other’s lines without ever clashing. Saxophonist Talmor plays with admirable restraint, favoring a dedication to tone and feeling over speed. Nussbaum is clearly the leader here, but not in an overtly, out-front sort of way. The veteran drummer chooses the tempos and sets the tone, building an armature upon which his proteges can further enhance. He leaves the group plenty of room to develop their own ideas and pushes and prods as the master rhythm maker he is.

From the opening saxophone refrain of Talmor on “Old Riley” you can hear this album is about imparting a “down home” feeling. The two guitarists dance around each other in complementary fashion as the drummer adds  splashes of color before the group gets into a cadenced march following Nussbaum’s brushed traps.

On “Green Corn” the musicians carry on a delicate conversation where each respond to the other’s brief statement. They eventually create a circular whirlwind of notes, the two guitarists almost indistinguishable as they play off  each other’s ideas, with Talmor and Nussbaum carry the melody to a tidy coda.

The slow sauntering “Black Girl (Where Did You Sleep Last Night) creates room for Cardenas and Radley to create a Frisellian atmosphere drenched in picked and strummed twang over a 5/4 beat.

There is head-bopping authenticity of the group’s “Bottle Up and Go” that makes it a real treat. Listen to Nussbaum’s dancing calliope of sounds as he works his kit to great effect. Talmor’s saxophone lazily lopes along in perfect harmony with the rest of the band. The guitar work is so integrated into the music that it’s hard for me to distinguish who is playing what here, but no matter it all sounds fluid and right.

The album continues with other Lead Belly classics like the rousing “Black Betty,” a funky sort of vamp with a nice solo by Cardenas;  the short, angularly played “Grey Goose” which has a sweet drum intro by Nussbaum, and the gospel-like “Bring Me A Little Water, Sylvie” which features some country-inspired guitar work  and some dreamy saxophone by Talmor.  The shaking “You Can’t Lose Me Cholly” is a joyful tune with Nussbaum adding a lot of color to the rambling song.

“Insight, Enlight” is a gentle gem. It starts with a light, finger-picked guitar intro that hangs in the air like the sound of a wind chime in a gentle breeze. Nussbaum’s shimmering cymbal work and the hauntingly tenor of Talmor stating the repeating melody line further enhance the solemnity of this beautiful miniature.

The easy shuffling of Nussbaum’s “Sure Would Baby," is a song Adam wrote for his wife and is just plain fun to listen to. You can hear the group take this one and make it their own.

The set closes with the classic “Good Night Irene.” Nussbaum opens with a tom-based drum intro that leads into the melody stated simply by Talmor’s tenor as the two guitarists weave their lines into a filigreed pattern.

Regina Carter brings her Southern Comfort to the Jazz Standard August 16, 2014

Marvin Sewell, Regina Carter, Chris Lightcap and Will Holshouser
Photo by Ralph A. Miriello

On Saturday August 16, 2014 the violinist Regina Carter brought some Southern Comfort to the New York’s Jazz Standard. It was apropos to be enjoying the Standard’s sumptuous Blue Smoke Barbeque cuisine prior to the first set of Ms. Carter’s delicious treatment of American roots music. It was almost the perfect pairing for an all-American  evening of fine food and even finer music.

Ms. Carter, who is small in stature but commanding in the presence of her violin, was joined by an accomplished group of like-minded musicians.  Anchored by the rhythm section of Chris Lightcap on acoustic bass and Alvester Garnett on drums, the group included two musicians Marvin Sewell on guitars and Will Holshouser on accordion, who seemed to have an invisible tether to Ms. Carter’s musical mind.

The music was from Ms. Carter’s recent cd Southern Comfort, a musical experience which was born out of the violinist’s interest in discovering the music that existed during her father and grandfather’s time. The research took her to the coal mines of Alabama where her grandfather originally worked. The music of the time was annealed from the varied experiences of the workers who came from many disparate European and African backgrounds. It was the discovery of the field recordings from these times, a few of which Ms. Carter shared on stage from a recorder stored on her phone, that made the music so compelling. This was Americana music at its best, work and play music that sustained those who heard it while carrying on with their often difficult lives.

