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New Orleans Hardbop
One of Adrian Mears' latest Jazz projects.
Appealing to wide audiences around Europe. |
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ADRIAN MEARS NEW ORLEANS HARDBOP
Adrian Mears: (AUS)trombone
Domenic Landolf: (CH) tenorsax/bass
clarinet
Peter Madsen: (USA) piano
Stephan Kurmann: (CH) bass
Mario Gonzi: (A) drums
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New
Orleans Hardbop is Mears’ definition of a willful and most interesting
direction within jazz, partly featuring those traditional rhythms played
mostly on the snare drum by the drummer and sharp off-beat figures by
the bass. This gives a jumpy and exhilarating feel to the music, rarely
heard on an up-to-date jazz recording. Of course, that’s not all there
is to it, the quintet excels in interpreting Mears’ music to perfection.
Of this truly international working band (Australia, Switzerland, USA,
Austria),
each soloist shows a very personal and spiritual attitude towards the
idiom. The horns blend, sound and articulate like a Big Band, the rhythm
section shows lots of energy and supports the performance with the
required “New Orleans-touch”. Mears plunger-work is outstanding and
young lion reedman Landolf simply shines! This is by no means an album
to be played at the Mardi Gras, the approach is too serious and
innovative, it cannot be compared to anything jazz had had to offer
lately – thus, listen and let yourself be surprised ………and entertained! |
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Adrian Mears
has led a life of contrast and change, a voyage from one end of the
earth to the other. He has gathered knowledge and experience from around
the globe and through his music takes the listener on a similar journey.
Since his arrival in Europe in 1992, Mears has quickly established
himself as one of the strongest voices on trombone in the European and
International scene.
Mears`s career is already distinguished by performance and recording
credits alongside the likes of the Vienna Art Orchestra, Kenny Wheeler,
Bob Brookmeyer New Art Orchestra, McCoy Tyner`s Big Band, the NDR big
band with Tim Hagans, Bobby Shew, James Morrison, Trombonefire, Don
Pullen, Eddie Palmeri, Charlie Mariano, Mark Soskin, Paquito DiRivera,
Klaus Doldinger, Jeff Williams, Adam Pieronczyk, Joey Calderazzo, Peter
O`Mara, Ronnie Burrage, Peter Herboltzheimer, Conexion Latina, George
Mraz, Adam Nussbaum, Don Friedman etc..
Mears`s debut CD "Discoveries", on ENJA records, together with
saxophonist Johannes Enders accompanied by a monster New York Rhythm
section , was followed by the ethno jazz trio "Babamadu" with "Bitama",
then the highly original release "All For One", marking his emergence as
a leader in the scene. His yet to be released recording with his
exciting working band "New Orleans Hardbop" is a masterful display of
musical integrity and scope.
As a composer he has not only been featured on the last four "Ugetsu"
recordings but also in T.V Documentaries, his own 10-piece group, for
chamber orchestra and several classical brass ensembles. Together with
the "Scales Brothers" he has become the first Australian to record for
BLUE NOTE records. As main soloist featured in the 150th year
anniversary
of Siemens (Germany), Adrian performed from Australia via satellite
together with the Berlin Opera Symphony Orchestra. Back in Australia he
was voted "Best Australian Trombonist" and awarded "Best Jazz Group". As
Jazz Educator he has had a wide experience conducting workshops in
Austria, Australia, Switzerland and throughout Germany and teaching
trombone for 2 years in Cologne Conservatorium in the absence of Jiggs
Whigham. He leads the trombone department in Mannheim Conservatorium for
the last 10 years and is also started in 1999 teaching trombone and
ear-training in Switzerland at the Basel Jazz School.
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"Sometimes he is constructing
dark-blue lyrical sounds, other times a cheeky Funk-Bop or
a`Mangelsdorf´ multiphonic-magic that draws
you close and in another moment he gives us all a lesson in a real `oldtimer´
tailgate trombone." (Jazz Thing, Germany)
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Peter Madsen was born in
Racine, Wisconsin where he began his classical piano studies at the age
of eight and double bass at the age of ten. At thirteen he became
interested in jazz on both instruments and started to play
professionally three years later. In 1978 he graduated Summa Cum Laude
from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a degree in Music
Education, after which he moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota to concentrate
on developing his jazz piano skills through intensive practice and a
bursting schedule of gigs, composing and teaching.
In 1980 Peter moved to New York City. He got one of his many breaks when
Stan Getz hired him to tour Europe and the U.S. in 1987. Since then
Madsen has played with an array of great jazz musicians, performing
extensively in Europe and Japan and recording over 50 CD's with
traditionalists like Benny Golson and Stanley Turrentine, modernists
like Joe Lovano and Kenny Garrett as well as funk masters like Fred
Wesley and Maceo Parker. Peter has written over 200 compositions of
which more than 50 have been recorded.
