Drumming phenom Dafnis Prieto scores big band gold with his "Back to Sunset"

Dafnis Prieto Big Band Back to the Sunset

There is something very stirring about a big band playing Afro-Cuban jazz. The music has a rhythmic core that is the armature upon which the horn and reed arrangements just swirl. Cuban born drummer Dafnis Prieto has been on his own personal musical adventure, utilizing his formidable rhythmic skills to create a unique vision for his Afro-Cuban inspired jazz. Since arriving from Cuba back in 1999, Prieto has brought an energy and flare to the music that is all his own. In 2011 his gift for being able to incorporate multi-rhythmic variations into his music was recognized by his receipt of the prestigious MacArthur ‘genius” grant. The drummer has taken his music a step further, writing and arranging a suite of big band charts that both pays homage to those who have inspired him while also blazing a trail forward into explosive new ground. The sound he creates is both imaginative and a primer of what we can expect further from this percussive hurricane.

Back to the Sunset is the culmination of his most recent energies. It features a suite of nine compositions played by the Dafnis Prieto Big Band and featuring some special guest soloists. Anchored and directed by a distinctly Latin rhythm section, the band includes Prieto on drums, fellow Cuban pianist extraordinaire Manuel Valera, the Puerto Rican bassist Rickey Rodríguez and the Venezuelan percussionist Robert Quintero on congas and percussion. There is an all American trombone section of Tim Albright, Alan Ferber, Jacob Garchik and Jeff Nelson; a trumpet section of Americans Michael Rodríguez, Nathan Eklund and Josh Deutsch and Russian born Alex Sipiagin and a reed section containing fellow Cuban Román Filíu, and Americans Michael Thomas, Peter Apfelbaum, Joel Frahm and Chris Cheek. This is one talented group and under Prieto's direction and drive they make magic.

The album’s lead off is “Una Vez Más,” a song dedicated to Latin giants of jazz Eddie Palmieri and Tito Puente along with the Latin influenced trumpeter Brian Lynch. Lynch is featured on some shimmering, high register trumpet work here. The brass and reeds all work in sync with the infectious clave rhythm to transport you to the sunny realm of the southern hemisphere. Valera’s takes a solo that dances over Quintero and Prieto’s percussive explosion.

“The Sooner the Better” is a song dedicated to the Fort Apache bandleader Jerry González and Brazilian composer Edgberto Gismondi, and is a dense composition. The song begins with a pedal point by Valera and some fleet fingered bass work by Rodriguez. The fluttering woodwinds come dancing in as the brass bellow beneath. The repeating melody line is joined in rotation by each section until they merge in resplendent unison. Prieto has an ear for drama, building tension with soaring solos and releasing it masterfully, engaging the listener all the while keeping a tempestuous storm of rhythm roiling beneath. There are layers of color and texture here that paint a complex and masterful aural picture. Fluttering flute lines, boisterous baritone bleats lead up to a stirring and powerful tenor solo by Peter Apfelbaum. Alex Sipiagin introduces a fluid flugelhorn solo that hangs in the air like a bilious cloud. Altoist Filiu blasts out one last solo that filigrees around the repeating melody line to the coda. 

“Out of the Bone,” a song dedicated to pianist Michel Camilo and altoist and M base founder Steve Coleman, starts with a brooding baritone solo from Chris Cheek before the group goes into the Latin vibe. Prieto’s masterful drum rolls and syncopated lines along with Quintero’s active congas boil below the surface giving the band a base upon which to form layers of sound. A bass trombone solo by Jeff Nelson roars as the trumpet section squeals in the background.   A trombone duel between Garchik and Ferber is another highlight. There is a celebratory, festive Mexican hat dance feel to this one at the end that keeps you on your toes.

The iconoclastic alto saxophonist/composer Henry Threadgill is another of Prieto’s influences and here the drummer dedicates this lushly arranged composition “Back to the Sunset” to both Threadgill and to the pianist Andrew Hill. Hearing Threadgill’s probing, raspy alto in counterpoint to Prieto’s lyrical arrangement is quite a juxtaposition. The altoist’s jagged bursts of sound at first pierce Prieto’s lush arrangement like an intruding knife cutting through a delicate silk tapestry. But Threadgill’s alto finds a seam in the music, a line of raw beauty to explore, a vein that he discovers running through. To his credit he  mines it playing  poignantly and with great feeling.  The result is remarkable.

