Bob Brookmeyer / John Abercrombie / WDR Big Band: Electricity

Straightahead / Mainstream Jazz
premiera polska: 1994-07-20
opakowanie: digipackowe etui
opis:
Editor's Info:
My attraction to the guitar began in the mid-1950s, with Jimmy Raney and Jim Hall as frequent partners in my musical life. In the mi-1980s, an equally strong fascination began with the synthesizer, and its use in conjunction acoustic instrumentation, often as a unified sonic entity. John Abercrombie had become on of my "new" favorite guitarists by then, and his interest in sound manipulation - along with his broad range of musical language - made him an ideal chose for this project. His musical gifts were a strong contributory factor to the piece, and his strength and good will gave us all inspiration. This was also my first chance to work with Danny Gottlieb, something he and I had looked forward to and he also is a giver of good feeling, good energy and willingness to become part of the ensemble.

I am in Cologne every year with new work for the WDR (now some 14 or 15 times!) and felt that a slightly reduced instrumentation would make more of a chamber music setting. Structurally, this is a child of "On The Way To The Sky," some in 1989 with Him Hall and Mel Lewis. By that time I had become interested in limiting the number of voices used and in increasing the horizontal aspect of my work. "Sky" had only 3 voices, or lines, and "Electricity" usually has no more than 5. I have also grown more patient in my work, taking longer with exposing and developing ideas. Maybe it's getting older or living in the countryside or being, at last, happily married - whatever the reason, I think that I'm looking more for meaning and worrying less about coloring the orchestra and keeping "busy" with the music.

Musically, a big "thank you" to Rainer Brüninghaus and Frank Chastenier for some inspired synthesizer work and Dieter Ilg for his always supportive bass playing.

A special word of appreciation for Siegfried Loch, who heard a tape of this piece and renewed my interest in it. Much of what we all do in Cologne is never heard elsewhere, so this is welcome exposure. He also asked me to update you on my recent, current and future activity, so here is a brief summary.

'Electricity' was my last New York piece, for after it was done, I moved to Rotterdam (Holland) to start a new school, now put aside. I have a European Quartet (featuring my pianist, 26-year-old Belgian Kris Goessens). I will have my first opera premiered in Wuppertal, Germany in late 1996 and this summer I become Musical Director of a large ensemble at the Schleswig-Holstein Musik-Festical in Lübeck, northern Germany.

In January 1996, I will become Chief Conductor of the Danish Radio Big Band. We (Mrs. B and I) are building a house, deep in the woods, in Hanover, New Hampshire, just on the Vermont border, so - in future years - don't be surprised at a few C major triads here and there. Since my heart belongs in both Europe and America, I'll be around.

In Closing, a very special word of gratitude to the WDR and, the two producers who have so kindly let me work, learn, experiment and grow - Heiner Müller-Adolphi and, since 1987, Wolfgang Hirschmann. A producer can cause much good to be done in the world, and these two men have done a wonderful job. As always, my friends in the band work hard, stay patient and "play their schnitzels off," translated loosely from American slag. See you later.

muzycy:
Bob Brookmeyer (valve-trombone) with
John Abercrombie guitar
Rainer Brüninghaus and Frank Chatenier keyboards
Dieter Ilg bass
Danny Gottlieb drums and

The WDR Big Band:
Trumpets: Andy Haderer, Klaus Osterloh, Rick Kiefer
Trombones: Dave Horler, Bernt Laukamp, Roy Deuvall
Saxophones: Heiner Wiberny, Olivier Peters, Rolf Römer, Paul Peucker

utwory:
1. Farewell New York [Explicit]
2. Ugly Music [Explicit]
3. White Blues [Explicit]
4. Say Ah [Explicit]
5. No Song [Explicit]
6. The Crystal Palace [Explicit]

more info: www.actmusic.com
more info2: www.bobbrookmeyer.com