Record Reviews

ARILD ANDERSEN ~ GREEN IN BLUE ECM 2143/45 (Barcode: 602527334486) ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz Recorded: 1975 - 1978 Released: 2010 This wonderful Box Set contains the three early albums by Norwegian bassist / composer Arild AndersenFind albums by this artist with his all Scandinavian quartet released on the ECMFind albums on this label label, which are "Clouds In My HeadFind albums with this title" (ECM 1059) recorded in 1975, "ShimriFind albums with this title" (ECM 1082) recorded in 1976 and "Green Shading Into BlueFind albums with this title" (ECM 1127) recorded in 1978. The quartet comprised of Andersen with Norwegian saxophonist Knut RiisnaesFind albums by this artist (on the first album) / Finnish saxophonist Juhani AaltonenFind albums by this artist (on the other two albums), Norwegian pianist Jon BalkeFind albums by this artist (on the first album) / Swedish pianist Lars JanssonFind albums by this artist (on the other two albums) and Norwegian drummer Pal ThowsenFind albums by this artist. Andersen, who composed most of the music (with a few compositions by Jansson) presented here, is one of the greatest representatives of Scandinavian Jazz, with a sublime sense of melody and a virtuosic ability on his instrument. The music is absolutely brilliant from start to finish and remains completely untouched by time. These are among the best recordings by Juhani Aaltonen as well. In retrospect this is some of the most impressive European Jazz ever recorded and an everlasting musical adventure. A must to any serious listener! Side Note: These three albums were not reissued on CD individually, so this is the only way to obtain them in CD form.

Updated: 26/01/2019Posted:

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JON BALKE / AMINA ALAOUI ~ SIWAN ECM 2042 (Barcode: 602517801516) ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2007 - 2008 Released: 2009 Norwegian keyboardist / composer Jon BalkeFind albums by this artist and Moroccan vocalist Amina AlaouiFind albums by this artist come together to produce a stunning work of rare beauty, which combines East and West (or in this case South and North), proving the obvious again: regardless of what the source of the music, it bridges human languages and cultures better than any other medium. The music presents a wide range of European styles, like the Baroque music and Middle Eastern scales and sounds, originating in Andalusia, the Muslim Iberia. The lyrics used in the songs also originate in the medieval Spain, and are in Arabic and ancient Spanish dialect. All these elements come together perfectly, creating music, which is beyond time or place, just flowing beautifully. The various instruments: trumpet (played by Jon HassellFind albums by this artist), keyboards, chamber orchestra, oriental violin, percussion and zarb all cooperate sonically to produce a sound like no other, which harmonizes elements that were often thought as incompatible and unsuited together. This music must simply be heard to be believed, and I hope many people will feel adventurous enough to reach out and expose themselves to it. Superb stuff!

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