  |
|
|
 |
|
CD |
| 6.321 Ft
|
|
| 1. | Pink Panther
|
| 2. | Four On Six For Wes
|
| 3. | Zap
|
| 4. | 26 2
|
| 5. | Actual Proof
|
| 6. | Nefertiti
|
| 7. | Essential Passion
|
| 8. | Steps
|
Jazz
Ximo Tebar - Art Direction, Guitar, Producer, Scat, Design, Arranger, Author
Boris Kozlov Bass (Electric)
David Pastor Trumpet
Donald Edwards Arranger, Drums
Ester Andujar Vocals (Background), Photography
Orrin Evans Piano (Electric), Fender Rhodes
Ramon Cardo Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor)
Santi Navalon Keyboards
Vicente Sabater Mastering, Engineer, Mixing
Playing jazz guitar involves mastering the tradition laid down by the modern masters of the instrument from Montgomery to Metheny while applying those concepts to create an individual voice that expresses itself in a myriad of stylistic inventions, conceptions, and dimensions. The Spanish-born, New York-based guitarist Ximo Tebar meets all of the aforementioned criteria with the release of his latest Sunnyside release, Steps; an invigorating and engaging record date that demonstrates what the guitar can do in the hands of a master at the top of his instrumental, interpretational, and compositional game. brbrTebar is backed by an impressive array of American and Spanish musicians: Acoustic and electric bassists Alex Blake and Boris Kozlov, Orrin Evans and Santi Navalon on Fender Rhodes and keyboards, drummer Donald Edwards, vocalist Ester Andujar, Ramon Cardo and Kiko Berenguer, on soprano and tenor saxophones, respectively, Stefan Braun, cello, and David Pastor, trumpet. With Tebar s fleet-fingered, pan-genre guitar approach, supported by an ensemble that effortlessly leap-frogs fusion, Latin, and straight-ahead contexts, this disc delivers an outstanding aural document that is, in the words of Duke Ellington, Beyond Category. brbrWell-worn standards like Henry Mancini s The Pink Panther, are rendered in a perky medium tempo, with a sly bebop quote from the leader, while several jazz classics are reincarnated with a zesty, twenty-first century sonic sheen. Wes Montgomery is given an impassioned and rhythmically intricate, Azymuth-style shout-out on Tebar s Four on Six For Wes, along with the title track; a sheets-of-sounds re-reading of John Coltrane s 1959 classic Giant Steps, a Latin take on lesser known Trane track from that same period, 26-2, and an electro bolero/bossa nova look at Wayne Shorter s Nefertiti. Tebar and his crew jump to the early seventies, and polyrhythmically resurrect the Herbie Hancock gem Actual Proof, originally released on the Hancock/Headhunters LP, Thrust. The Hancock vibe can also be heard on Tebar s original composition Zap, which can be described as a quiet-storm friendly bookend to Tell Me a Bedtime Story. And on Essential Passion, composed by the drummer Edwards, Ximo and his cohorts swing like a weather report predicting clear skies unencumbered by clouds of musical doubt.brbrGiven the vast range of Tebar s artistic expression and experience, it should come as no surprise that he could create a recording of such complexity. Born in 1963 in Valencia, Spain, he first studied flamenco guitar at the age of seven. He turned professional ten years later, touring with his own group, The Ximo Tebar Band in Spain, Europe and America, and accompanied a number of prestigious jazz stars, including Johnny Griffin, Benny Golson, Eddie Henderson, Tete Montoliu, Lou Donaldson, Jan Ackerman, Lou Bennett, and the late Louie Bellson. In 1989, he was a founding member of Big Band Jazz Europa, an ensemble consisting of twenty-two musicians from across Europe. In the nineties, Tebar toured extensively throughout Europe including Germany, Ukraine and Russia.
""In a lifetime there will always be personalities that stand out from the rest of humanity because of superior talent. Musically, Ximo Tebar is one of them. He has brought new life to the electric guitar. He can play with the excitement, creative agility and rapid fire of John Coltrane, yet, with the warmth and tender passion of Clifford Brown and Art Farmer, depending in what emotional situation he finds himself. He has an uncanny, pervasive, tasty, harmonic and melodic concept that never overdoes any one thing so much as to make it boring and meaningless ... Listen to him! He's astounding."" - Benny Golson Tebar is backed by an impressive array of American and Spanish musicians: Acoustic and electric bassists Alex Blake and Boris Kozlov, Orrin Evans and Santi Navalon on Fender Rhodes and keyboards, drummer Donald Edwards, vocalist Ester Andujar, Ramon Cardo and Kiko Berenguer, on soprano and tenor saxophones, respectively, Stefan Braun, cello, and David Pastor, trumpet. With Tebar's fleet-fingered, pan-genre guitar approach, supported by an ensemble that effortlessly leap-frogs fusion, Latin, and straight-ahead contexts, this disc delivers an outstanding aural document that is, in the words of Duke Ellington, "Beyond Category."
