I first heard reed maestro Arlen Asher in concert at the Outpost in Albuquerque. I don’t remember too much about that evening—it was 25 years ago or so—but the audience was humming in anticipation of his appearance, a local guy I’d never heard of. I wondered what all the fuss was about. I soon found out.
At a time when raw examples of racial injustice burn through our consciousness, requiring us to reexamine the promise of our country and how we have failed that promise, bassist/composer Gregg August’s timely new recording, Dialogues on Race, speaks directly to our condition. August premiered the piece in 2009 after the election of Barack Obama and then put it in the rearview mirror, but in light of the current upheaval and encouraged by many of the musicians who had premiered it, he decided to revive the piece, with this explanation: “My hope is that Dialogues on Race can in some small way serve as an integrated musical bridge to awareness, and maybe even stand as an affirmation against racism and injustice. Admittedly, these are lofty goals. However, through conversation, community, and art, I know we can work together toward furthering understanding.”
Dialogues on Race, whose music is inspired and in some cases accompanied by powerful poetry that focuses on our racial fault lines, offers an opportunity for sincere reflection on these things, opening the door to a deeper understanding through exceptionally expressive music and stellar performances.
It’s not news that these are trying times on multiple levels, so I’ve been looking around for something uplifting and fun. While I was snuffling around like a pig hunting for truffles, two singles that give hope a shot in the arm magically appeared in my inbox: a hip hop single by Patrick Tripp titled “Walk with Me” and a pop tune from jazz pianist/composer Darrell Grant titled “Take Flight.”
Like Louis Armstrong, drummer/composer Matt Wilson makes no distinction between high art and low art. He probably wouldn’t even accept the use of those terms. So he finds beauty and meaning in just about any piece of music, and he manages to satisfy both the demanding jazz veteran and the tentative jazz newcomer. His quartet—composed of four leaders who manage to work together seamlessly—is always fun, always surprising, and always communicating something behind the music, as it does on the new release, Hug!
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These two new releases—El Suelo Mío from bassist/composer Jorge Roeder and Songs You Like a Lot from composer/arranger/conductor John Hollenbeck—sit at the opposite ends of the orchestral possibilities: solo and big band, respectively. Both have the juice to light up all your synapses.