A partial list of his working associates include: Stan Getz, Stanley
Turrentine, Dewey Redman, Benny Golson, George Coleman, Oscar Brown Jr.,
Arthur Blythe, Don Cherry, James Spaulding, Kenny Garrett, Joe Lovano,
Sonny Fortune, Dave Liebman, Eddie Henderson, Ravi Coltrane, Warne
Marsh, Greg Osby, Carlos Ward, Thomas Chapin, Ralph Moore, Rick Margitza,
Vincent Herring, Paul McCandless, Pee Wee Ellis, Steve Slagle, Lew
Tabakin, Marty Ehrlich, Richie Cole, Maceo Parker, Ronnie Cuber, Steve
Wilson, Chris Potter, Craig Handy, Seamus Blake, Tom Harrell, Bill
Frisell, Mick Goodrick, Randy Brecker, Marcus Belgrave, Fred Wesley,
Bobby Byrd, Frank Lacy, Ray Drummond, Rufus Reid, CecilMcBee, Anthony
Cox, Ira Coleman, Phil Bowler, Mario Pavone, Ben Riley, Billy Hart,
Frank Gant, Jeff Watts, Teri Lynn Carrington, Mel Lewis, Smitty Smith,
Victor Lewis, Ronnie Burrage, Carl Allen, Victor Jones, Mike Clark,
Yoron Israel, Bill Stewart, Eliot Zigmund, Jeff Williams, Bob Moses,
Matt Wilson, Toninho Horta, The Mingus Big Band, the Village Vanguard
Orchestra, Fred Ho`s Afro-Asian Music Ensemble and many others.
Peter is now living part-time in New York and part-time in Bregenz,
Austria. He continues to perform worldwide as well as teaching
masterclasses, workshops and private students.
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Mario Gonzi
Mario has had the opportunity to perform
and tour around the world with jazz legends already at a early age. Jazz
greats such as Art Farmer and Johnny Griffin to him into their groups
and showed him the ropes. Many followedas well such as
Benny Bailey, Scott Hamilton, Bob Berg, Bob Brookmeyer,
Dado Moroni, Joe Haider, Ed Schuller, Clark Terry, Benny Golson, Don
Friedmann
among others. He has also been the driving force behind the Vienna Art
Orchestra over the last 10 years.
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Domenic Landolf
Domenic was born in Berne on July 25th 1969. He
started to take piano lessons at the age of seven years and started on
saxophone five years later, soon being impressed by jazz records of
Charlie Parker and others.
In 1988 he joined the Swiss Jazz School where he was supported by Andy
Scherrer, and finished studies in 1992.Domenic was awarded with the
Fridl-Wald sponsorship prize in 1991 and is living in Basel since 1995,
where he's a saxophone teacher at the Basel Jazz School.
Activities include tours with the Joe Haider-Bert Joris Bigband, the Jon
Davis Jazz Entourage Group, the Roman Schwaller Nonet ( as a
bassclarinet player ) and the Joe Haider-Bert Joris Quintet; appearances
at the Jazzfestival Berne, at the 24. Annual IAJE Conference in Chicago
( with Vince Benedetti ), at the Festival de Jazz à Vienne, as a
featered soloist with the Collegium Novum conducted by Gunther Schuller
at Young Artists in Concert in Davos, with the Bill Holman Big Band, Joe
Lovano and George Gruntz at the Generations Festival in Frauenfeld, with
Hans Feigenwinters TANK at the Musikmonat Basel and with his own Quartet
at the Off Beat Jazz Festival Basel.
He played with Marc Abrams, Isla Eckinger, Don Friedman, Mario Gonzi,
Reggie Johnson, Stefan Kurmann, Adrian Mears, Matthieu Michel, Thomas
Möckel, George Mraz, Juan Munguia, Adam Nussbaum, Fritz Pauer, George
Robert, Andy Scherrer, Thomas Stabenow, Tom Varner, Jimmy Woody, James
Zollar and many others.
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Stephan Kurmann
Spielte im Verlaufe seiner Karriere weltweite
Konzerttourneen, trat an vielen grossen Festivals auf und etablierte
sich einen Ruf als vielseitiger, zuverlässiger, ideenreicher und mit
allen Wassern gewaschener Musiker. Wird von den hier ansässigen Musikern
deswegen sehr geschätzt und bei Gelegenheit wurde seine Arbeit auch von
folgenden internationalen Jazzgrössen beansprucht und geschätzt: Chet
Baker, Wild Bill Davison, Sal Nistico, Doug Hammond, Dado Moroni, Kirk
Lightsey, Mark Soskin, Harold Mabern, Steve Grossman, Alvin Queen, Mal
Waldron, Lee Konitz und vielen anderen.
Seit 1987 Bandleader, Komponist/Arrangeur und Bassist seiner eigenen
Gruppe "Stephan Kurmann Strings"
Hat sich auch intensiv mit der Kubanischen Tradition auseinandergesetzt
und ist inzwischen auch auf diesem Gebiet sehr aktiv als Sideman tätig.
(Picason, El Piquete Calderón, Cubano Bop, The Havana Jazz Trio, Stephan
Kurmann Strings mit den Munequitos de Matanzas)
Mitbegründer und künstlerischer Leiter des im Sommer 1994 eröffneten
Basler Jazz-Clubs "the bird's eye".
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