“Discovering Mahler’s music is akin to discovering life itself. Experiencing it, is to be drawn into his world and values. What emerges from his music, his letters and, the testimonies of those who knew him is the duality of this man. Being a creator and interpreter all at once, he invents the sounds which re-create the world of nature and humans.”- Semyon Bychkov

The Czech Philharmonic and its Chief Conductor and Music Director Semyon Bychkov continue their acclaimed Mahler cycle with a Double Album of Mahler: Symphony No. 3, the composer’s Third Symphony. Working together with mezzo-soprano Catriona Morison, the Prague Philharmonic Choir and Pueri Gaudentes.

In this monumental work, Mahler combines a text from Nietzsche’s Also Sprach Zarathustra with the folk song inspirations of Des Knaben Wunderhorn, culminating in eternal bliss in the closing Adagio. To Bychkov, this longest Mahler symphony offers his “least hysterical” music, and hearing it for the first time as a 10-year-old choirboy kindled his life-long fascination and love for this composer. With this recording, it comes full circle.

Catriona Morison, Mezzo-Soprano (tracks 4 & 5)
Prague Philharmonic Choir (track 5)
Lukáš Vasilek, Choirmaster
Pueri Gaudentes (track 5)
Libor Sládek & Jan Kyjovský, Choirmasters

Czech Philharmonic
Jan Mráček, Concertmaster
Jan Perný, Trombone Solo (track 1)
Walter Hofbauer, Post Horn Solo (track 3)
Conducted by Semyon Bychkov

The post Mahler: Symphony No. 3 [Double Album] appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

Kurtág himself is at the piano for two of the songs by Schubert and Brahms. While the German baritone’s old and trusted friends Pierre-Laurent Aimard and James Baillieu join him for the other works in this program.

On his 99th birthday, György Kurtág reflects on his memories of his late wife Márta’s voice and his new album with baritone Benjamin Appl.

All under the artistic direction of Kurtág, ending with a fascinating recorded interview with Gyuri bácsi (‘Uncle George’) by Benjamin Appl, who tells us: ‘My aim in this album is to give listeners a glimpse into the infinite universe of György Kurtág, a shy procrastinator, stern self-critic, hesitant researcher, introverted questioner, unpretentious intellectual, brilliant composer and an extraordinary human being.’

Benjamin Appl, Baritone
György Kurtág, Piano (Tracks 20, 21)
Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Piano (Tracks 16, 17, 18, 19)
James Baillieu, Piano (Tracks 2, 4, 6, 7, 14, 15)
Csaba Bencze, Trombone ( Track 10)
Gergely Lukács, Tuba (Track 10)

The post Lines Of Life: Schubert & Kurtag (5 World Premiere Recordings) appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

The album has 10 tracks: Tracks 1 to 8 are by composer Cole Porter, Track 9 “Line for Lyons” is by Gerry Mulligan and Track 10 is a very original interpretation of the Italian National Anthem “Inno d’Italia.”

The instruments interact on an equal level, without hierarchy—hence the name Leaderless Quartet. A “quartet without piano,” where each instrument is an autonomous, monophonic voice, building harmony in a less conventional and more improvisational way.

For this recording, a “field-effect” technique was used, ensuring a natural sound without equalizers, sound expansion, or compression systems. The goal? To transport the listener back to their home Hi-Fi system with a true live effect—as if they were at the concert. No edits. Every track on this album is presented exactly as it was played.

Conceived, recorded and produced by Giulio Cesare Ricci
Recorded at Auditorium Museo Piaggio, Pontedera on September 17th, 2022
Valve microphones: Neumann U47, U48, M49
Mike pre-amplifiers, cables (line, digital, microphone, supply): Signoricci
Recorded in Stereo DSD 64 on the Pyramix Recorder using dCS A/D and D/A Converters
The Mastering was made by Giulio Cesare Ricci using the Signoricci’s analog and tube system.

The post We Concentrate On You: The Music of Cole Porter appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

This set of original compositions, featuring drummer Dylan van der Schyff and trumpet player Brad Turner, displays cellist-composer Peggy Lee’s inventiveness, lyricism, and emotional depth.
– Mark Werlin, NativeDSD & All About Jazz

Peggy Lee, the Vancouver-based cellist whose playing shines in many contexts, from classical and contemporary classical to creative jazz and improv, is also an extraordinary composer and bandleader. She is known especially for her octets, The Peggy Lee Band (1998- ) and Film in Music (2009- ), as well as Waxwing (2007- ), the trio she co-leads with Jon Bentley and west coast guitarist Tony Wilson. This new suite for ten players was commissioned by Coastal Jazz and Blues and premiered at the 2016 Vancouver International Jazz Festival.