Perhaps one the most interesting arrangements on the album is entitled “Danzonish Potporrui,“dedicated to the pianist Bebo Valdes, the iconic jazz drummer Art Blakey and the Latin inspired Canadian soprano saxophonist Jane Bunnett. Prieto starts off with a flurry of percussive inventiveness before the band settles into a Latin driven vamp. Prieto is a master of changing rhythmic time between sections. He skillfully plays the brass off against the woodwinds in a display of arranging prowess. He introduces a beautifully Iberian sounding trumpet solo by Josh Deutsch and after a throbbing bass solo by Rodriguez, the band increases the tempo again; this time featuring a lilting soprano voice (presumably a nod to Bunnett) by Michael Thomas. An uplifting Valera piano interlude (presumably in deference to Valdes) is surrounded by fluttering flutes and brass. Prieto keeps an array of impeccable time changes that would put a smile on Blakey's face. The finale has the band building an ever increasing tension as  a bandoneon sounding, melodica solo by Peter Apfelbaum, lends a Tango-like feel to the mood of the closing section of this complex piece.

“Song for Chico” is a dedication to bandleaders Chico O’Farrill, his son Arturo O’Farrill and Mario Bauzá and has a big band sound that resonates with its Afro-Cuban drive. The powerful band plays the lines with unusual force and drive. The saxophonist Steve Coleman’s alto is the featured soloist on this one and his penetrating tone lends a distinctively modern, non-Latin element to the piece. The band alternates lines with Coleman in a dramatic call and response. He is followed by an edgy trumpet solo by Nathan Eklund that pierces the envelope. Prieto and Quintero trade percussive barbs in a wild syncopated interlude as the band raise their voices individually in sequence to lead into another Coleman alto saxophone solo at the coda.

Dafnis Prieto Big Band photo credit David Garten

“Prelude Para Rosa” features Valera at his most creative and independent. The band pulses behind building up to an apex of interest with dancing piccolo, blaring trombones and burnished brass before they settle into a breezy sway and offer the piquant melody. A piccolo solo by Michael Thomas floats above the music like a hummingbird in flight. A lilting soprano solo by Joel Frahm has a similarly weightless feel. Listen to the pulsing drive that Prieto writes for the different sections; all separate tasks but interwoven in a unified tapestry of sound.

“Two for One” is dedicated to the drum master Buddy Rich, the pianist Chucho Valdes and the percussionist Hermeto Pascal. The song features Quintero’s driving congas, Chris Cheek’s boisterous baritone and Nathan Eklund’s trumpet. The band pulses like a throbbing heart with Prieto pumping just the right amount of percussive adrenaline to keep it up to the task. A sinewy alto saxophone solo by Thomas is followed by an inventive piano solo by Valera.  Toward the end Prieto demonstrates some of his polyrhythmic skills in the manner of a Buddy Rich-like solo that would have made the master proud..

“The Triumphant Journey” is dedicated two contemporaries that brought Afro-Cuban Music into this country, trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and the percussionist/singer/composer Chano Poza. A soaring trumpet solo by Mike Rodriguez and a tenor solo by Frahm with references to Gillespie’s ” A Night In Tunisa” are followed by a trombone solo by Tim Albright. Forceful arrangement of the

band over Filiu’s alto solo and roiling drums by the master Prieto concludes this adventurous album.

Joe Gransden and his Big Band Make the Holidays Swing with The Christmas Song

Joe Gransden and his Big Band The Christmas Song

With the first flurries of snow, the smell of wood burning in an open hearth and a brisk winter chill settling into the morning air, everyone is getting ready to enjoy a festive holiday season this year. Whether you’ll be trimming a Christmas tree, stringing decorative lights on your house or lighting a menorah these wonderful rituals are always better completed with some holiday music playing in the background. I myself can’t wait till Thanksgiving has past to bring out my stack of Christmas jazz.  My collection is an eclectic mix of old and new. Some of my favorites include Frank Sinatra’s A Jolly Christmas, Bing Crosby’s White Christmas, Ted Rosenthal’s Wonderland, Marcus Roberts’ Prayer for Peace and a couple of collections Jazz to the World and A Jazzy Wonderland to name just a few.

