Tag Archives: Matt Lavelle

News, Reviews, UNSEEN RAIN Releases

Cadence Reviews MATT LAVELLE’S 12 HOUSES – SOLIDARITY

Leave a comment

                                                                                                                                                        MATT LAVELLE’S 12 HOUSES,
SOLIDARITY,
UNSEEN RAIN 9945

“Solidarity” has a massive singsong sound that serves as the backdrop to a furious tenor solo by Ras Moshe Burnett and a keening cello and flute duet. “Brooklyn Mountain” starts out as a slow, writhing mass before Burnett and pianist Chris Forbes
break out for a wriggling excursion into Cecil Taylor country. “Knee Braces” has a warmer, more low-key swarming sound allowing Laura Ortman space for a searing violin feature and “Cherry Swing” gets a nice funky groove underway with the leader’s buzzing cornet and Anais Maviel’s voice out front. “Moonflower Interlude” is a short bassoon solo that leads into the closing “Faith”, a slow and attractive theme that features Maviel leading the band and Forbes crashing piano chords like McCoy Tyner. It eventually turns into a bluesy dance led by piano, banjo and handclaps that could be the soundtrack to Sun Ra’s Arkestra going into one of their high stepping
gospellish promenades. Matt Lavelle’s compositions don’t rely on intricate melody like several other large scale modern bandleaders but his musicians can blow furiously and he can put together attractive spaces for them to do their things. – Jerome Wilson, Cadence

Solidarity / Brooklyn Mountain / Knee Braces / Cherry

Swing / Moonflower Interlude / Faith.
Lavelle, cnt, flgh, a cl, cond; Lee Odom, ss, cl; Charles
Waters, as, cl;; Ras Moshe Burnett, ss, ts, fl, bells; Tim
Stocker, bari s, b cl; Mary Cherney, fl, pic; Claire de
Brunner, bsn; Chris Forbes, p; Laura Ortman, vln; Gil
Salinger, clo; Anders Nillson, g; Jack DeSalvo, bjo,
mandola; John Pietaro, vib, perc; François Grillot, b; Ryan
Sawyer, d; Anais Maviel, vcl. 11/14, Brooklyn, NY.

Get SOLIDARITY at Bandcamp HERE

UNSEEN RAIN Releases

Could Become a Milestone of the Genre: Harmolodic Monk

Leave a comment
CD Review: UR9953.CoverA_Flat_for CDB
By Vittorio Lo Conte

Between the music of Thelonious Monk and that of Ornette Coleman there is quite a distance, yet the two musicians on this album manage to delete this gap and make a tribute to Monk different from anything done so far – and that’s saying a lot. Matt Lavelle, here on cornet, flugelhorn and alto clarinet, has studied with Ornette Coleman and is a member of Bern Nix‘ quartet, the guitarist in Coleman’s historic group Prime Time. The Harmolodic concept was developed by the renowned saxophonist Ornette Coleman and is applied to the melodies written by Monk. Along with Lavelle is John Pietaro, who performs on vibraphone and percussion, including bongas and the bodhrán, which is a traditional Irish drum. How does this work? Very well! The music,  freed from any tonal center, as well as still preaching Ornette Coleman, breathes, and here the vibraphone does its part very sympathetically with Lavelle’s instruments. It is a pleasure to listen to from start to finish of well known songs, Ruby My Dear, Blue Monk, Pannonica. The only piece recorded with the technique of overdubbing is Monk’s Mood, here the alto clarinet and cornet play together and seek the background percussion of Pietaro. Do not miss Round Midnight, which in this capacity is minimalist and becomes a song of soft beauty, like the late night title implies. The idea of the two musicians and producer Jack De Salvo is realized so perfectly that we are facing a record that could become a milestone of the genre. When hearing so much beauty, who wouldn’t think of a Harmolodic treatment of the music of Duke Ellington or Rodgers & Hart.
Review in Italian:

Fra la musica di Thelonious Monk e quella di Ornette Coleman c´è una bella distanza, eppure i due autori di questa incisione sono riusciti a eliminarla e fare un omaggio a Monk differente da tutto quello fatto finora (e non è poco!) dai colleghi. Matt Lavelle, qui alla cornetta, flicorno e clarinetto alto ha studiato con Ornette Coleman e suonato insieme a Bern Nix, chitarrista nello storico gruppo Prime Time di Coleman. Il concetto armolodico sviluppato dal famoso sassofonista è applicato alle melodie scritte da Monk, insieme a Lavelle c´è John Pietaro, che si esibisce al vibrafono ed alle percussioni, alle bongas ed al bodhrán, che è un tamburello della tradizione irlandese. Come funziona? Benissimo! La musica liberata da qualunque centro tonale, così come predica ancora Coleman, respira, e qui il vibrafono fa la sua parte, molto empatico con gli strumenti di Lavelle. È un piacere ascoltarli dall´inizio alla fine su brani conosciutissimi, Ruby My Dear, Blue Monk, Pannonica. L´unico pezzo registrato con la tecnica della sovrincisione è Monk´s Mood, qui il clarinetto alto e la cornetta giocano a cercarsi sullo sfondo delle percussioni di Pietaro. Non poteva mancare Round Midnight, che in questa veste minimalista diventa un brano dalla bellezza soffusa, notturna come vuole il titolo. L´idea dei due musicisti e del produttore Jack De Salvo è realizzata perfettamente, così che ci troviamo davanti ad un disco che potrebbe diventare una pietra miliare del genere. Chissà che qualcun altro, ascoltata tanta bellezza, non pensi ad un trattamento armolodico delle musiche di Duke Ellington o Rodgers & Hart.