Record Reviews

WYNTON MARSALIS ~ LIVE AT THE VILLAGE VANGUARD COLUMBIA 69876 (Barcode: 074646987629) ~ USA ~ Jazz Recorded: 1990 - 1994 Released: 1999 This magnificent Box Set presents the Wynton Marsalis Septet recorded live at the most famous Jazz Mecca in the world, the NYC Village Vanguard club on Seventh Avenue in Greenwich Village – probably the oldest Jazz club in the world and a “holy ground”, where endless Jazz recordings have been made. The music was recorded between March 1990 and December 1994 and during those four and a half years the Septet was pretty stable, with just three musicians changing chairs: Eric Reed replaced Marcus Roberts on piano, Victor Goines replaced Todd Anderson on tenor and soprano saxophones / clarinet and finally Ben Wolfe replaced Reginald Veal on bass. The remaining four musicians are present on all recordings: Wynton Marsalis on trumpet, Wessell Anderson on alto saxophone, Wycliffe Gordon on trombone and Herlin Riley on drums. Wynton Marsalis is of course the most respected and adored Jazz virtuoso since the 1980’s and many see him as the successor of Miles Davis in the mighty Jazz Olympus. Marsalis is the epitome of a Jazz master: well bred, well educated, extremely intelligent and outspoken, with parallel highly successful musical careers in Jazz and Classical music and a revered trumpet virtuoso. Very few musicians have such an illustrious calling card to their credit. But above all these advantages Marsalis has also an incredible understanding of the Jazz idiom – both as a scholar (on the intellectual plane) and a performer / composer (on the emotional plane). His interpretations of Jazz standards are always way beyond the primeval melody - expanded and embossed with multiple layers of additional musical threads and polyrhythmic complexity. His ensembles always include the best and most skilled (usually pretty young) players, who under his direction and leadership manage to create some of the most fascinating and well played Jazz music ever. The choice of the septet as a vehicle to create the music Marsalis wants to present here is truly masterly. Seven brilliant musicians are surely plenty to produce an endless variety of solo / duo / trio improvisations at any given moment, as well as produce almost a Big Band sound when playing in unison. Therefore an incredible range of volume and density is possible and the dynamics of the music is constantly changing. Marsalis freely spans the entire stylistic spectrum of Jazz, from New Orleans to Post Bee-Bop, with a dash of free, with the band feeling equally confident all the way through. The entire set includes over 10 hours of some of the most fascinating and moving Jazz music I personally ever encountered and my musical experience would have been so much poorer if I never listened to this marvelous set.

Updated: 26/01/2019Posted:

CD 7 Box Set Essential Recommend To A Friend