Paul Vornhagen

Heart

Bopo Records 012

Paul Vornhagen: tenor, bari., alto, soprano sax; vocals, flute and ocarina; Tad Weed: piano, organ

Paul Vornhagen's talents cover a wide range from playing all the saxes (tenor, baritone, alto and soprano), talking flute and ocarina and charming his audience when his vocals jump into the beat of a Duke Ellington composition. And it doesn't stop at this. The CD "Heart" presents four original instrumentals written by Paul Vornhagen. Wake-up Call, Firefly Mambo, Motor City Mood and Hunker Down. He's a versatile guide in the realms of bebop, latin-cubano Jazz, bossa nova, samba, cool ballads and straight Jazz Standards. Quite stylish! To mix and blend these tastes for rhythm and melody is an accomplishment showing experience, skills and heart. Paul Vornhagen reels the listener in with his "Wake-up Call", all the way down this musical journey until the last track "Hunker Down". Freddie Hubbard's "Crisis" as well as Ellington's "Caravan" entice to embrace the funk in Jazz music while it flirts with hot latin accents making you tap your feet or at least move some other part of your anatomy. Credits also to Tad Weed (piano, organ), Kurt Kranhnke (acoustic bass), Peter Siers (drums, timbales), Randy Marsh (drums), Jonathan Ovalle (congas, bongos, percussion), Nick Calandro (acoustic and electric bass) and Cary Kocher (vibraphone). Jazz from Ann Arbor, Michigan. "Motor City Mood" keeps the engines running for sure and as soon as "Hunker Down" fades, you find yourselves hungry for more and more and more Paul Vornhagen and company must totally thrill your heart when seen live in action!

by Gina Vodegel

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