JAM: December2002/January 2003 Issue: For the Record

Bob Brookmeyer/New Art Orchestra
WALTZING WITH ZOE
Challenge Records
CHR 70081

Personnel: Bob Brookmeyer, conductor, composer, valve trombone; Marko Lackner, Oliver Leicht, alto & soprano sax, clarinet, flute; Matthias Erlewein, tenor sax, flute; Nils van Haften, tenor sax, clarinet, bass clarinet; Edgar Herzog, baritone sax, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet; Thorsten Benkenstein, Torsten Maas, Sebastian Strempel, Eric Vloeimans, Angelo Verploegen, trumpet, flugelhorn; Adrian Mears, Jan Oosting, Bert Pfieffer, trombone; Ed Partyka, bass trombone; Kris Goessens, piano; Achim Kaufmann, synthesizers; Ingmar Heller, bass; John Hollenbeck, drums

Tracks: Seesaw; Child at Play; For Maria; Waltzing with Zoe; Fireflies; K.P. '94; Sweetie; American Tragedy

Recorded January 6-8, 2001 at Wisseloord Studios, Hilversum, Holland; Chris Weeda, engineer; mixed by Tymen Zinkha.

Waltzing With Zoe is the second recording by Bob Brookmeyer's New Art Orchestra, an 18-piece ensemble founded in Lubeck, Germany. Directed by composer and trombonist Brookmeyer, a Kansas City native, the orchestra's debut recording on Challenge Records was released in 1997. Begun as a "new jazz project" for the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, New Works consisted of a suite commissioned for Gerry Mulligan ("Celebration") and several other compositions.

The current release picks up where New Works left off. Brookmeyer continues to expand the possibilities of the large ensemble, creating a language that is all his own, intuitively evolving from jazz and classical music at the same time. Notated in detail and through-composed, with sections of open improvisation, the music has as much in common with Webern, Debussy and Stravinsky as it does with Basie.

Brookmeyer describes the compositional approach of Waltzing With Zoe as writing "character pieces." The title work is a piece named for Zoe Crook, the 10-year-old daughter of trombonist Hal Crook. Mysterious and playful, the melody and texture change moods like a spirited little kid going in several directions at once.

"For Maria," dedicated to Maria Schneider, is a moving and evocative ballad, a tone poem, a hair-standing-up-on-your-arm piece, which uses the full richness and color palette of the orchestra to beautiful effect, revealing something new with every listening.

A quirky piano motive and bass clarinet establish the tone for "Child at Play," written for Brookmeyer's godson. It features a couple of extended clarinet solos, and some unusual writing that explores the low register of the ensemble.

"Sweetie" was composed for Brookmeyer's wife, and "American
Tragedy," written prior to September 11 of last year, is a kind of requiem to a lost way of life.

"Fireflies" features the brilliant trumpet playing of Eric
Vloeimans, "Seesaw" sets up a dialogue for the band and drummer John Hollenbeck, and "K.P. '94" is an amazing "deconstruction" and rewriting of "King Porter Stomp."

The recording quality of the CD is excellent throughout. The drums are up front in the mix and balanced, the bass trombone rattles the floorboards, the trumpet sound is bright, and the individual timbre of every instrument is heard distinctly, while blending in with the whole.

With this orchestra as his primary working group, Bob Brookmeyer has assembled a collection of talented musicians and multi-instrumentalists who are able to bring his musical vision to life. In the liner notes he says, "We will be trying for one CD a year, so keep some shelf space open for us."

The current recording was done back in January 2001. Hopefully there will be more New Art Orchestra music on the way soon. With New Works and Waltzing With Zoe already on my shelf, I'm looking forward to the next one.

-- Tim Cross

The Leonard Brothers
A SIMPLER CHRISTMAS TIME
JAGGG Records

Personnel: Garry Leonard, drums; Gerry Leonard, bass; Janie Leonard Spring, bells; Danny Embrey, guitar; Paul Smith, piano/synthesizer; Gary Helm, Latin percussion; Mike White, tenor saxophone; Mike Metheny, flugelhorn, cornet; strings conducted by Garry Leonard, string arrangements by Walter Bryant

Tracks: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas; Baby It's Cold Outside; I'll Be Home for Christmas; Santa Claus Is Coming To Town; The Christmas Song; Walkin' In a Winter Wonderland; White Christmas; Christmas Time Is Here

Recorded June 2002 at Soundtrek Studios, Kansas City, MO; Ron Ubel, Jeff Schiller, Grant Schainost, engineers.