This year I got a chance to preview the new Joe Gransden Big Band Holiday recording The Christmas Song and suffice it to say I have a new album to add to my holiday collection. The Atlanta based bandleader/trumpeter/vocalist has put together a fabulous album with his knock out big band and a gorgeous string section that is a must have for anyone who loves their holiday music served up hot, jazzy and with some swing.

Balladeer Gransden has been leading his big band since as far back as 2006. Keeping such a large group together for such an extended period is a testament to Joe’s hard work and determination to preserve the big band sound. His rotating group of first-call, local musicians are all standouts, many of them performing nationally, some well-respected educators teaching a new crop of jazz students at prestigious universities, all dedicated to the greater sound of this big band.

Gransden has a medium timbre, silk glove of a voice that has been burnished by long exposure and careful study of such vocal greats as Sinatra and Bennett mixed with the more contemporary sounds of Bobby Darin and Harry Connick Jr.  He is an affable character who engages with his audience with a self-deprecating humor and a million-dollar smile. 

On this album Gransden selects fourteen holiday songs, many old-time favorites mixed in with a sprinkling of the blues. All are rendered bristling and new by fresh arrangements that utilize the band’s big sound with a few augmented by a lush string section.

The opener “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” finds Joe’s mellifluous tenor fronting a rousing arrangement by Jeff Jarvis which just propels you off your seat. The strong walking bass by Starkey and brief but bright piano solo by Banks is complimented by a gorgeous string accompaniment.

The children’s classic “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” features a wonderfully swinging brass arrangement by Wes Funderburk with Joe crooning away with true Sinatra swagger. The band cooks, as the big round sound of bassist Starkey takes a solo before John Sandfort wails on his tenor.

Christmas can also bring the blues to some and Joe’s Sinatra-esque “That’s Life” sounding version of the Charles Brown and Gene Redd “Please Come Home for Xmas” is made all the more poignant with some stirring saxophone work by altoist Mace Hibbard behind the Jeff Jarvis arrangement.

The band is given free rein to rock on the festive “Winter Wonderland” on an Eric Alexander arrangement.

Perhaps my favorite on the album is the very hip Jim Basile arrangement of the Nat King Cole favorite “Nature Boy.” The band just slays on this one and Gransden offers some of his finest trumpet solo work on this classic. Starkey and Varnes keep the pace swinging and Banks accompaniment is subtle and superb. Gransden’s voice is at his most sincere and he hits some difficult notes with a polished panache.

No holiday album would be complete without a version of “A Christmas Song” dutifully playing with a yule log burning in the fireplace in the background. No one can approach the iconic sound of Nat Cole on this classic, but Gransden does a credible job of singing it with humble believability. The big band is missing here, but for the bass, the piano, Sam Skelton on flute and Jeff Jarvis' flugelhorn backed by a sea of strings.

Another favorite is the slick arrangement by Wes Funderburk on the hip “Cool Yule.” I’ve never heard this song before, but it will easily be added to my Christmas song rotation at home. Here Gransden sings this swinger with a cool aplomb, encouraging the trombone section before rendering his own soaring trumpet solo. Vocalist John Hopkins lends his raspy voice near the end in a short duet with Gransden for the finale.

The band is given another chance to use its multiple voices on a frantic version of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” with another spectacular arrangement by lead trombonist Wes Funderburk. Tenor man John Sandfort gets the call on this one and tears it up on his horn as the band pulses behind him. Gransden gets another feature on trumpet which he uses to play a dancing solo that he brings to a soaring climax.  The band simmers to a boil.

The album continues with “It’s A Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” which is played in two different tempos.

The perennial “White Christmas” has a Woody Herman, Four Brothers inspired, saxophone section feature, arranged by Vince Norman, that just swings in wonderful synchronicity. Gransden offers a warm flugelhorn solo in contrast. 

The heartwarming “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is deftly arranged as a quartet piece by pianist Banks and opens with a muted trumpet played by Gransden that he overdubs against his own mellow vocal. 

 “Angels We Have Heard on High” is played with a big boisterous sound by the big band. This Eric Alexander arrangement calls for two trumpets at different registers often playing simultaneously, with Gransden taking the lower register solo and lead trumpeter Kevin Lyons taking the higher part, at times sounding very baroque in his attack.  

The last two songs are both based on a Wes Funderburk arrangement of “Holly Jolly Christmas.” Drummer Varnes leads off with a cadenced snare solo that leads into a fun call and response saxophone duel between altoists Mace Hibbard and Sam Skelton. The band is pumping on this and Gransden’s vocal delivery is smooth and cheerful. They end the album with a brief reprise of the chorus.

