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Jazz Now Interactive
Copyright Jazz Now, July 2000 issue, all rights reserved
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Rick Mandyck, tenor saxophone; Gregg Keplinger, drums.
Tribute is an astonishingly beautiful duo session by Rick Mandyck and Gregg Keplinger, replete with musical gestures which derive their inspiration in part from the musical forms pioneered by John Coltrane. While this music at times may evoke comparisons with the extended musical dialogues between Coltrane and percussionist Elvin Jones, the form and content here is in fact original, and anything but predictable. With repeated listening, the Mandyck duo,s tremendous artistic achievement emerges in bold relief.
The basic architecture of the pieces, which include the impressive Mandyck originals "Tweedly Dum," "Margo Marches On," and "Intersection" allow for a tremendous degree of rhythmic and harmonic freedom relative to certain loosely defined structures. In this musical aesthetic, tonal and rhythmic centers serve as points of departure. By boldly refusing to succumb to monochromes and other stylistic rigidities, the duo creates an ever-changing sonic landscape that is ripe for creative improvisations of the highest order.
This music speaks eloquently in the absence of bass and piano accompaniment. You,ll want to play this CD all afternoon.
by James D. Armstrong, Jr.
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Jazz Now Interactive
Copyright Jazz Now, July 2000 issue, all rights reserved
jazznow@sbcglobal.net