From the impressive glass slide and finger picked guitar opening by Mr. Sewell of “Miner’s Child” and the melancholic wail of Ms. Carter’s violin you knew you were in for a treat listening to music that could clutch at the tendrils of your soul. Ms. Carter has it all, precision, superb intonation and a creative spirit that makes her instrument sing like a plaintive voice. The group was marvelously intuitive in their approach to this music, which they played with a great deal of feeling and reverence.

On vibraphonist Stefon Harris’s fast paced arrangement of “Breakaway/Death Have Mercy,” drummer  Garnett played a moving Cajun-inspired rhythm that led into a stirring solo by accordionist Will Holshauser, who at times made his accordion sound like a carnival calliope.

On the Graham Parson’s tune “Hickory Wind” Mr. Sewell played glass slide on an electric Telecaster-style guitar. His technique was so flawlessly smooth that if you closed your eyes you could have easily mistaken it for a pedal-steel guitar. He lingered on long drawn out notes that hung in the air like wisps of cumulus clouds over a hot southern landscape. On this slow, sauntering tune Ms. Carter took the opportunity play with the heart wrenching poignancy that only a fiddle can elicit. Mr. Holshouser’s harmonies were magically in-sync with Ms. Carter at almost every turn. The two seem to have an empathetic connection that is magical to behold.

Ms. Carter took to the microphone to  explain her journey through her father’s genealogy, where she was DNA tested to  discover she was 73% West African and 13% Finnish. So she quipped her next record might explore Finnish music, tentatively titled “I’m Finnish-ed.”  She related visiting her father’s relative’s in the rural South during the summers of her youth. She then played a brief recording of a children’s school song that was taken from an archival collection of recordings from an all girl’s school in Alabama, titled “See See Rider.”  The song, as played by Ms Carter and her group, was particularly moving. Ms. Carter’s raspy violin repeated the refrain pointedly.  At times during her soloing you could hear glimpses of her quoting what seemed to be Bill Wither’s  soulful “Use Me”. Mr. Holshauser brilliantly complimented her sound with rich harmonies that would swell in and out in sync to the squeezing of his instrument. Mr. Garnett playing with his bare hands on his drums and Mr. Sewell and Mr Lightcap accompanied perfectly.

The group launched into a cacophony of sounds that at once seemed disparate and free. The Garnett penned song broke into the more identifiable sound of  a New Orlean’s inspired march. Mr. Garnett kept the drill step cadence superbly and Mr. Holshauser playfully soloed in a Cajun-styled mode.  Mr. Sewell had an extended solo as Ms. Carter looked on, leading to a bass solo by Mr. Lightcap. Ms. Carter soloed in a style that was reminiscent of Stuff Smith, with a dissonant dual string attack and references to “Farmer in the Dell” and other barnyard favorites sprinkled in along the way.  The song ended with a rousing and  rambunctious drum solo by the ever present Mr. Garnett, who was finally let out of his box to strut his ample chops.

    

The first set ended with the traditional hymn “I’m Going Home on the Morning Train” which was arranged and played on the album by the tasty guitarist Adam Rodgers. Mr. Sewell started the song off with a soulful bluesy guitar lead in. Mr. Holshouser’s moaning accordion sound gave the song a moving reverence, the feel of a church organ at a bible reading. Ms. Carter’s violin was particularly poignant on this hymn as her Appalachian heritage came pouring through with a sincerity that was tinged with a bit of melancholia; a combination that makes this music so moving. As Ms. Carter has said, the music comes through her, not from her, and to give it to us is a gift, as she does, demands that we accept it with open arms. For those who enjoy this kind of American roots music, played to perfection,  Southern Comfort is a must have in the same category as the late Charlie Haden and Pat Metheny’s memorable Missouri Sky.

