Wednesday, March 1, 2023

Francesca Tandoi - When in Rome

Styles: Piano, Swing
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:07
Size: 90,4 MB
Art: Front

(6:10) 1. Tin Tin Deo
(8:23) 2. Eternal dusk
(6:43) 3. Estrada branca
(3:03) 4. Winter Love
(4:59) 5. P.C.R.
(5:50) 6. Arabesque n. 1
(3:57) 7. Two lonely souls

“Francesca Tandoi is a pianist gifted with an excellent musical taste and sense of swing. She has a refined voice, she is capable of composing unforgettable melodies and arranging in an extremely sophisticated manner." By Monty Alexander

Pianist/vocalist Francesca Tandoi is recognized by critics and the public as one of the most interesting talents on the international jazz scene, an excellent composer and extraordinary band leader who already boasts a path studded with successes all over the world. Her trio performances have been repeatedly described as “an explosion of swing” and her pianism incredibly energetic and elegant at the same time.

She has an intense activity as a sideman behind her having collaborated with internationally renowned artists but in recent years it has been the formula of the trio that has been more congenial to her, allowing her a wide-ranging expressive freedom of original intensity in which she maintains a firm bond with the past and the jazz tradition but with the mind projected towards the future. She moved to the Netherlands in 2009 to study at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague et al Codarts Conservatory of Rotterdam, she graduated cum laude in 2015 and soon began her international career which sees her intensely engaged in concerts and tours in some of the most important theaters, festivals and clubs around the world (such as the North Sea jazz festival, Umbria Jazz, Cork jazz, Breda jazz, Amsterdam Arena stadium and many others in USA, Indonesia, India, Japan, South Africa, Russia and throughout Europe) both as leader of his trio and as sideman of some of the names most important of the Italian and international jazz scene.

“Francesca Tandoi has a perfect piano technique and an incredible sense of swing. The audience is totally enthralled by her playing." David Alston As leader of her trio from 2014 to today she already has several recordings "For Elvira" "Something blue" "Magic Three" and "Wind dance". The latter appears in the "top 10 best jazz albums of 2017" ranking of the famous Japanese magazine "Jazz Life". The same magazine defines her as one of the most interesting young talents on the European jazz scene.

Her latest record "When in Rome" will be released in 2022. She also appears as a sideman on more than 20 recordings, three of which as a quartet with saxophonist Scott Hamilton. “Francesca Tandoi has truly excellent piano skills, she's like she's flying over the keyboard. Plus she has a beautiful, enveloping and charming voice." Jazz Flits Magazine Translate By Google https://www.birdboxrecords.com/francesca-tandoi

Personnel: Vocal – Francesca Tandoi (tracks: 4); Double Bass – Matheus Nicolaiewsky; Drums – Sander Smeets; Piano – Francesca Tandoi

When in Rome

Tim Berne & Matt Mitchell - Angel Dusk

Styles: Saxophone And Piano
Year: 2018
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:44
Size: 106,2 MB
Art: Front

(12:02) 1. Perception-Reception
( 2:26) 2. Not Too Two
( 7:24) 3. Exeception-Pest
( 5:08) 4. Concepcion
( 3:01) 5. Starfish Blues
( 5:43) 6. Chance
( 5:03) 7. Snail's Pace
( 4:54) 8. Petulance

Last year, innovative pianist Matt Mitchell released Forage, a great solo album whose audacious material consisted exclusively of compositions by alto saxophonist Tim Berne, the man who had hired him in 2012 to play in the progressive Snakeoil band. The musical bond between the two men is so strong that a duo album was almost inevitable. Hence, Angel Dusk is now available and features eight tracks that pair Berne’s agile phrasing and resonant angularity with the perceptive, if intricate, tapestries of Mitchell.

The session opens with “Perception/Reception”, which gets strong forward momentum without being constantly busy. It shapes into a lyric reflection imbued with precise movements and emotional force. At some point, Berne embarks on circular crusades, having Mitchell's regularly paced chords darkening the mood for the time they last. Even remaining enigmatic until the end, there’s light in the sharp unison lines, which also endure on the subsequent short tune, “Not Too Two”.

“Exception/pest” flows with an instant liquidity. Mostly amiable in nature and exhibiting a classical-tinged artistry on the piano, the piece is temperate in its last section with a sort of rebelliousness that surfaces under the guise of explosive saxophone statements. Things are maintained hot on “Starfish Blues”, in which the swift interplay becomes massive and irreverent, and on the hyperactive “Petulance”, a recipient of ritualistic saxophone drives delivered with scorching trills in the mix and a complete command of the language. Denser harmonic progressions are adopted as accompaniment.

Both “Chance” and “Snail’s Pace” take their time to evolve, embracing a melodic parallelism that, even cerebral to a certain degree, is no less interesting or provocative than the sonic outbreaks. If the former piece goes from balmy to eloquent before returning to the written section, then the latter opens with Mitchell’s mystic rainbows of beautifully contrasting notes, proceeding in 'searching' mode after Berne jumps in with a combination of intimate melodicism and rhythmic agitation.

