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| Brent Wallarab's 'The Gennett Suite' wins German Record Critics Award Composer and Indiana University Professor Brent Wallarab's "distinctly American masterpiece" The Gennett Suite performed by the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra has been honored with a German Record Critics' Award as a recording of exceptional artistry and a best new release of 2023's fourth quarter. The ambitious piece is inspired by Wallarab's longtime admiration for the story and music of Gennett Studios, where early jazz icons like Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, and Jelly Roll Morton recorded. Music critics and journalists from Germany, Austria and Switzerland come together to select outstanding music productions to honor with the German Record Critics' Award. The independent jurors consider artistic quality, repertoire value, presentation, sound quality, and other factors to choose the winners. "It's an honor and quite humbling to be recognized by the German Critics' Quarterly Award, " says arranger, conductor, and co-bandleader Wallarab. "We greatly appreciate the time and attention that the jury took in listening to and considering the many excellent nominations in the Jazz category. This is an award my bandmates, our broader team, and I will always be proud of." The Gennett Suite captures that era in a monumental piece that repurposes music from the Gennett label's influential early records. The album was released on June 9, 2023 on Patois Records, owned by veteran trombonist and educator Wayne Wallace. Using such classic compositions as "Dippermouth Blues, " "Wolverine Blues, " and "Star Dust, " Wallarab reimagines these legendary themes and personages for a new century. Extended themes, elasticized time, and a host of anachronic techniques like funkified basslines, advanced harmonies, and plush ensemble textures boldly bring the music into the present day while never losing sight of the original material. "These are more than just 'arrangements' of the tunes, " Wallarab says. "I tried to give each one its own character. . . . [Each] is a unique part of the overall narrative I want to tell." Wallarab designed The Gennett Suite in four movements, each of which elevates one of the major jazz tributaries flowing into the Gennett studios in the early 1920s. The first movement, Royal Blue, celebrates some of the label's earliest stars, including Louis Armstrong. The second movement, Blues Faux Bix, focuses on Armstrong's white counterpart, cornetist Bix Beiderbecke, whose cooler sound and more measured approach provided a Midwest alternative to the sounds from New Orleans. Movement 3, Hoagland, highlighting Hoagland Howard ("Hoagy") Carmichael, includes Wallarab's extraordinary recomposition – and saxophonist Greg Ward's emotionally transcendent interpretation – of "Star Dust." The final movement, Mr. Jelly Lord, honors Jelly Roll Morton. "As far as I'm concerned, my job was to create this musical narrative of Gennett, " Wallarab says. In bringing the music of 100 years ago forward, Wallarab has fulfilled his long-held goal to commemorate Gennett. "In 2023, "Gennett is not exactly an unknown, " Wallarab says, but neither is it high in the consciousness of modern listeners. In fact, "A lot of the musicians who played on the session had no idea about the label and his history." But they surely do now. Praise for The Gennett Suite: ★★★★★ "…the music has the feel of America, the twenty-first century reaching back and shaking hands with the early-twentieth, taking the artists' relatively primitive recordings—state of the art for their times—and inviting them into the present, with gorgeous harmonies and luxuriant arrangements. The Gennett Suite: a distinctly American masterpiece." – Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz ★★★★★ "A brilliant tribute to a founding studio of 1920s jazz…What stands out immediately on first listen, is the sophistication and arrangements of the classic tunes of this period. I would compare the quality to early Duke Ellington… Much like Duke, Brent writes to the strengths of his soloists. Recorded in August, 2022, in Bloomington, Indiana, in pristine acoustics, this is early jazz music to treasure." — Jeff Krow, Audiophile Audition ★★★★1/2 "This ambitious piece is named for Gennett Records, who played a crucial role in jazz history 100 years ago. With the highest production values in every stage, this one is a must for devotees of contemporary big band jazz." — Duck Baker, Absolute Sound ★★★★ "The Gennett Suite by the Buselli/Wallarab