If you’re like me and enjoy a month or so of holiday sounds bellowing throughout your home, then Joe Gransden and his Big Band’s The Christmas Song is a must have.

Personnel : Mace Hibbard, lead alto; Sam Skelton, alto saxophone; John Sandfort, tenor saxophone: Mike Walton, tenor saxophone; Don Erdman, baritone, saxophone;  Wes Funderburk, lead trombone, Tom Gibson, trombone, Kevin Hyde, trombone; Lee Watts, bass trombone; Chip Crotts, lead trumpet; Clark Hunt, lead trumpet; Kevin Lyons, trumpet; Hardin Butcher, trumpet; Melvin Jones, trumpet; Kenny Banks Sr. piano; Neal Starkey, bass; Justin Varns, drums.

Strings: Violins, Mary Burndrett, David Edwards, Ginny Respress Fairchild, Kathryn Koch, Angele Lawless, Patrick Ryan, Jessica Stinson and Andy Zabrinski. Cellos: Barney Culver, Roy Harran, Strings Contractor: Jonathan Wright. Strings Conducted by Jeff Jarvis.

Recorded at Brighter Shade Studios, Atlanta, GA by John Driskell Hopkins and Thom “TK” Kidd

September 5^th , 6^th  & 7^th  2017.

'Bone Power: Michael Davis' "Hip-Bone Big Band"

Michael Davis: Hip-Bone Big Band

Every so often, a cd falls through the cracks; I either don’t get to it in a timely manner or I miss it completely. I make it a goal to generally try to listen to everything that is sent to me, but sometimes even though the spirit is willing my execution falls short of my intentions.

So it was with this one. I just discovered trombonist Michael Davis’s release Hip-Bone Big Band buried beneath my pile, and although it was recorded and released back in August of 2016, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to give a passing acknowledgement to this fine album after finally getting to take a listen.

At fifty-six years of age, Davis is a clinician, an educator and a sought-after trombonist, having had stints in the big bands of Buddy Rich, Bob Mintzer, and Woody Herman and having toured with the Rolling Stones to name just a few. On Hip-Bone Big Band, this accomplished musician proves he is also a top-notch arranger/composer, presenting nine original and three re-imagined songs that just burst with one of the most energized, vibrant big band sounds being recorded today. Davis proves there certainly is power in them there 'bones.

Davis knows the strengths of the musicians in his ensemble- on this recording all top-tier New York session musicians. The group jabs, swells, growls and explodes in dexterous unison and deft counterpoint, resulting in a powerful wall of sound that just blows you away. Waves of multi-layered frequencies are meticulously arranged, carefully orchestrated to sound like one powerful unified voice, and with a rock-solid rhythm section of Andy Ezrin on piano, David FInck on bass, Will Kennedy and Jared Schonig on drums, the music never fails to swing.

His orchestrations allow several soloists an opportunity to launch into their own individualized improvisations and the results can be stirring, but it is the ensemble work that is most impressive to me. Big bands can be like an untamed beast, powerful and unwieldy, but Davis seems to have the acumen of a lion tamer. His arrangements harness the energy without ever dissipating the raw power.

With a name like Hip-Bone Big Band, you’d expect some of the best solos spots would be offered to the who’s who of trombonists playing for Davis and indeed they are. The featured artists include Conrad Herwig, Bill Reichenbach, Bob McChesney, Andy Martin, Marshall Gilkes, Nick Finzer, Jeff Nelson, Michael Dease and Davis himself.

Davis does leave a little space for the saxophones and trumpets to have their say. We get some engaging solos from Scott Wendholt on trumpet, tenor men Bob Malach and the alto master Dick Oatts. Andy Snitzer’s tenor feature on “Walk Like the Guy” is especially evocative.

The selections are mostly swingers that allow the band to inhale and exhale in synchronous and syncopated respiration. This band has the lungs of a trained Olympic athlete and it is exhilarating to hear.  You can tell these guys were enjoying themselves because they seem to convey a cocky attitude in their section work, a confident bluster that blares through your headset. Songs like “Butter Ball,” “Zaq Attack,” “Walk Like the Guy” “Giant” and the pulsing “San Jose” demonstrate just how in sync these guys can be under Davis’ direction.

