Laura Leon - Changing The Pace

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 26:27
Size: 60,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:16)  1. Samba
(4:30)  2. Two True Blues
(3:15)  3. Gumbo Limbo
(3:24)  4. The Kiss
(2:44)  5. Tango Ultimo
(5:03)  6. Laura's Dream
(3:12)  7. Pavanne
(1:00)  8. Samba Reprise

A fantastic collection of seven Latin, jazz and blues piano pieces, composed by Steven Rosenhaus, Eric Ewazen, Astor Piazzolla and Morton Gould. Each of these works was originally composed as a solo piano work. Shifting from 'classically' composed, Laura transformed them with arrangements in collaboration with Grammy award-winning tenor saxophonist Richie Cannata, Nicki Parrott on bass, Adam Snyder on drums, and the internationally renowned Brazilian percussionist Cafe. Changing the Pace features Rosenhaus' Samba and Two True Blues, Eric Ewazen's Gumbo Limbo from his A Suite from the Cloud Forest, and Morton Gould's toe-tapping and full-of-swing Pavanne, which has been adored since it first came on the music scene in 1938. Astor Piazzolla's Tango Ultimo takes the tango to a whole new level. Imani Mosley's review of a recent performance Laura gave of Samba and Two True Blues at Queens College's Lefrak Concert Hall stated: "The piece was delightfully blissful, the first, light and airy and the second, soft and jazzy. It sounded perfect for a concert hall and yet it had the air of belonging somewhere else as well, like somewhere in the Village." Laura Leon has been heralded for the special touch she brings to both her solo and collaborative performances at the piano. She has broadened the spectrum of American music and where it can be experience and has brought composers and their works to audiences, beyond traditional concert venues to new settings and special events. 

Embracing American contemporary repertoire in a unique way, The New Music Connoisseur has called her performances"an even blend of fine technique, intelligence and passion." The Knight News' wrote: "I found myself captivated by the sound of the piece with its rich chords and the performances of Ms. Leon." Laura has received wide acclaim and recognition for her performances and recordings of a wide roster of American composers-including Peter Schickele, William Bolcom, Hugo Weisgall, Leo Kraft, Steven Rosenhaus, and Eric Ewazen. Performances include Heifer's International Bee Day Celebration, The White House/Capitol Hill's Days of Remembrance, and Weisgall's The Golden Peacock with the soprano Emily Duncan-Brown. She has conceived and collaborated on several live performance multimedia works--Found in Nature and PRO.JECT. She was the music director for, and performed on the soundtrack of the 2006 Emmy-award winning documentary The Hidden Life, which aired on PBS. More.. http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/lauraleon

Personnel:  Laura Leon, piano; Richie Cannata, saxophone; Nicki Parrott, bass; Adam Snyder, drums; Cafe, percussion.

Changing The Pace

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