The idea, says Lee, was “to bring together some of my longstanding band members with some of the younger players that I had recently begun to collaborate with. I wasn’t thinking about specific instruments really, just the players that I was excited about working with, but there are echoes of much of the music that has been meaningful to me over the years.” (She cites Carla Bley and Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra as inspirations.) With many colors to draw upon, the music is multi-layered and texturally varied, featuring driving rhythmic vamps, incendiary improvisation and sometimes achingly beautiful melodic compositions.

The writing was mostly intuitive: “I worked out a loose plan designating areas for solos etc. But specific arrangements came together once we started playing, and the direction that the solos took was completely up to the musicians. This band certainly has a lot in common with the sound of the Peggy Lee Band with the horns (Jon Bentley and Brad Turner are in both ensembles), but adding violin and pedal steel creates another dimension.”

Lee sees the distinctions between jazz and classical in her performing and writing as fluid, and that it’s all related to the music she makes with improvisers. “If the music moves me, whether it’s a great melody by Puccini or Ennio Morricone or a cool texture notated by Nicole Lizée or a Brad Turner solo, it’s all music and I don’t care what you call it.”

As for the coda, The Band’s “The Unfaithful Servant”, “that’s just a song that I’ve loved for a long time and always thought it would be a great vehicle for soloing of the right kind. We started by doing it as an instrumental but when it was time to record, I thought it would sound great with Robin Holcomb and luckily she was game.”

Peggy Lee, cello
Brad Turner, trumpet & flugelhorn
Jon Bentley, soprano & tenor saxophone
John Paton, tenor saxophone
Roderick Murray, trombone
Meredith Bates, violin
Cole Schmidt, electric & acoustic guitar
Bradshaw Pack, pedal steel guitar
James Meger, electric & acoustic bass
Dylan van der Schyff, drums, percussion & Yamaha RX-15 drum machine
Robin Holcomb, voice (track 13)

The post Echo Painting appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

Hot on the heels of his appearance in the 2000 film Calle 54, with his son, Chucho and his stunning Latin/Flamenco project Lagrimas Negras, “Suite Cubana“‘s Big Band is an impressive musical autobiography of the Cuban-born, Stockholm-based octogenarian pianist, Bebo Valdés.

He’s supported on the album by an array of Latin jazz all-stars. Including Saxophonist and Clarinetist Paquito D’ Rivera and the late trombonist Juan Pablo Torres. The first disc is an eight-suite big band opus entitled Suite Cubana. “Cachao, Creator del Mambo,” pays tribute to the influential bassist, while the processional pulsations on “Nocturno en Batanga,” features the engaging rhythm Valdes created in the ’50s.

Bebo Valdés
Paquito D’ Rivera, Saxophone & Clarinet
Juan Pablo Torres, Trombone

NOTICE: For the time being, Dolby Atmos MKV dowloads are provided as direct download dropbox links and are not available for download through the downloader app. The download link will be supplied at checkout.

The post Suite Cubana, Vol. 1 (Historic Recording) (Immersive Edition) appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

***Please Note***
The sample tracks below are generated from the digital version of this album. The songs included on the LP are as shown on the image of the back sleeve above.

Jaco Pastorius: Truth, Liberty & Soul is an album with more than 130 minutes of extraordinary high-fidelity ground-breaking music, on a live album with electric bass genius Jaco Pastorius and the Word of Mouth Big Band.

The band included Jaco Pastorius (Bass & Vocals), Bob Mintzer (Tenor and Soprano Saxophones and Bass Clarinet), Randy Brecker (Trumpet), Othello Molineaux (Steel Drums), Don Alias (Percussion), Peter Erskine (Drums), Blue Lou Marini (Tenor Sax), Jon Faddis (Trumpet), Jim Pugh (Trombone), David Bargeron (Tuba) and harmonica virtuoso Toots Thielemans as special guest.

It was recorded in 24 track Analog by the Record Plant mobile truck at Avery Fisher Hall in NYC on June 27, 1982 as part of George Wein’s Kool Jazz Festival. The album is presented from beginning to end exactly as it happened.

This Deluxe 45rpm 200g edition is the first one to be mastered from the original 2 track master tapes that were found some 30 years later (the previous digital download versions were released from a digital remix of the 24 tracks). What we have here is the direct copy of the original pure analog 2 track.

Thom Jurek from AllMusic says “Truth, Liberty & Soul is for the Pastorius fanatics, but it’s much more. This fantastically recorded document is a treasure trove of modern progressive jazz. The brilliant music found on it serves to underscore that Jaco was more than a brilliant, singular bassist (though that would have been enough); he was a great composer, arranger, and charismatic bandleader — a true jazz renaissance man.”