Not that the band can’t summon its emotional side; just take a listen to the moodily played “Sentimental” or the sauntering “Fog City” where Davis offers a particularly emotionally charged solo.

“Trombone Institute of Technology” is a bare study in multi-voicing of instruments without the aid of a rhythm section and “CRB’s 76 Trombones” is a buoyant play on the old Music Man classic.

With this bone-centric band, Hip-Bone Big Band Davis has created a thunderous sound that anyone who enjoys the genre should find immensely appealing.

The musicians; Saxophonists: Dick Oats,ato;David Mann, alto; Bob Malach, tenor;Andy Snitzer,tenor; Charles Pillow, tenro; Roger Rosenberg, baritone;

Trumpet/Flugelhorns: Nick Marchione, Jim Hyner, Tony KAdleck, Scott Wendholt, Zaq DAvis. Trombones/  Bass trombones: Micahel Davis, Marshall Gilkes, Nick Finzer, Keith O'Quinn, Conrad Herwig, Bob McChesney, Andy Martin, Birch Johnson; Michael Dease, Amy Salo, Jeff Nelson; George Flynn, Bill Reichenbach.

Rythm Section: Andy Ezrin, piano: David FInck, bass; Will Kennedy, drums; Jared Schonig, drums.

Bobby Sanabria's Big Band Multiverse & The Universal Diversity of Music

Bobby Sanabria's Big Band: Multiverse JH 1193

When I recently featured three current works from Big Bands I was called to task for not having included at least one Latin Big Band . Well certainly that was not by design as there are many Afro Cuban and Latin based bands that deserve mention so here is one that clearly deserves to be included in the mix.

When you look at the cover of Multiverse ,the latest album from Bobby Sanabria’s Big Band,  you are confronted with the serious stare of its leader. Doffed in a black hat, a graying soul patch and dark shaded glasses that offer reflections of distant galaxies mirrored on the surface of his lenses, clearly this self-proclaimed Nuyorican is looking into the universe for inspiration. Mr. Sanabria’s universe is of course much more down to earth, it is the universe of diversity, the universality of music in its many varied and ethically influenced forms that that have made him the musician he is today.  As a quote  from the liner notes taken from Nobel Prize winning poet Octavio Paz states  “Every view of the world that becomes extinct, every culture that disappears, diminishes a possibility of life.”  It is this sentiment that infuses Mr. Sanabria’s music and his mission.The Multiverse Big Band is a living, breathing organism that embodies the cross genre diversity that Mr. Sanabria  has come to represent.

As a jazz musician and a courageous proponent of the Afro-Cuban/Latin Jazz  traditions no one has been a more consistent and passionate spokesman for rallying more wide spread recognition of the Latin jazz idiom. It was Mr. Sanabria’s vocal and ardent petitioning of NARAS ( the ruling body for the Grammy Awards ), that helped to re-instate a Grammy award in the category of Latin Jazz, after it had been summarily removed as a viable category for consideration.

On Mulitverse we find a powerful , well orchestrated group of musicians playing music ranging from the cinematic to the sublime. The music is unified by a clave driven rhythm section, but true to its universal theme it contains elements of Latin dance, straight ahead jazz, modern big band arrangements and even  funk and rap. 

A case in point is the introductory piece from Don Ellis’s theme to the movie The French Connection, driven by its hard, clave-centered rhythm  section and pulsing brass choruses, Sanabria and company  bring this smoker  to a cinematic climax worthy of the movie. The use of an oddly futuristic sounding electric baritone solo by Danny Rivera  is countered by the soaring plunger trumpet screams of Shareef Clayton before a blistering tenor solo by Jeff Lederer is met with the Australian bush sounds of the didgeridoo as played by Chris Washburne. It is as if Mr. Sanabria has created a masterful amalgam of sounds that cross all barriers of time and space.

“Cachita,”is a slick modern  arrangement by Jeremy Fletcher of the Rafael Hernadez piece. It’s rhumba-like feel incorporates the dance rhythms of Latin music with tight section arrangements, some boisterous call and response  from Hiram “El Pavo” Remon and saxophone solos of note from John Beaty on alto and Lederer on tenor.  The song ends with a clave-driven bass solo by Leo Traversa.

Fletcher returns with his own contemporary composition “Jump Shot” with its cha-cha rhythm and its swirling section work. Solos by Washburne on bass trombone and Lederer on tenor add excitment. As the title implies Sananbria and companies s deft use of percussive accents makes this one jump.