Suspend Some Time and Take a Trip Through Julian Lage's “Gladwell”

 

Julian Lage "Gladwell"

Decca Records B0015502-02

Recorded at WBGH Studios, Boston, Ma

August 12^th , 13^th  & 14^th  2010 September 29, 2010 and December 10 & 11^th 2010

You have entered a world where time and space are suspended; a world, mysterious and forgotten as created in the mind of guitarist Julian Lage. You have entered the imaginary town of Gladwell. In this town all the instrumental voices are aural representations of the unique residents of this metaphorically magical place.

Using this town as his canvas, Lage creates a musical vignette that captures the sights, sounds and feel of this wholly imaginary place- a compilation of sorts that is made up of people, musical influences and experiences that he and his fellow musicians hold dear.

From the decidedly western sounding “233 Butler” which Lage impeccably plucks on a 1934  guitar built by R.A. Mango, the album has a rooted  Americana feel. A layered percussion solo by Tupac Mantilla is laced with voice overs, sighing cello and an array of unidentifiable percussive elements.

Tupac Mantilla

“Margaret” is a particularly evocative ballad that Lage wrote for friend and fellow Berklee guitarist/composer Margaret Glaspy. Lage employs tenor lines by Dan Blake and cello accompaniment by Aristides Rivas to create this compelling piece of music that somehow has undertones suggestive of  Pat Metheny and Charlie Haden’s “Beyond the Missouri Sky” from 1997 . 

 

Lage includes three improvised guitar pieces in the album, which he plays on a vintage 1926 Martin

00-28. On the first “ Point the Way” Lage over dubs three parts into an interesting quilt of sounds that he codifies in a brief two minute twelve seconds. The second piece, “Cathedral” ,is the equally short but delicate chamber piece that employs the unique resonance of the vintage Martin guitar. The final improvised/ overdubbed guitar piece is 

“Listen Darkly” which is the most frenetic of the three.

“However” is written by saxophonist Dan Blake and has a distinctively a rhythmic drive created by Mantilla’s effective use of drums and shimmering cymbals. Lage has a distinctive sound that lies somewhere between Metheny and Frisell without being too much like either of them.

Saxophonist Dan Blake

The classic “Freight Train” is played in a un-garnished, straight ahead almost reverential way, with Lage’s virtuosity and passion shinning delightfully through.

On “Listening Walk” we find Mantilla, Roeder and Lage create the bustle of a crowded train station. Lage uses a finger picked ostinato that sets the stage for Blake and Rivas to introduce the backing melody line, that simulates the loudspeaker announcements at the imaginary Gladwell’s train station. Mantilla and Lage have a great affinity as the two play off each other like two familiar friends walking through their imaginary town. 

 

“Cocoon” is a gossamer tune that is laden with both melancholy and timelessness. Aurally it depicts the sacred place, the sanctuary that all destinations like Gladwell invariably have.

The seminal standard “Autumn Leaves” was reportedly played by Lage in a living room-like environment created in the studio. Here he played for the exclusive enjoyment of his band mates who were all seated in a half circle on the floor around him. It is a rare glimpse of the fine guitarist playing solo for the enjoyment and under the direct scrutiny of his fellow musicians.

“Iowa Taken” is another fine example of the precise interplay that Mantilla, bassist Jorge Roeder and Lage have developed. Roeder provides some interesting and fluid bass lines during his solo. There is a fascinating draw to Lage’s creative process of building his musical vignettes, employing changes in direction, time and alternating between repeating lines and dancing single line adventures. 

Bassist Jorge Roeder

The final piece on the album is “Telegram” which, according to the liner notes, borrows from the tune

“Red Prairie Dawn” and is a jaunting, joyful down home piece of Americana in the finest tradition. Lage picks his way on a vintage 1932 Gibson L-5 here and saxophonist Dan Blake soars on this one.

Julian Lage and company have astutely orchestrated this entertaining travelogue through his imaginary Gladwell and it is a trip worthy of multiple visits.





Musicians: Julian Lage (guitars); Dan Blake (saxophones); Aristides Rivas (cello); Jorge Roeder (bass); Tupac Mantilla ( drums and percussion)