Jaco Pastorius and the Word of Mouth Big Band
Jaco Pastorius – Bass & Vocals
Bob Mintzer – Tenor and Soprano Saxophones and Bass Clarinet
Randy Brecker – Trumpet
Othello Molineaux – Steel Drums
Don Alias – Percussion
Peter Erskine – Drums
Blue Lou Marini – Tenor Sax
Jon Faddis – Trumpet
Jim Pugh – Trombone
David Bargeron – Tuba
Toots Thielemans – Harmonica (Special Guest)

The post Truth, Liberty & Soul [Download & Vinyl Bundle] appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

Jaco Pastorius: Truth, Liberty & Soul is an album with more than 130 minutes of extraordinary high-fidelity ground-breaking music, on a live album with electric bass genius Jaco Pastorius and the Word of Mouth Big Band.

The band included Jaco Pastorius (Bass & Vocals), Bob Mintzer (Tenor and Soprano Saxophones and Bass Clarinet), Randy Brecker (Trumpet), Othello Molineaux (Steel Drums), Don Alias (Percussion), Peter Erskine (Drums), Blue Lou Marini (Tenor Sax), Jon Faddis (Trumpet), Jim Pugh (Trombone), David Bargeron (Tuba) and harmonica virtuoso Toots Thielemans as special guest.

It was recorded in 24 track Analog by the Record Plant mobile truck at Avery Fisher Hall in NYC on June 27, 1982 as part of George Wein’s Kool Jazz Festival. The album is presented from beginning to end exactly as it happened.

This Deluxe 45rpm 200g edition is the first one to be mastered from the original 2 track master tapes that were found some 30 years later (the previous digital download versions were released from a digital remix of the 24 tracks). What we have here is the direct copy of the original pure analog 2 track.

Thom Jurek from AllMusic says “Truth, Liberty & Soul is for the Pastorius fanatics, but it’s much more. This fantastically recorded document is a treasure trove of modern progressive jazz. The brilliant music found on it serves to underscore that Jaco was more than a brilliant, singular bassist (though that would have been enough); he was a great composer, arranger, and charismatic bandleader — a true jazz renaissance man.”

Jaco Pastorius and the Word of Mouth Big Band
Jaco Pastorius – Bass & Vocals
Bob Mintzer – Tenor and Soprano Saxophones and Bass Clarinet
Randy Brecker – Trumpet
Othello Molineaux – Steel Drums
Don Alias – Percussion
Peter Erskine – Drums
Blue Lou Marini – Tenor Sax
Jon Faddis – Trumpet
Jim Pugh – Trombone
David Bargeron – Tuba
Toots Thielemans – Harmonica (Special Guest)

The post Truth, Liberty & Soul [Deluxe 200g Triple Vinyl] appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

A milestone in the musical journey of clarinetist-composer François Houle. Solos by cornetist Taylor Ho Bynum and trombonist Samuel Blaser weave through the unique voicings of pianist Benoît Delbecq in a set of dazzlingly inventive chamber jazz compositions.
– Mark Werlin, HRAudio & NativeDSD Reviewer

One of Canada’s premier contemporary classical clarinetists, François Houle is equally a virtuosic and original avant-jazz improviser and notable composer.

François Houle 5 + 1 (now known as the Genera Sextet) consists of outstanding international leaders in jazz/creative music, including New York based Canadians Michael Bates and Harris Eisenstadt, Swiss trombonist Samuel Blaser, and Braxton associate Taylor Ho Bynum.

“The lineup was very crucial, as I wanted to explore colors and varied instrumental combinations while retaining a classic jazz sound. I also desired to have strong idiosyncratic voices in each chair of the band so that the compositions would be designed for the players’ personalities, coming to life in a kind of Ellingtonian way.” The group coalesces in an intense and moving collaboration that balances spontaneous exploration and disciplined ensemble, dense textures and spare, off-kilter lyricism.

From one angle this is as much of a jazz record as Houle’s beautiful 1998 John Carter tribute In the Vernacular; from another it brings together his classical music interests with free improv. The common factor is a keen awareness of 20th century music in its various manifestations and a fascination with the structure and organization of sound in both composition and improvisation. “I’ve been very influenced by the music of John Carter and Steve Lacy, primarily because of their mastery of orchestration in small groupings. Jimmy Giuffre would be another important influential figure in terms of orchestration. I’ve always been seduced by a kind of composition that makes full use of instrumental colors: Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Elliott Carter, Ligeti, Xenakis. In the jazz arena I would be attracted to the more colorful approaches of Gil Evans, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Bob Brookmeyer. I wanted my new band to have that kind of versatility, but with the writing focusing on instrumental combinations at the micro level.” An example of these ideas is how Benoît Delbecq’s piano sounds combine progressively with the other instruments in “Piano Loop (for BD).”

