DISCS OF THE MONTH the evening· It's a capture of the sort of creative atmosphere that we'll never see again. Ted O'Reilly ITT ITT ITT ITT ITT ITT ITT m m nmnmnmnmnm NAXOS 111 11111 111 111 111 MONTHLY FEATURE The Great Concert of Charles Mingus Verve B0002680-02 This 40-year-old Paris concert recording is illustrative as an example of some things missing in too much of today's jazz: passion, a sense of history, and a look to the future. A 2-CD set recorded at Theatre des Champs-Elysees, the midnight event was fraught with potential failure. The cross-Europe tour was arduous, with 12 concerts in 14 days plus travel, and as usual the leader was very demanding, as was the music. Mingus' compositions require of a player a depth of knowledge fro Jelly Roll through Duke through swmg, bop and the future. This night the sextet was down to five, with trumpeter Johnny Coles rushed to a hospital for emergency ulcer surgery when he collapsed onstage a couple of nights previous. (Min ha the horn onstage though, and whims1cally introduces "Johnny Coles' trumpet"). The brass parts of the arrangements had to be covered oe wa or another, usually by piarust Jaki Byard, so the musicians' skills are on full display. Eric Dolphy-on alto sax, flute and bass clarinet-had decided he would leave the band at the end of the tour to examine Europe's culture and opportunities . (He was to die in Berlin ten weeks later). Byard is as comfortable mining Fats Waller and Art Tatum as he is playing free, and the least famous man here Clifford Jordan offers solid tenor in a bopinformed-Lester Young style. As uual with Mingus, drummer Danny Richmond is in the engine house. And the bassist/leader himself is in full force, powering the band with slapping stretched strings and delicate arco musings. There's over 2 hours of music here, _with a couple of previously unavailable tracks, Mingus introductions and lots of the ambiance of Andrew P. MacDonald _ The Great Square of Pegasus Jasper Wood; Audrey Andrist Centrediscs CMCCD 100004 The wonderful young Canadian virtuoso violinist Jasper Wood continues his trailblazing ways with a new disc of works by the Guelphborn composer Andrew Paul MacDonald. A note from Wood at the beginning of the program booklet elains his interest in and struggles with MacDonald's music. The technical demands of the work for solo violin that gives the recording its title nearly defeated Wood but he writes, "I revisited the piece :ind convinced myself that I was the one being difficult rather than the music". The result is a committed engaging performance that takes th; breath away. MacDonald's intense interest in Greek mythology and ancient Greek music theory informs all the works on the disc from Perseus and Medusa in the opening piece, through references to the Aegean Sea Homer's Odyssey and the Troj prophetess Kassandra, a woman cursed by being in the wrong place at the wrong time if ever there was one.lndeed,MacDonald's evocative piece Kassandra's Tears calls to mind the sad and violent images of her story. ood is ably accompanied by . pianist Audrey Andrist in two of the four works on the disc. Wood's dedication to modern music is laudable - bringing to mind his talented contemporaries Marc Sabat and Mark Fewer. The idea that there is more to life than the standard violin repertoire seems to inform their programming ideas and collegial relationships - thank goodness. Larry Beckwith La Mer jolie - Chants d' Acadie Suzie LeBlanc A 1MA Clque ACD2 2330 Acadian music is as dark and tumultuous, inspirational and joyous as the tragic journey of the Acadian people themselves. With the 1755 eportation of the Acadians resulting m the loss of many historical facts of the earliest French North American colonization, so too has much of the music disappeared. With "La Mer jolie", Canadian soprano Suzie LeBlanc recreates some of the remaining traditional vocal and instrumental Acadian music in a refreshing manner. This is a beautiful recording that embraces the traditional melodies and modernizes them in their arrangements. A baroque singer who specials in 17th and 18th century repertoire, LeBlanc's decision to perform songs from her native Acadia must be applauded. From the ?ning title track, Le long de la mer Johe, LeBlanc's voice lends itself to the songs with a clarity and emotion that only a superb and extremely _ astute amst can achieve. The backing musicians _ David Greenberg, Chris Norman, David McGuinness, Sylvain Bergeron, Betsy MacMillan and Pierre Chartand - provide not only the vocal accompaniments but also a number of rousing instrumentals. Kudos also go to Greenberg, Bergeron and McGuiness for their SIBELIUS & SINDING: Violin Concertos ONDES MARTE OT iaslam • M•r1inll • Bloch • Cooper Redolfl • Rolin • TOOC'.hard • wmon Thomas Bloch, Ondes l\lal1enot MUSIC FOR ONDES MARTEN OT Thomas Bloch: Ondes excellent arrangements. Th melodic simplicity, lyric . JACQUELINE DU PRE: mflectlons and rhythmic drive of IN PORTRAIT Acadian music have created a soft A spectacular 2 DVD set!! spot for it in my heart. Suzie LeBlanc Includes a full performance of mets to be congratulated again for the Elgar Cello Concerto plus a havmg both the artistic talent and full documentary by courage to interpret this music. "La Christopher Nupen mer jolie" is an illuminating and moving recording to treasure time ' r-----__j and time again . Tiina Kiik Available at HMV Superstore 333 Yonge Street, Toronto 66 WWW• THEWHOLENOTE.COM OCTOBER 1 - NOVEMBER 7 2004
Under the auspices of the Maximilian Kolbe Foundation Opening Concert Ociober17, 2004, ?pm John Paul II Polish Cultural Centre Admission: $10-, Tickets available at door Featuring: Eric Han cello, Kinga Mitrowska voice, and Jazz legend Gene DiNovi Competition October 18-22, 2004 John Paul II Polish Cultural Centre Admission: Free Featuring Canadas best young pianists Gala Concert October 23, 2004, 7:30pm Glenn Gould Studio Admission: -, Tickets: Call 416-205-5555 Featuring the Madawaska String Quartet and winners of the Second Canadian Chopin Piano Competition Further information and competition schedules are available at www.chopin.ca John Paul II Polish Cultural Centre 4300 Cawthra Road, Mississauga ON (Hwy 403 and Cawthra Road) Glenn Gould Studio Canadian Broadcasting Centre 250 Front Street West, Toronto ON THE BANFF CENTRE 9YAMAHA MAllE CL'llE SllODOl'Sl:A AHOCIATIO!li" a.---1 .. _..._,..,
