Category Archives: Reviews

CD Review: “Queen of Chamber Jazz”, violinist/erhu player Meg Okura re-imagines Sakamoto and YMO’s greatest hits from the 70’s to Oscar winning soundtracks!!

megokurathepanasianchambArtist: Meg Okura & the Pan Asian Jazz Ensemble
Title: Music of Ryuichi Sakamoto
Label: self released
Genre: chamber jazz

CD Review by Matt Cole

As I’m not very familiar with the music of Ryuichi Sakamoto, I would seem to be an odd choice to review a CD of his compositions. However, given that Meg Okura & the Pan Asian Chamber Jazz Ensemble have created a jazzy re-imagining of Sakamoto’s synth pop creations that is apparently quite different from the original, I may be more able to hear and then review the album without preconceptions (perhaps like sending someone unfamiliar with Ayler to review New Grass, which, curiously enough, was my own introduction to Ayler). The selections on the CD cover a near-20 year span, from his 1978 debut “Thousand Knives” to 1997’s “Untitled #01 (on this album as “Grief”). Violinist/arranger Meg Okura, in the liner notes, writes that a number of arranging techniques and approaches were used, with some pieces remade anew (e.g. “The End of Asia,” “Thousand Knives”), while others hew close to the original (“The Last Emperor Theme”).

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CD Review: Arifa’s Anatolian Alchemy…a well-crafted, gentle, and lyrical creation from a fine group of musicians

anatolian_alchemy_hiresArtist: Arifa
Title: Anatolian Alchemy
Label: Mundus
Genre: oriental jazz

Review by Matt Cole

Anatolian Alchemy is a new CD from multinational band Arifa, which consists of Alex Simu (Romania) on clarinets and laptop, Mehmet Polat (Turkey) on oud, Franz von Chossy (Germany) on piano, and Sjahin During (Turkey/Holland) on Afro Anatolian percussion. It is a gentle group effort which relies mainly on subtlety, space, and communication to make its points.

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CD Review: Michael Harrison & Maya Beiser… perfectly compliment each other’s genius, and the whole CD is a work of sublime beauty.

81+TZ9BxUoL._SL1400_Artist: Michael Harrison & Maya Beiser
Title: Time Loops
Label: Cantaloupe Music
Genre: modern-ambient-minimal-indian music

CD Review by Dawoud Kringle

One day, out of the blue, a package arrived in the mail. It was a CD: Time Loops by Michael Harrison & Maya Beiser. I imagine being a music writer has such perks. I’m no stranger to the work of Michael Harrison (and have even had the pleasure of studying with him). So, I waited for the right moment to properly listen to and savor this latest musical offering from the maestro.

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Concert Review: Arto Tunçboyaciyan & Friends Performing “Avantgarde Folk”

Date: October 27, 2013
Venue: Le Poisson Rouge (NY)

Review by Dawoud Kringle

On an early Sunday night, Le Poisson Rouge was packed to the rafters for a performance of Armenian jazz. The show was billed as “Armenian Jazz with Arto & Friends.” The concert was dedicated to Paul Motian, and Armenian American whose musical legacy barely requires an introduction.

Arto & friends is Arto Tunçboyaciyan (percussion, drums, vocals, guitar), Lucy Yeghiazarayan (violin, vocals), Tatev Yeghiazarayan (piano, vocals, percussion), Michael Sarian (trumpet), and Noah Garabedian (bass).

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Concert Review: TomChess Bandit Hat… a band of virtuosos whose music must be experienced!

Date: October 18, 2013
Venue: Spectrum (NY)

Review and videos by Dawoud Kringle

Friday afternoons are an unusual time of the day to hold a concert. CMJ was holding a big shindig at Arlen’s Grocery and you get your occasional concert in the park. But it’s still not conventional: at least not for music venues. However, Spectrum (a music/art/science venue on Manhattan’s lower east side that combines a fearless urge to present the best of New York’s underground elite in a comfortable home-like setting) had other ideas. One Friday I ventured to attend the performance of Tom Chess‘ ensemble Bandit Hat (Tom Chess; oud/ney, Jimmy Mngwandi; bass, and Daniel Kurfirst; drums/percussion).

The music started with some free, atonal smokiness from the bass, which was shattered by a scintillating punch in the sternum from the oud, and directed the formless sounds toward its own tonality. The percussion eased in, and it all coalesced into a Moroccan sounding 6/8 groove. From there, the audience was swept up in a modern magic carpet ride.

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