“My ideas always come from a musical standpoint, putting tones, pitches or rhythms together. How I process these ideas, however, borrows from many sources, including art, literature, architecture, mathematics, science. For example, I am very much into neuroplasticity, new understandings of how our cognitive functions adapt to our environment, and also how we perceive time. This knowledge inspires a different way of looking at our relationships to sound and rhythm. A good example is found in “Concombre I,” where all the lines are derived from the main melody in the clarinet, except that for each of the other parts I stretch the rhythm values incrementally. The end result is a strange diatonic counterpoint producing a very potent mood.

“Most of the compositions on this record started from a sound, a small of group of sounds, or a rhythmic cell. So the intent, feeling, mood of the compositions are already present at the start. It was really important for me to realize and construct ideas from an evocative primary state. I called the album Genera to express this idea of a genetic code that is present from the very beginning of the creative process….Ultimately, you want your playing to be in line with an inner purpose, be it raw or sweet. Your job as a musician is to tap into these potentials via sounds. You become a vehicle for something that is intrinsically a human experience. At least that is what I sense when I hear great music making. It always seems to come from a very deep place. If I can walk the fine line between virtuosity and expressivity, then I shouldn’t be too far off my ideal of what music means to me personally.”

François Houle 5 + 1
François Houle, clarinets, compositions
Taylor Ho Bynum, cornet, flugelhorn
Samuel Blaser, trombone
Michael Bates, bass
Harris Eisenstadt, drums
Special Guest: Benoît Delbecq, piano, electronics

The post Genera appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

Composer Wayne Horvitz adapts the large-ensemble ‘conduction’ method of musical innovator Butch Morris to create vital new jazz. Listen for traces of Ellington and Mingus in these vividly recorded performances.
– Mark Werlin (HRAudio, All About Jazz, NativeDSD Music)

The Royal Room Collective Music Ensemble started off as a fairly loose collective of Wayne Horvitz’s favorite Seattle improvisers playing his music at Seattle’s Royal Room, the club he co-owns and books.

The essential ingredient is Wayne’s adaptation of Butch Morris’s Conduction system for free improvisers into a language for spontaneously arranging and reconstructing his music on the fly, using numbers for a piece’s written motifs, and other hand signals (to individuals or shifting groupings) to indicate how to treat their material. While maintaining the spontaneity of small group performance, he uses it to structure complexities only possible with a larger ensemble:

As Wayne relates, “It was exciting to me in that it could be very free and malleable at some points but at other times could also work up a riff-based music similar to the music of Charles Mingus or even Count Basie. Harmonically it was very gratifying to constantly be re-inventing the arrangements. Even when the players misinterpreted hand signals things would happen that could be taken advantage of and developed.”

Wayne of course knew Butch Morris well in New York in the 80s and considers him an important mentor: “Butch was using the improvisers’ language set to create totally new music, it was really a fairly radical approach. Not so with what I am doing. In some ways I am doing now what Butch started doing and then abandoned for his more ‘pure conduction’ approach. In the 80s David Murray had a big band that Butch would conduct, and he would work with David’s charts, and break things up with those charts as a starting point. Later we made a CD for New World records that took his own tunes and used a similar approach. And the fact that I was involved in many if not most of Zorn’s game pieces at the same time that I was first working with Butch certainly helped me develop an alternative approach to creating structure live.” On this record the two Redux pieces are closest to pure conduction, “except I asked the musicians to have the score with the motifs from a specific tune available, but we did not play the arrangement per se.”

As for the arrangements, one might occasionally flash on Ellington, Gil Evans or Gerry Mulligan in terms of voicings, and the way the elements are played off against each other plus the marshalled energies of the performance could bring to mind Anthony Braxton, George Lewis, or Misha Mengelberg: “All of those are artists whose music I love. Only after I started putting this band together did I really start to hear a similarity to someone else – Mingus. I love Mingus’s music but I never considered him an ‘essential’ influence the way I do say Cecil Taylor or The Art Ensemble of Chicago, but it kind of makes sense. Mingus’s up-tempo tunes often took fairly simple riffs and ‘re-purposed’ them in all kinds of ways. And then he loved ballads, as do I.”

Wayne Horvitz, Conductor & Composer
The Royal Room Collective Music Ensemble
Trumpets: Al Keith, Samantha Boshnack, Steve O’Brien
Trombones: Naomi Siegel, Jacob Herring, Willem de Koch
Clarinet: Beth Fleenor
Soprano Saxophone: Kate Olson
Alto Saxophone: Ivan Arteaga
Tenor Saxophone: Skerik
Baritone Saxophone: Greg Sinibaldi
Piano: Ryan Burns
Bass: Geoff Harper
Drums: Eric Eagle

The post At The Reception appeared first on NativeDSD Music.