(Review by Dave Brownlow.)
Japanese - born Asuka Kakitani
leads an 18 piece contemporary jazz orchestra playing in a style reminiscent of
the work of Maria Schneider, Bob Brookmeyer or Vince Mendoza all of whom are
descendants of the great master of modern jazz orchestration – Gil Evans.
A former student at Berklee,
Kakitani has worked for several years around New York City , paying her dues, and gradually
attracting formidable jazz artists to play and solo on her distinctive charts. Commissioned
to write by Manny Albam and the Composer Assistance Program, in 2006,
she won the BMI Foundation Charlie Parker
Award for her song Dance One
.The 8 original compositions -
some over 10 minutes long – are inspired
by the natural world, literature or paintings by modernists such as
Matisse Kakitani’s ensemble has an adventurous
harmonic style using thick chords and multi-layered melodies which are
constantly evolving and resolving and from which the improvised solos emerge,
Many of her technical orchestral devices such as motifs are extended and
developed. Light and shade, contrasts between calm and excitement, changes of
time signature, complexity and simplicity, solos and ensemble playing and
composition and improvisation.
Soloists include saxophonist John O’Gallagher, trombonist
Jacob Garchik, guitarist Pete McCann, drummer Mark Ferber, and vocalist Sara Serpa.
A thoroughly absorbing album of
contemporary arrangements beautifully played
It is worthy of careful and
repeated listening especially by enthusiasts of modern jazz orchestration.
Dave Brownlow
BLOOM is due out on January 26th on Nineteen-Eight Records.
No comments :
Post a Comment