In tune with life
INTERVIEW BRANFORD Marsalis is no stranger to Australia, and he has two loose front teeth to prove it. The saxophonist, who in early days played alto with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and mostly tenor and soprano with his brother Wynton’s quintet, first visited with Sting in 1986, touring for five weeks and developing a love for Australian football. “We played with the production crew in … Continue reading In tune with life
DARK EYES — TOMASZ STANKO QUINTET
CD REVIEW (ECM Records) **** POLISH trumpeter Tomasz Stanko, whose albums Soul of Things (2003) and Suspended Night (2004) were gonged by Australia’s Bell Awards judges, once said he loved the “extremely great melancholy mood” of Antonioni’s film Il Grido. Stanko’s sublimely mournful playing is a brooding presence in this restrained outing, as he welcomes two Finns — pianist Alexi Tuomarila and drummer Olavi Louhivuori … Continue reading DARK EYES — TOMASZ STANKO QUINTET
THE GATHERING — STU HUNTER
CD REVIEW (Vitamin Records) PIANIST/COMPOSER Stu Hunter’s second suite is an hour-long journey even more enthralling and engrossing than his first, The Muse, released in 2007 with Cameron Undy on bass, Matt Keegan on tenor sax and Simon Barker on drums. Adding another tenor, Julien Wilson, and James Greening on trombone and pocket trumpet contributes greatly to the diversity and splendour of the musical landscape, … Continue reading THE GATHERING — STU HUNTER