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Mark Levine, piano; Peter Barshay, acoustic
bass; Paul Van Wageningen, drums; Michael Spiro, percussion and Lucumi moyaba;
Jose Luis Gomez, Abakua nkame.
Among the great technical challenges facing the improvising musician is
the task of infusing original and/or standard pieces with one's personal
touch. Arguably, it is this ability to realize new dimensions specific to
musical content that separates the artist from the technician.
This wonderful ensemble lead by the San Francisco Bay Area-based pianist
Mark Levine realizes beautiful, unexplored dimensions in familiar pieces
including "Effendi" , "Angola", "Sugar", "Shade
of Jade", "Inner Urge", and "You're My Everything".
Throughout the session, Levine consistently challenges us by introducing
a stunning variety of rhythmic contrasts within definable harmonic schemes;
the antithesis of the conventional Jazz "blowing" date. The exposed
rhythmic figures in the title track, which is essentially a blues in C minor,
are a case in point.
This is another excellent session by one of the grand masters of Latin Jazz.
by James D. Armstrong, Jr.
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Copyright Jazz Now, September 2001 issue, all rights reserved
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