Well-worn standards like Henry Mancini's "The Pink Panther," are rendered in a perky medium tempo, with a sly bebop quote from the leader, while several jazz classics are reincarnated with a zesty, twenty-first century sonic sheen. Wes Montgomery is given an impassioned and rhythmically intricate, Azymuth-style shout-out on Tebar's "Four on Six For Wes," along with the title track; a sheets-of-sounds re-reading of John Coltrane's 1959 classic "Giant Steps," a Latin take on lesser known Trane track from that same period, "26-2," and an electro bolero/bossa nova look at Wayne Shorter's "Nefertiti." Tebar and his crew jump to the early seventies, and polyrhythmically resurrect the Herbie Hancock gem "Actual Proof," originally released on the Hancock/Headhunters LP, Thrust. The Hancock vibe can also be heard on Tebar's original composition "Zap," which can be described as a quiet-storm friendly bookend to "Tell Me a Bedtime Story." And on "Essential Passion," composed by the drummer Edwards, Ximo and his cohorts swing like a weather report predicting clear skies unencumbered by clouds of musical doubt."
Ximo Tebar's guitar style is not typical in the contemporary electric jazz tradition of John McLaughlin, Pat Metheny, or John Scofield in that it displays little distinction in and of its own voicings. What Tebar does own is a sense of teamwork and a greater theory of the melodic whole with his fellow bandmembers. Steps, his seventh album, is a very appropriate title for this recording in three discernible ways. There's a progression of size in these combos, from quartet, quintet, sextet, septet, and octet. Compositions from post-bop and the jazz fusion era are used, as well as modern contemporary originals. Though somewhat based in acoustic music, the electric Fender Rhodes piano played by Orrin Evans is very present throughout, while add-ons include a horn section, vocals, and a cello. Though Tebar's guitar is at the focal point, he is not the main voice, but instead represents a straight shooting laser beam of conceptual originality that precludes personal individuality. What is unique is the clever way he interprets any given composition. Alex Blake (longstanding member of Randy Weston's bands) and Boris Koslov (the Mingus Big Band stalwart) switch their regular roles, with Blake on acoustic upright and Koslov on the electric bass guitar, while rock-solid drummer Donald Edwards plays his ever consistent role as a rhythmic taskmaster. Tebar "covers" five standards, all of them quite differently, with new ideas surrounding the original themes. The theme from "Pink Panther" for instance incorporates a neat and clean modern approach merged with heavy contemporary funk without dismissing the slinky mood of the song. Wayne Shorter's "Nefertiti" is adapted into a light, breezy samba, Herbie Hancock's fusion classic "Actual Proof" is done very faithfully to the original in short form, and John Coltrane's "26-2" is deviated beyond initial recognition, with Blake's bass, Stefan Braun's cello, wordless vocals from Ester Andujar, a funky tick-tock beat, and Tebar's sneaky quick guitar lines. "Steps" is a supercharged extrapolation of Coltrane's "Giant Steps" with harmonies from "Milestones" also tossed in, tricky and synapse fast. Clearly a tribute to Wes Montgomery, "Four on Six for Wes" has the guitarist exploiting seamless rhythm changes via tiny notes and hip, literate chords borrowed from the master with scatting included, while the Edwards penned "Essential Passion" is very much like "Actual Proof" in design, but more lithe, animated, and not over the top heavy. This is a quite credible effort for Tebar and his groups, not as uneven as the lineups might suggest, sporting the diversity of a restless mind that refuses to stew in only one jazz genre, and does not take his own presence in a group setting so deadly serious. ~ Michael G. Nastos, All Music Guide |
|
CD bolt, zenei DVD, SACD, BLU-RAY lemez vásárlás és rendelés - Klasszikus zenei CD-k és DVD-különlegességek |  | | Webdesign - Forfour Design |
|
|
