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| Cryptogramophone Records New Releases Los Angeles-based Cryptogramophone Records announces exciting new releases from guitarist Nels Cline and pianist Myra Melford. Nels Cline's New Monastery is Cline's interpretation of the music of Andrew Hill; Myra Melford's The Image of Your Body features trumpeter Cuong Vu and guitarist Brandon Fields. Nels Cline is one of the most versatile, imaginative and original guitarists active today. Combining breath-taking technique with an informed musical intelligence, Cline displays a mastery of guitar expression that has inspired Jazz Times to call him "The World's Most Dangerous Guitarist." On New Monastery: A View Into the Music of Andrew Hill, Cline is joined by bassist Devon Hoff and drummer Scott Amendola (who form the core of The Nels Cline Singers), as well as Ben Goldberg on clarinet and contra-alto clarinet, Andrea Parkins on electric accordion and Bobby Bradford (best known for his work with Ornette Coleman, and the late John Carter) on cornet. While pianist Hill has certainly risen from near obscurity of late, New Monastery was conceived well before his present resurgence, and presents his work in a strikingly distinctive fashion: there is no piano involved in the project. "Andrew Hill's music seemed to possess visionary beauty, originality, and the desired flexibility that could really engage this lineup of rather disparate players, " explains Cline. "I hope that between my guitar and Andrea Parkins'electric accordion that we can create a fresh take on the harmonies and textures of Mr. Hill's music." New Monastery includes several pieces from Hill's Blue Note recordings, at times incorporated into suites, as well as some more recent compositions. Since she first emerged on the music scene in 1991, pianist Myra Melford has never failed to challenge expectations and turn musical corners with new instruments, inventive compositions and ever-evolving ensembles. On The Image of Your Body, her first release for Cryptogramophone, Melford turned once again to the Sufi mystic poet Rumi as well as to her recent harmonium studies in India for inspiration. The result is music for her electro-acoustic quartet, Be Bread, which features trumpeter Cuong Vu, guitarist Brandon Ross, bassist Stomu Takeishi, and drummer Elliot Humberto Kavee. Melford initially composed the several songs on The Image of Your Body on the melodica, and then enriched the compositions with the wide range of timbres available through acoustic instruments such as banjo and harmonium, as well as electronically manipulated sound. The Image of Your Body highlights a unique body of work that reflects many cultural influences while remaining steadfastly in Melford's own voice. Producer and label owner Jeff Gauthier says, "These new releases cap a year that we feel is our most musically successful and artistically representitive year yet, with new recordings by Bennie Maupin, Ben Goldberg, Erik Friedlander, myself, and now Nels Cline and Myra Melford." Cryptogramophone Records presents state of the art recordings of creative jazz in beautifully designed packages. The label presents artists who embrace the full range musical expression, as they explore the far reaches of artistic vision and instrumental technique. Cryptogramophone was formed in 1998 to represent a community of musicians in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. These musicians include: Scott Amendola, Bobby Bradford, Alan Broadbent, Nels Cline, Mark Dresser, Peter Erskine, Erik Friedlander, Jeff Gauthier, Bennie Maupin, Don Preston, Alan Pasqua, Jenny Scheinman, Cuong Vu, and many others. Artists such as Bill Frisell, Brad Mehldau, and Jeff Parker also appear on Cryptogramophone Records. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Jazz News :: home page |