Time: 66:12
Size: 151.5 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz
Year: 1999
Art: Front
[2:32] 1. Jubilee Stomp
[5:12] 2. In A Sentimental Mood
[2:42] 3. I Got It Bad And That Ain't Good
[3:04] 4. Prelude To A Kiss
[5:51] 5. Sophisticated Lady
[2:50] 6. The Clothed Woman
[5:36] 7. Day Dream
[3:24] 8. Tonk
[9:07] 9. Beggar's Holiday Suite
[6:29] 10. Lush Life
[5:20] 11. Fantasy
[4:48] 12. Come Sunday
[3:41] 13. The Queen's Suite
[5:28] 14. Solitude
Jean-Yves Thibaudet is a whiz with Ravel and Debussy--his albums of those composers' piano works have received endless praise. This disc of Duke Ellington arrangements is in some respects a follow-up to the Ravel and Debussy discs, and in other respects a sequel to his recording of another jazz giant, Bill Evans. Thibaudet's Ellington inhabits a soundworld that is sometimes languid and dreamy, as in "Prelude to a Kiss," and other times driving and seemingly unstoppable as in the opening track, "Jubilee Stomp."
All of this is worlds away from Ellington's own performances, and not only because everything here is for piano solo. Rather than setting out to recreate Ellington's sound, the arrangers commissioned by Decca for this disc first familiarized themselves with Thibaudet's musical strengths and then created arrangements of Ellington tunes that capitalized on them. As a result, Ellington is drawn nearer to Debussy and Ravel and Liszt than we might have thought possible. The results are magical: the classic tunes are as comfortable in their new surroundings as with Duke and the Ellington Orchestra. And for an extra treat, two tracks--"Tonk" and "Fantasy on Caravan"--are virtuoso two-piano arrangements in which Thibaudet takes both parts.
All of this is worlds away from Ellington's own performances, and not only because everything here is for piano solo. Rather than setting out to recreate Ellington's sound, the arrangers commissioned by Decca for this disc first familiarized themselves with Thibaudet's musical strengths and then created arrangements of Ellington tunes that capitalized on them. As a result, Ellington is drawn nearer to Debussy and Ravel and Liszt than we might have thought possible. The results are magical: the classic tunes are as comfortable in their new surroundings as with Duke and the Ellington Orchestra. And for an extra treat, two tracks--"Tonk" and "Fantasy on Caravan"--are virtuoso two-piano arrangements in which Thibaudet takes both parts.
Reflections On Duke mc
Reflections On Duke zippy