The tradition of reviewing the Leonard brothers' Christmas music dates back a few decades. According to liner notes, Garry and Gerry would gather a brass quartet each holiday season to serenade the neighborhood with self-described mediocre play. Garry's favorite music teacher, joining the celebration each Christmas Eve, would add his "criticism," leaving the family in laughter.

Apparently the boys' play improved over the years. A Simpler Christmas Time, offered in similar "lighthearted spirit," is a collection of secular songs defined by mellow rhythms and even tempos. As with the previously released A Simpler Time, simple should not be mistaken for unsophisticated, or lighthearted for lightweight. There's also a tradition of Kansas City-based Christmas jazz albums. Dreams Come True in 1991 and Warm Christmas in 1997 were star-studded albums produced to benefit local nonprofit concerns like The Dream Factory and Project Warmth. This year, Santa Claus came to town early as the principals and a 20-piece orchestra hit the studio in June. The benefits now run to all within earshot of the resulting Leonard Bros. album.

On first hearing, Simpler Christmas was immediately tabbed for holiday gift giving and stocking stuffing. The initial luster hasn't dimmed a bit after countless replays of this 35-minute jewel. Perhaps never before has so much Christmas music been played to the joy of listeners during Halloween week.

On the striking album cover, an evergreen stands alone in a pristine field of soft-white snow, reaching above into a blue winter sky. Suffice it to say the beauty and simplicity of the design reflects the sounds within. Players and song tracks sparkle uniformly, making it genuinely difficult to single out highlights. So, with apologies to the author of the original classic account...

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a player was stirring, not even a mouse;
The instruments hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that the Leonard boys soon would be there;

Now, Garry! now, Gerry! now, Janie and Embrey!
On, Mike White! on, Paul Smith! on, Helm and Metheny!
To the top of the scale! to the top of the hall!
Now play away! play away! play away all!

They sprang to their music, the whole team gave a whistle,
And away they all played, not a single note bristled.
But I heard them exclaim, ere they played out of sight,
"Simpler Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!"

