Elisabeth Kontomanou - Waitin' For Spring

Styles: Jazz, Vocal
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:09
Size: 132,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:42)  1. Sunny
(6:07)  2. Waitin' for Spring
(5:20)  3. I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues
(5:42)  4. The Good Life
(4:03)  5. Fever
(5:23)  6. Duke Ellington Sound of Love
(7:18)  7. Ayanna Left New Orleans and Went to Mexico
(4:03)  8. The Bird in Me
(3:34)  9. I'll Never Be the Same
(4:14) 10. Will Love Stay in My Heart
(4:39) 11. We'll Be Together Again

Of Greek and African origin and born in France, Elisabeth Kontomanou has worked with musicians on both the European and American scenes Leon Parker, Michel Legrand, Mike Stern, Alain Jean-Marie and Toots Thielemans to name a few. She first gained recognition at the "Concours de La Defense," which enabled her to play at jazz festivals, then was nominated for a Django D'Or following her album Embrace. Kontomanou played at world-renowned venues the Blue Note, the Knitting Factory and the Supper Club. She does not limit herself to purely musical endeavours, branching out to both musical cinema (Masque de Lune by Michel Legrand, 1988) and musical comedy (Rag Time, 2003). ~ Editorial Reviews  http://www.amazon.com/Waitin-Spring-Elisabeth-Kontomanou/dp/B000BU9ABE

It is not too late to go on the album of Elisabeth Kontomanou , released in late 2005, to say all the good we think. Still any haloed rightly, of its 2006 Jazz Victory "for Waiting For Spring , the singer is first offered a nice cast. But not just any! Because it succeeds in catalyzing around it a real band at the service of music where jazz and blues mix. The album is very well balanced between the themes sometimes "popular", the singer reappropriates sumptuously ("Sunny", "Fever" and "The Good Life") or somewhat forgotten standards ("Duke Ellington Sounds Of Love "of Mingus or "I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues" by Arlen and Koehler ). But it also contains original compositions such as "The Bird In Me" masterfully interpreted in duet with Laurent Coq (who wrote the music) or "Waiting For Spring" and "New Orleans Ayanna Left And Went To Mexico", which give to hear dazzling chorus Sam Newsome soprano.

A rhythmic, Donald Kontomanou especially Daryl Hall are, from beginning to end, spotlessly accuracy and depth. John Scofield , meanwhile, does not the numbers: it invests falls, moved, recovery always the group (of "Sunny" especially). But of course, last but not least , Elisabeth Kontomanou is the real star of this disc. She offers her voice sometimes sweet and sensual, sometimes brilliant, but always with a depth and a rare intimacy. How not to be moved to tears listening to "The Good Life" (but yes, but yes ...) and especially "The Bird In Me"? Waiting For Spring is an album by any exceptional item, a sincerity and a Master that demands admiration and we can listen to the envi. Translate by google  http://www.citizenjazz.com/Elisabeth-Kontomanou.html

Personnel:  Elisabeth Kontomanou (voc), Laurent Coq (p), Daryl Hall (b), Donald Kontomanou (d), Sam Newsome (ss), John Scofield (g)

Waitin' For Spring

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Elisabeth Kontomanou Feat. Geri Allen - Secret Of The Wind

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:58
Size: 138,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:43)  1. God Is Love
(5:24)  2. If I Ruled The World
(3:45)  3. Every Body Was Born Free
(4:07)  4. I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free
(4:25)  5. Secret Of The Wind
(2:50)  6. L.O.V.E
(4:41)  7. Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
(4:09)  8. Trouble Of The World
(4:45)  9. Sack Full Of Dreams
(5:00) 10. Nature Boy
(2:41) 11. People Get Ready
(6:25) 12. Were You There
(4:57) 13. A Quiet Place

Vocalist Elisabeth Kontomanou first met pianist Geri Allen in March 2011, when both were invited to participate in a Billie Holiday tribute presented in Montreal by the Jazz en Rafale festival. They immediately bonded, igniting a lively correspondence that often centered around thoughts on faith. Four months later, they reunited in a Normandy studio to create Secret of the Wind, a magnificent work that is both specifically and generally sacred. The disc’s core comprises traditional Afro-American spirituals and likeminded compositions by Marvin Gaye, Grady Tate, Curtis Mayfield, Billy Taylor, Ralph Carmichael and Kontomanou herself (contributing the title track and another original piece). Those tracks are augmented by a trio of secular pop standards “If I Ruled the World,” “L.O.V.E.” and “Nature Boy” that broaden the album’s theme to one of peace, love and understanding. 

Allen devotees might be surprised by the tremendous restraint she demonstrates. Though she is a full and richly imaginative partner in this project, she clearly appreciates its reverential tone. Kontomanou responds with her finest session to date, magnificently suggesting the musicianship of Carmen McRae blended with the grit of Nina Simone. The depth of their mutual respect is evident throughout, though it is perhaps most superbly demonstrated on Kontomanou’s “Everybody Was Born Free,” propelled by Allen’s steadily knotting and unknotting of tension, and a fiery, testifying treatment of Taylor’s “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free.” ~ Christopher Loudon  http://jazztimes.com/articles/58994-secret-of-the-wind-elisabeth-kontomanou-featuring-geri-allen

Personnel: Geri Allen (piano); Elisabeth Kontomanou (vocals).

Secret Of The Wind

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