Orchestra, in which Brent Wallarab reimagines century-old themes like "Tin Roof Blues", "Riverboat Shuffle", "Davenport Blues" and six others into a contemporary suite. Like Gil Evans and Henry Threadgill before him, he intends neither an earnest repertory-style duplicate nor a cartoonish, cut-and-paste mockery of 1920s pop culture. Using a stylish modernism, he dresses them in a 21st-century context so we can hear them played with care for fresh ears in today's terms. For those who've let their homework slide on the early jazz songbook, there's a richly appointed 68-page booklet to provide a scrim of antiquity. — John McDonough, DownBeat ★★★★ "Mark Buselli and Brent Wallarab have taken this important music and refashioned it for their sumptuous big band….Vivid arrangements and stunning soloists swingingly submerge the listener in the seismic 1920s, making them seem as fresh as the 2020s — fresher, perhaps…. Let this lovely album clean out your 21st- century ears, then blow the dust off the originals and play them too." – Chris Pearson, The Times, London "Between 1922 and 1928, Richmond, Indiana was the home of Gennett Records, which was the studio that recorded early jazz artists including Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Hoagy Carmichael and Duke Ellington, along with the self-proclaimed "Creator of Jazz" Jelly Roll Morton. Instead of replaying the famous tunes au natural, The Buselli/Wallarab Jazz Orchestran puts these classic tunes into modern arrangements and solos, with thrilling results. " — George W. Harris, Jazz Weekly "Vivid arrangements and stunning soloists swingingly submerge the listener in the seismic 1920s, making them seem as fresh as the 2020s — fresher, perhaps. You are whisked back to an exciting decade in which America was shaken up." — Chris Pearson, The Times, London "While the 17-piece orchestra performs vintage songs associated with the label and four specific giants, the resulting music is outside of the usual styles featured in The Syncopated Times. For while one hears 'Dippermouth Blues, ' 'Riverboat Shuffle, ' and even 'Grandpa Spells, ' the music is forward- looking postbop jazz, not a revival of 1920s jazz. The arrangements sometimes hint at Gil Evans (rather than Don Redman) and treat the compositions as if they were newly written, even with occasional references to the earlier recordings (such as transcribing Louis Armstrong's solo on 'Chime Blues')." — Scott Yanow, Syncopated Times "The Buselli-Wallarab big band puts a new glimmer on treasure from the Gennett Records vault… Conjures the excitement of the originals but hardly preserves them in amber." — Bob Weinberg, Jazziz "The Gennet Suite surprises and delights as it rejoices in the wonders of this music. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED." — Thomas Cunliffe, Jazz History Online "There have already been a slew of fine large ensemble recordings issued in 2023 but none better than The Gennett Suite by the Buselli/Wallarab Jazz Orchestra. The music the project is based on may now be 100 years old but the formidable and highly enjoyable arrangements plus the overall excellence of the soloists makes the songs spark and sparkle." — Richard Kamins, Step Tempest “A gorgeously recorded double CD. They did a fantastic job. … Such a high level of soloing. Some cool harmonies and arranging ideas. The level of musicianship is insanely high, and they are clearly interested and engaged.” — Jazz Bastard Podcast “What Wallarab has created is music written for a modern big band that never loses the essence of the original recordings. The B-WJO is based in Indianapolis and is replete with a roster of fine soloists who augment the wonderfully coherent section work. The music on this album should have wide appeal.” — Joe Lang, Jersey Jazz “An excellent work that shows how tributes should be done.” — Phontas Troussas, Vinylmine (Greece) Trombonist and composer/arranger Brent Wallarab is the David N. Baker Associate Professor of Jazz Studies at Indiana University’s world-renowned Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington. In 1994, he and trumpeter Mark Buselli founded their eponymous jazz orchestra, which has developed into one of the most widely respected big bands in the country, while attaining an elevated position on the historically rich Indianapolis jazz scene. The Gennett Suite is their eighth album. The Gennett Suite is available through: CDs, LP (limited edition), LP (standard edition): indianafound.org/shop, Amazon, and other major online retailers write your comments about the article :: © 2023 Jazz News :: home page |