As if the world needed another version of “Over the Rainbow,” arranger Andrew Neesley find a way to breathe new life into this classic  The band supports vocalist Charnee Wade’s wonderfully subtle interpretation of these timeless E.Y. Harburg lyrics. The band plays with warm sensitivity over Wade’s beguiling voice.Time to go home Toto.

The funky  Chris Washburne tune “Wordsworth Ho” has a free feel to it with boisterous choruses and angular changes in rhythmic direction that is quite contemporary in its approach. As always in Mr. Sanabria’s bands, soloists are given just enough space to make a succinct point without becoming  a distraction to the whole unit. 

Other key selections from this marvelous album include a Jeff Lederer’s  arrangement of Wayne Shorter’s “Speak No Evil”  with its dynamic sectional chorus work and a fine solo by Peter Branin on tenor. Understanding that there are no boundaries in music, the  song utilizes a timely rap by La Bruja with a backing vocal chorus  from the band, making this one of the most cross generational songs on the album.

Perhaps the most ambitious piece is Michael Philip Mossman’s arrangement of this spectacular medley of Ellingtonia titled "Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite for Ellington.”   The suite seamlessly incorporates parts from “ Black and Tan Fantasy” “and “Satin Doll” to name a few and it does so with breezy facility that makes it look easy. David DeJesus’s alto solo on “I Got It Bad It A’int Good” is heartfelt.  The band swings on “It Don’t Mean A Thing (If It A’int Got That Swing)” with a slurred trombone solo by John Beaty  and a rousing Latin chorus section of the theme leading to a trio of gutsy trumpet solos.  A brief sampling of “Body And Soul” ends this one at the coda with a flurry of bongos, congas and a stirring drum solo courtesy of Mr.Sanabria..

The finale is “The Chicken/From Havana to Harlem-100 years of Mario Bauza” which is a celebration of Mr. Sanabria’s mentor the trumpet playing band leader Mario Bauza. The arrangement of the horn sections have a “Tower of Power” ala  “ Brecker Brothers” feel to it as one section plays melody and others pulse powerfully behind. A rousing Maceo Parker inspired soul/funk tenor solo by Norbert Stachel is featured and grabs the feel of this one perfectly. The song leads to a rap by La Bruja, with talks of the origins of the music, a short Bauza bio and some musical history of the Afro-Cuban musical experience.

For those who love the power and the synchronicity of eighteen musicians playing together as one Multiverse  is one hard driving band that deserves more attention. The album was a Grammy nomionee and the band will be playing at Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola Dec 19^th-22^nd so if your in New York for the holidays this is a not to be missed.

Personnel; Bobby Sanabria, leader, arranger, percussion, xylophone and drums; Christian Rivera congas, background vocals, Obanilu Allende, bongo/cenerro; Mathew Gonzalez, bongo, cencerro; Hiram "El Pavo" Remon, lead vocal, back ground vocals; Enrique Haneine, piano; Leo Traversa, bass and background vocals; Trumpets: Kevin Bryan, Shareef Clayton; Jonathan Barnes andn Andrew Neesley; Saxophones:

David DeJesus, Peter Branin; Norbert Stachel; Jeff Lederer, Danny Rivera. Trombones; Dave Miller, Tim Sessions, Joe Beaty, Chris Washburne. Charnee Wade Vocal, La Bruj :Spoken word/rap. Additional Background Vocals:Gene Jeffereson, Mary Gatchell and Georgia Schmidt. Boma Yuba Section: Ernesto Lucar and Gene Marlow.

A Taste of Italy: Review of Roberto Magris & the Europlane Orchestra' s "Current Views"

CD: Current Views
(Soul Note 121425-OD)

