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Europe Jazz Network
ANDY NARELL |
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Andy Narell, the world's most renowned steel pan master continues to apply his unorthodox instrument to diverse musical settings in which it had not previously been utilized. On Behind the Bridge, Narell combines Trinidad's steel pan music with North American jazz and Antillean and Brazilian genres. He successfully unifies the musical styles of the Western Hemisphere, furthering the Pan-American ideals of the late Dizzy Gillespie and other artists who have attempted to merge jazz with world music.
"I wanted the new album to be more about my playing, to put the pan in more of a chamber context, to play live for the most part, and stay away from overdubbing," comments the 44-year old pan ambassador. "I also focused on music that I spend a lot of time listening to and studying... the musical styles of Trinidad, Cuba and Brazil." Since 1986, Narell has frequently traveled to Trinidad, where he has performed with his band, as well as such artists as David Rudder, Charlie's Roots, Ray Holman, Len "Boogsie" Sharpe, Robert Greenidge, and 100-member steel bands at the annual Panorama Festival. Narell's strong ties with Trinidad's musical heritage are illustrated in his soothing solo adaptation of David Rudder's "Nuff Respect", a calypso originally known for its amusing lyrics making fun of the banter that men use to court women. Hailed once by a Trinidadian newspaper as "an honorary 'Trini'", Narell shows his instrumental chops on "Rainorama", a popular tune authored by the world's most prolific Calypsonian, the venerable octogenarian Lord Kitchener, whose original lyrics humorously documented how one time the Carnival, delayed until May, was washed out by rain. Departing from the usual Trinidadian calypso style, Narell's instrumental version acquires a Pan-Caribbean flavor by incorporating Puerto Rican bomba elements supplied by percussionist Luis Conte. A native of Santiago, Cuba's second largest city (not to be confused with the Chilean capital), Conte is also featured in "Sea of Stories", a piece previously recorded on the CD Down the Road, when Narell fused an entire steel orchestra with Conte's liturgical Afro-Cuban batá drums. This time, however, Conte has the opportunity to play cajón (a Cuban wooden box) in a style of yambú (a modality of Cuban rumba), before Narell's original composition turns into the modern avenue of songo, a post-1959 Cuban style created by bassist Juan Formell (of Los Van Van fame). Conte also joins Narell and the cosmopolitan Argentine pianist Dario Eskenazi for an amazing interpretation of "Al fin te ví", one of the approximately 70 wonderful danzas authored by the dazzling pianist Ernesto Lecuona (1895-1963), Cuba's most representative composer. The unique compositional magic conjured by Cuba's piano masters is also conductive to Narell's laid-back, duet adaptation of "Claudia", initially structured as an instrumental bolero by Havana-born pianist Jesús "Chucho" Valdés, former leader of Irakere and prodigal son of batanga king Ramón "Bebo" Valdés. On the other hand, Narell explores Brazil's musical legacy, with the vital assistance of carioca percussionist Paulinho da Costa, by interpreting a couple of tunes "Segura Ele" and "Lamentos" composed by multi-instrumentalist Alfredo da Rocha Viana Jr. (better known as Pixinguinha, 1898-1973), who is equally regarded as one of the most important founding fathers of samba and one of the most productive choro composers. Pixinguinha is no longer among us, but Rio de Janeiro remains one of our planet's major compositional sources. Written by Ivan Lins and Ronaldo Monteiro and initially popularized by the late vocalist Elis Regina, "Madalena" is representative of the post-bossa urban popular music known as MPB (musica popular brasileira). Last but not least, there is the enigmatic piano/steel pan duet titled "Jutland". Composed by pianist Dario Eskenazi, this piece evokes an etherial mood, much like the style developed by certain European jazz players. With a critically acclaimed discography, Narell has not only introduced the steel pans into the jazz world, but has also remained the most influential exponent of the Trinidadian instruments. Born in New York and based in the San Francisco Bay Area for many years, Narell was introduced to steel pan music at the age of 7, when his father, a social worker who worked with gangs in the Big Apple's lower East Side, organized numerous steel bands comprised of inner-city youngsters as a community center program. By the mid-60's, Narell was already playing professionally. He even traveled for the first time to Trinidad, where he met Ellie Mannette, one of the original pioneers who fashioned an instrument with the notes of the scale on a 55-gallon oil drum back in the 1940s. Regarded as the finest pan tuner in the world, Mannette has been responsible for personally manufacturing all of Narell's instruments for over 30 years. While maintaining strong links with Trinidad's music scene, Narell has worked in numerous jazz and world music contexts, including eight previous recordings as a leader (mostly for Windham Hill Jazz). A new chapter of his exciting career began in 1993, when he joined forces with saxophonist/clarinettist Paquito D'Rivera and vibraphonist/marimbero Dave Samuels to organize the innovative, self-descriptive Caribbean Jazz Project (CJP). The CJP's self-titled 1995 debut, as well as its 1997 follow-up Island Stories (both released by Heads Up International Ltd.), exhibited the septet's unique instrumentation and dynamic interaction, while blending contemporary jazz elements with abundant Caribbean and Latin American rhythms. Behind The Bridge marks yet another step into previously uncharted waters for Andy Narell and his steel pans. After listening to this disc, one realizes that this is what real authentic world music is all about.
February 1999 For booking, contact: EMMECI |