Author Archives: Mel Minter

Honkout!

The La Drivers Union Por Por Group, with Steve Feld: Oko Sai, Nii Amarh Amartey, Victoria Mensah, Feld, Nii Ashai Ollennu (seated at Por Por engine), Adwoa Kyere, Mabel Odoi, Nii Tetteh Boye La, Adjetey Sowah

Award-winning ethnomusicologist, anthropologist, linguist, documentarian, sound artist and ecologist, musician, and UNM professor Steven Feld encountered Por Por (pronounced paaw paaw), Ghana’s honk horn music, 20-some years ago and has continued to work with the musicians, documenting this unique genre. The exclusive players of this squeeze-bulb klaxon horn music are the drivers in the La branch of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (La is a district of Accra). In his most recent effort on their behalf, Feld combines them with the Texas Horns, a preeminent U.S. soul, blues, and roots trio. The result is an astonishingly strange and familiar hybrid.

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Catching Up with Some Good Music

  • Michael Blake Septet: Guilhermo Monteiro, Skye Steele, Michael Bates, Mauro Refrosco, Michael Blake, Christopher Hoffman, Rogerio Boccato. Photo by Marc Santos.
  • Brandon Lopez
  • Jean-Michel Pilc Trio: François Moutin, Pilc, Ari Hoenig
  • Pierrick Pédron and Gonzalo Rubalcaba. Photo by Anna Yatskevitch.

I’ve fallen behind in my listening and reviewing, so to catch up a bit, here are four short reviews of ear-worthy releases from reedman Michael Blake’s septet, bass soloist Brandon Lopez, pianist Jean-Michel Pilc’s trio, and the duo of altoist Pierrick Pédron and pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba. Happy listening, to one and all.

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Edward Simon Brings New Album, ‘Femeninas: Songs of Latin American Women,’ to the Outpost

Edward Simon Group (l2r): Reuben Rogers, Adam Cruz, Edward Simon, Luis Quintero, Magos Herrera. Photo by Goren Sarriegui-Simon.

One of the leading jazz artists from Latin America and perhaps best known as a member of the SF Jazz Collective, award-winning Venezuelan composer and pianist Edward Simon makes good use of both his jazz chops and his Latin background on his latest release, Las Femeninas, Songs of Latin American Women, which features jewels from the Latin American songbook—all by female songwriters—in exquisite jazz settings. In addition to those songs, Simon’s Latino Soy suite graces the album with three original compositions. Simon’s trio, with Reuben Rogers on bass and Adam Cruz on drums, will bring that music to the Outpost this week, along with two guest artists, Grammy-nominated Mexican vocalist Magos Herrera and Venezuelan percussionist Luis Quintero.

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NuAeen Ensemble Brings Persian Classical Music to Albuquerque in Support of Iranian Protesters

The NuAeen Ensemble comprises four of the world’s most-renowned performers and composers of Persian classical music, all natives of Iran now living in the United States, including Albuquerque’s Sourena Sefati. On Saturday, June 3, to raise awareness of both the ongoing protests in Iran and Persian music, the ensemble will give Albuquerque a rare opportunity to hear that music in its For Freedom Concert at Keller Hall.

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Three Releases to Listen Closely to—from Sexmob, Lily Guarneros Maase, and the Ralph Alessi Quartet

  • Sexmob. Back row: Bernstein, Krauss. Front row: Scherr, Wollesen. Photo by Greg Aiello.
  • Lily Guarneros Maase. Photo by Jonathan Kiefer.
  • Ralph Alessi

Three new releases from Sexmob, Lily Guarneros Maase, and the Ralph Alessi Quartet offer wildly different but equally captivating musical experiences.

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