Italian Pianist Roberto Magris has established a floating, predominantly eastern European based orchestra that goes under the title Europlane. The elastic nature of this group allows him to interchange various talented musicians as time and their scheduling availability allow. Make no mistake; it is Magris that is the driving force behind this endeavor. He has a passion for large group, big band arrangements where the multi-instrument format allows him a huge palette on which to paint his musical visions. Magris has consistently offered high quality productions, often times with surprisingly emotive veteran collaborators like, altoist Herb Geller, drummer Jimmy “Junebug” Jackson and bassist Art Davis. My favorite iteration of his Europlane format to date has been his previously released “Check-In”,with the smoking Tony Lakatos on saxophone.
On this compilation of his music, recorded live at three different venues, Magris has assembled an enjoyable representation of some of these memorable performances. It is refreshing to get a chance to hear some fine European musicians
; many whom I have never had the pleasure of hearing before, playing behind the inspirational force that is Roberto Magris.
On “The Story Teller” Magris uses a beautiful Italian folk song as the basis for his melody. He expands from this theme with a dynamic horn section, and the guitar styling of the great Philip Catherine’s gently wailing electric guitar. Catherine is an impressionistic player of top order. His recent collaboration with the recently passed saxophonist Charlie Mariano on The Great Concert, a fine example of this talented musician's breath. For his part, Magris’s percussive piano solos have a strong McCoy Tyner influence, with a driven approach that envelopes the music in a warm, blanket of sound. These two artists make this one special .The song also features a Shorter-esque soprano solo by Marco Castelli that sails above the pulsing horn and rhythm sections.

“Dukish Interlude” starts out with an impressionistic introduction that is seemingly inspired by Duke Ellington. It nonetheless reminds me of Milton Nasciemento’s “Ponta De Areia” from Wayne Shorter’s fine album Native Dancer
. The hauntingly beautiful combination of the arco playing of Vitold Rek on bass along with the tubular sound of Molenhof’s vibes demonstrates Magris’ strong arrangement and his compositional talent. The song settles into a nice groove featuring a serpentine sounding alto solo by Kyrstof Bacso. The song reprises to the vibes/ arco bass duo that bookends the piece back to its original exotic sound.

The only standard on the album is Jerome Kern’s “Love in Vain” which gets a boisterous, swinging horn section intro before yielding to Molenhof’s vibes and a tenor solo by Muenchinger.

“Hombres” is a Latin inspired tune that features a facile bass solo by Rek, leaving no doubt that the man can play. Drummer Gabrielle Centis anchors the song with his effective sense of Latin rhythms.

“React” is a hard driving modal piece inspired by what Magris calls “the Black Stream” of the 70’s jazz music coming from America. Here Magris shows his capacity to play with great kinetics; in the modal, rhythmic style reminiscent of such artist’s as Tyner and Mingus’ pianist Don Pullen. Ottaviano sends the song into the stratosphere with a spirited soprano solo that reminds me of a young Dave Liebman on fire. This one cooks.

“Steady Mood” has the predictably languishing sound of the theme to a detective movie. Basco’s particularly silky solo on alto builds on the sultry mood that Magris is setting. Molenhof’s vibes rounds the edges, with a smooth cool sound, as Magris and his rhythm section bring the song though its paces.


“For Naima” is actually a dedication, but not to John Coltrane’s wife of the same name. It is instead dedicated to Magris’s daughter whose name was inspired by the Coltrane composition. It has a straightforward swinging vibe where Magris plays Fender Rhodes, with its distinctive 70’s sound, and is joined by soloists Lackner on alto, Schreck on rousing trombone and a swinging Darko Jurovic on guitar.

While not as powerful for me as “Check-In”
the live performance captured on Roberto Magris & the Europlane Orchestra’s "Current Views""is a worthy addition to any big band music collection.

All Recorded Live: #1 September 20, 2002 Casa della Musica,Trieste, Italy) #2,34,5,&6 July 21, 2003, Italy Cassa della Musica, Trieste, Italy #7 recorded November 23, 2001, Teatro Gustavo da Modena, Palmanova, Italy

Musicians: Roberto Magris (piano and arranger); Gabriele Centis (drums); Kristof Basco ( alto on 2,3,4,5& 6); Roberto Ottaviano ( tenor & soprano sax on 2, 3,4, 5&6); Vitold Rek ( bass on 2,3, 4, 5 & 6); Christian Muenschinger (tenor sax 2,3,4,5& 6) ; Bill Molenhof (vibes on 2,3,4, &6); Philip Catherine (guitar on 1); Julius Baros ( trumpet on #7); Rado Tariska (alto on 1); Marko Lacker (alto sax on 7); Marco Castelli (soprano on 1 & tenor sax on 7);Loje Krajncan (trombone on #1); Ferenc Schrek (trombone on #7);Darko Jurovic (guitar on 7);Frantisek Uhlir ( bass on 1 & 7).

All compositions and arrangements by Roberto Magris except In Love in Vain composed by L. Robin & J. Kern arranged by Roberto Magris