-- Tom Fredrick






	Search our site:		Bob Brookmeyer/New Art Orchestra WALTZING WITH ZOE Challenge Records CHR 70081 Personnel: Bob Brookmeyer, conductor, composer, valve trombone; Marko Lackner, Oliver Leicht, alto & soprano sax, clarinet, flute; Matthias Erlewein, tenor sax, flute; Nils van Haften, tenor sax, clarinet, bass clarinet; Edgar Herzog, baritone sax, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet; Thorsten Benkenstein, Torsten Maas, Sebastian Strempel, Eric Vloeimans, Angelo Verploegen, trumpet, flugelhorn; Adrian Mears, Jan Oosting, Bert Pfieffer, trombone; Ed Partyka, bass trombone; Kris Goessens, piano; Achim Kaufmann, synthesizers; Ingmar Heller, bass; John Hollenbeck, drums Tracks: Seesaw; Child at Play; For Maria; Waltzing with Zoe; Fireflies; K.P. '94; Sweetie; American Tragedy Recorded January 6-8, 2001 at Wisseloord Studios, Hilversum, Holland; Chris Weeda, engineer; mixed by Tymen Zinkha. Waltzing With Zoe is the second recording by Bob Brookmeyer's New Art Orchestra, an 18-piece ensemble founded in Lubeck, Germany. Directed by composer and trombonist Brookmeyer, a Kansas City native, the orchestra's debut recording on Challenge Records was released in 1997. Begun as a "new jazz project" for the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, New Works consisted of a suite commissioned for Gerry Mulligan ("Celebration") and several other compositions. The current release picks up where New Works left off. Brookmeyer continues to expand the possibilities of the large ensemble, creating a language that is all his own, intuitively evolving from jazz and classical music at the same time. Notated in detail and through-composed, with sections of open improvisation, the music has as much in common with Webern, Debussy and Stravinsky as it does with Basie. Brookmeyer describes the compositional approach of Waltzing With Zoe as writing "character pieces." The title work is a piece named for Zoe Crook, the 10-year-old daughter of trombonist Hal Crook. Mysterious and playful, the melody and texture change moods like a spirited little kid going in several directions at once. "For Maria," dedicated to Maria Schneider, is a moving and evocative ballad, a tone poem, a hair-standing-up-on-your-arm piece, which uses the full richness and color palette of the orchestra to beautiful effect, revealing something new with every listening. A quirky piano motive and bass clarinet establish the tone for "Child at Play," written for Brookmeyer's godson. It features a couple of extended clarinet solos, and some unusual writing that explores the low register of the ensemble. "Sweetie" was composed for Brookmeyer's wife, and "American Tragedy," written prior to September 11 of last year, is a kind of requiem to a lost way of life. "Fireflies" features the brilliant trumpet playing of Eric Vloeimans, "Seesaw" sets up a dialogue for the band and drummer John Hollenbeck, and "K.P. '94" is an amazing "deconstruction" and rewriting of "King Porter Stomp." The recording quality of the CD is excellent throughout. The drums are up front in the mix and balanced, the bass trombone rattles the floorboards, the trumpet sound is bright, and the individual timbre of every instrument is heard distinctly, while blending in with the whole. With this orchestra as his primary working group, Bob Brookmeyer has assembled a collection of talented musicians and multi-instrumentalists who are able to bring his musical vision to life. In the liner notes he says, "We will be trying for one CD a year, so keep some shelf space open for us." The current recording was done back in January 2001. Hopefully there will be more New Art Orchestra music on the way soon. With New Works and Waltzing With Zoe already on my shelf, I'm looking forward to the next one. -- Tim Cross The Leonard Brothers A SIMPLER CHRISTMAS TIME JAGGG Records Personnel: Garry Leonard, drums; Gerry Leonard, bass; Janie Leonard Spring, bells; Danny Embrey, guitar; Paul Smith, piano/synthesizer; Gary Helm, Latin percussion; Mike White, tenor saxophone; Mike Metheny, flugelhorn, cornet; strings conducted by Garry Leonard, string arrangements by Walter Bryant Tracks: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas; Baby It's Cold Outside; I'll Be Home for Christmas; Santa Claus Is Coming To Town; The Christmas Song; Walkin' In a Winter Wonderland; White Christmas; Christmas Time Is Here Recorded June 2002 at Soundtrek Studios, Kansas City, MO; Ron Ubel, Jeff Schiller, Grant Schainost, engineers. The tradition of reviewing the Leonard brothers' Christmas music dates back a few decades. According to liner notes, Garry and Gerry would gather a brass quartet each holiday season to serenade the neighborhood with self-described mediocre play. Garry's favorite music teacher, joining the celebration each Christmas Eve, would add his "criticism," leaving the family in laughter. Apparently the boys' play improved over the years. A Simpler Christmas Time, offered in similar "lighthearted spirit," is a collection of secular songs defined by mellow rhythms and even tempos. As with the previously released A Simpler Time, simple should not be mistaken for unsophisticated, or lighthearted for lightweight. There's also a tradition of Kansas City-based Christmas jazz albums. Dreams Come True in 1991 and Warm Christmas in 1997 were star-studded albums produced to benefit local nonprofit concerns like The Dream Factory and Project Warmth. This year, Santa Claus came to town early as the principals and a 20-piece orchestra hit the studio in June. The benefits now run to all within earshot of the resulting Leonard Bros. album. On first hearing, Simpler Christmas was immediately tabbed for holiday gift giving and stocking stuffing. The initial luster hasn't dimmed a bit after countless replays of this 35-minute jewel. Perhaps never before has so much Christmas music been played to the joy of listeners during Halloween week. On the striking album cover, an evergreen stands alone in a pristine field of soft-white snow, reaching above into a blue winter sky. Suffice it to say the beauty and simplicity of the design reflects the sounds within. Players and song tracks sparkle uniformly, making it genuinely difficult to single out highlights. So, with apologies to the author of the original classic account... 'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a player was stirring, not even a mouse; The instruments hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that the Leonard boys soon would be there; Now, Garry! now, Gerry! now, Janie and Embrey! On, Mike White! on, Paul Smith! on, Helm and Metheny! To the top of the scale! to the top of the hall! Now play away! play away! play away all! They sprang to their music, the whole team gave a whistle, And away they all played, not a single note bristled. But I heard them exclaim, ere they played out of sight, "Simpler Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!" -- Tom Fredrick RETURN TO DECEMBER 2002/JANUARY 2003 MAIN INDEX © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2002. All rights reserved.