Gerald Cohen Voyagers Innova Records One can think of few chamber ensembles better suited to contemporary music than the Cassatt String Quartet. Their intonation, musicality, and interpretive powers are superlative. Composer Gerald Cohen has enlisted them to record three of his pieces on Innova, two originally commissioned for Cassatt. Cohen describes himself as a storyteller, both in his vocal and instrumental music. The three distinct narratives here are populated by musical quotations relevant to them, yet they never seem like pastiche. The title work is about the two Voyager spacecrafts, which were sent out into our solar
Read moreCecilia Smith The Mary Lou Williams Resurgence Project, Vol. 1: Small Ensemble Repertoire Cecilia Smith, vibraphone, Lafayette Harris, Jr. & Carlton Holmes (piano/organ), Kenny Davis (bass), Ron Savage (drums), Carla Cook (vocals) Self-released Mary Lou Williams was an extraordinarily gifted jazz pianist and composer, particularly prominent during the Swing band era, but also rightly held in esteem for her late modern jazz work “Zodiac Suite.” Among her accomplishments, she played with Benny Goodman and arranged for Duke Ellington. Vibraphonist Cecilia Smith has decided to commemorate her legacy with the recording The Mary Lou Williams Resurgence Project, Vol. 1: Small
Read moreBest of 2021: Recordings by Philip Blackburn and Chris Campbell Philip Blackburn Justinian Intonations Neuma CD Chris Campbell Orison Innova LP Both Philip Blackburn and Chris Campbell are poly-artists, sitting astride composition and sound art and working with homemade (or, in the case of Blackburn, also Partch made) instruments. In 2021, Blackburns Justinian Intonations and Campbells Orison topped the currently crowded field of ambient classical, providing long form pieces that encourage contemplative listening. It is frustrating that some quarters have tagged them with a New Age label, as their work is more intricate and, frankly, interesting
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