The constituent pieces of this collaborative work are extremely hard to separate in upbeat or downbeat. It’s much easier to associate their organic sounds with light and darkness due to the timbral coloring of the knotty textures. Berne and Mitchell sculpt and engrave with an absolute sense of anticipation and direction, making their set of explorations a stimulating listening experience.
https://jazztrail.net/blog/2018/7/24/tim-berne-matt-mitchell-angel-dusk-album-review

Personnel: Tim Berne: alto saxophone; Matt Mitchell: piano.

Angel Dusk

Buster Williams - Crystal Reflections

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1976
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:45
Size: 114,2 MB
Art: Front

( 7:20)  1. Prism
( 9:30)  2. The Enchanted Flower
( 5:21)  3. I Love You
( 5:38)  4. I Dream Too Much
(11:47)  5. Vibrations
( 3:29)  6. My Funny Valentine
( 6:38)  7. I Dream Too Much

Bassist Buster Williams is well featured here on this pretty, interesting set from 1976, his second disc as a leader. Crystal Reflections concentrates on exploratory duets with keyboardist Kenny Barron (the exceptional Barron original, "The Enchanted Flower"), pianist Jimmy Rowles (two versions of "I Dream Too Much") and vibraphonist Roy Ayers ("My Funny Valentine"). Elsewhere, Williams combines with Barron, Ayers and drummer Billy Hart for three impressionistic pieces: William's sensitive "Prism," Cole Porter's "I Love You" and Roy Ayers's Spyro Gyra-like "Vibrations." Even when Williams overdubs synthesizer and female voices overtop "Prism" or when Roy Ayers doubles up on sythn for "Virgo," the effect is sensitively considered and the result is quite a positive contribution to the success of each piece. This set is much more likely to appeal to fans of Kenny Barron, Jimmy Rowles or Roy Ayers. But bassist Williams proves himself a worthy leader here. He's a sympathetic, melodic player whose perceptive and intuitive string work is often simple and effective, never showy and very much a beneficial part of the whole. Like the title suggests, this is music that is as pretty as it is intelligent. Recommended. ~ Douglas Payne https://www.allaboutjazz.com/crystal-reflections-buster-williams-32-records-review-by-douglas-payne.php

Personnel: Buster Williams: bass, synthesizer; Kenny Barron: piano, electric piano; Jimmy Rowles: piano; Roy Ayers: vibes, synthesizer; Billy Hart: drums; Nobu Urushiyama: percussion; Suzanne Klewan: voice.

Crystal Reflections

Chris Potter - Got The Keys To The Kingdom: Live At The Village Vanguard

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2023
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:21
Size: 140,7 MB
Art: Front

(14:01) 1. You Gotta Move
(10:53) 2. Nozani Na
( 9:01) 3. Blood Count
( 7:26) 4. Klactoveedsedstene
( 6:22) 5. Olha Maria
(13:36) 6. Got The Keys To The Kingdom

There is a lot of heavy ordnance going off during this album. Indeed, the incoming only lets up once, and then briefly, during a performance of Billy Strayhorn's "Blood Count" at the halfway point. For the rest of the sixty-one minutes playing time, the watchword is eruptive. But no PPE is required. The barrage is benign.

This is the third album Chris Potter has recorded live at the Vanguard. The attraction is no surprise. Saxophonists, especially those whose primary horn is the tenor, must get a special charge from performing at the venue immortalised by John Coltrane. Potter leads a quartet completed by pianist Craig Taborn, bassist Scott Colley and drummer Marcus Gilmore. Each has form with Potter, especially Colley and Gilmore: Colley was in the band which recorded Lift (Live At The Village Vanguard) (Sunnyside, 2004) and Taborn in the one which made Follow The Red Line (Live At The Village Vanguard) (Sunnyside, 2007). Gilmore, the youngest member of the group, is no stranger to Potter either. Nor is he, genealogically speaking, a stranger to the Vanguard: his grandfather the great Roy Haynes, sat in for Elvin Jones for a run of "Chasin' The Trane" during Coltrane's historic 1961 residency.

Unlike the two earlier discs, which mostly consisted of Potter originals, Got The Keys To The Kingdom is entirely made up of covers. They are an imaginatively diverse collection: Mississippi Fred McDowell's "You Gotta Move;" "Nozani Na," a Brazilian folk tune collected by Heitor Villa-Lobos and Edgar Roquette-Pinto; Charlie Parker's "Klactoveedsedstene;" Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Olha Maria;" and the title track, a traditional African American spiritual; and the aforementioned "Blood Count." The main soloist is Potter, who must be on-mic for around eighty per cent of the time. Next up is Gilmore, with three killer solos and Taborn with two. Colley steps forward only on the intro to "Olha Maria." The album will shave your ass and Potter deserves an honorary set of keys to the Vanguard on the strength of it.By Chris May
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/got-the-keys-to-the-kingdom-live-at-the-village-vanguard-chris-potter-edition-records

Personnel: Chris Potter: saxophone; Craig Taborn: piano; Scott Colley: bass; Marcus Gilmore: drums.

Got The Keys To The Kingdom: Live At The Village Vanguard