Arturo O'Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra - The Offense of the Drum (2014)

2014-12-04T17:12:23Z

Arturo O'Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra - The Offense of the Drum (2014)


1. Cuarto de Colores
2. They Came
3. On the Corner of Malecón and Bourbon
4. Mercado en Domingo
5. Gnossienne 3 (Tientos)
6. The Mad Hatter
7. The Offense of the Drum
8. Alma Vacía
9. Iko Iko

Arturo O'Farrill: piano; 
Ivan Renta: tenor saxophone; 
Peter Brainin: tenor saxophone; 
Bobby Porcelli: alto saxophone; 
David DeJesus:alto saxophone; 
Jason Marshall: baritone saxophone; 
Seneca Black: trumpet; 
Jim Seeley: trumpet;
John Bailey: trumpet; 
Jonathan Powell: trumpet; 
Tokunori Kajiwara: trombone; 
Rafi Malkiel: trombone, euphonium; 
Frank Cohen: trombone; 
Earl McIntyre: bass trombone, tuba; 
Gregg August: bass; 
Vince Cherico: drums; 
Roland Guerrero: congas; 
Joe Gonzalez: bongos, bell; 
Pablo O Bilbraut: percussion (8); 
Miguel Blanco: conductor (5, 8); 
Christopher "Chilo" Cajigas: spoken word (2); 
Edmar Castaneda: harp (1); 
Ayanda Clarke: djembe (7); 
DJ Logic: turntables (2); 
Jonathan Gomez: percussion (4); 
Nestor Gomez: percussion (4); 
Donald Harrison: vocals (9), alto saxophone (9); 
Vijay Iyer: piano (6); 
Hiro Kurashima: taiko drum (7); 
Chad Lefkowitz-Brown: tenor saxophone (7); 
Jason Lindner: conductor (2); 
Antonio Lizana: vocals (5), alto saxophone (5); 
Pablo Mayor: conductor (4), maracas: (4); 
Uri Sharlin: accordion (5); 
Samuel Torres: conductor (1), cajon (1).

The Offense Of The Drum may be the least cohesive record in Arturo O'Farrill's discography, but that's largely by design. Here, O'Farrill firmly adheres to his stated "artistic vision"—"to bend what the world knows as Afro Latin jazz over the acoustic horizon"—better than anywhere else in his discography. Guests galore and a belief in Afro Latin camaraderie help him realize that goal, resulting in the most intriguing and expansive offering that he's ever released.

In some ways this album is simply a documentation of O'Farrill's work at New York's Symphony Space. It was there that he broke new ground with pianist Vijay Iyer, DJ Logic, Colombian harpist Edmar Castaneda, spoken word artist Christopher "Chilo" Cajigas, saxophonist Donald Harrison, and percussionist Samuel Torres. The relationship between each of those artists and O'Farrill's Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra is spotlighted on this album. "Cuarto De Colores"—the title track of Castaneda's debut album—is fleshed out to good effect, thanks in large part to the pen of Torres; DJ Logic and the band lay the groundwork for Cajigas' Puerto Rican pride preaching on "They Came"; Iyer simultaneously toys with the concepts of stasis and development on his ode to O'Farrill—"The Mad Hatter"; and a straight line is drawn from NOLA to Cuba when Harrison shows up for "Iko Iko." Each of those pieces stand apart from the others in many respects, yet they stand in solidarity as firm examples of the evolving definition of Afro Latin jazz.

Some of the other numbers walk a relatively straight path from start to finish; "Alma Vacia," a sizzling salsa number from Miguel Blanco, and "Mercado En Domingo," a modern twist on Colombian porro music, both fall into this category. The most eye-opening works, however, are more collage-like in nature. "On The Corner Of Malecon And Bourbon," with its start-and-stop look at soloists and follow-the-lines-of-history stylistic transformation(s), and the title track, with a mushrooming fugue-ish introduction, shifting tides and percussion breaks, prove to be the most ambitious offerings.

O'Farrill has never been content to simply accept any stylistic definition in a neat little box. He understands that history and imagination, working hand in hand, can have a limitless partnership. This album goes a long way in proving that point. It's a work of visionary brilliance. ---Dan Bilawsky, allaboutjazz.com

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Arturo O'Farrill - Boss Level (2016)

2018-02-10T15:59:02Z

Arturo O'Farrill - Boss Level (2016)


1 	Miss Stephanie	8:33 	
2 	True That	7:17 	
3 	The Moon Follows Us Wherever We Go	9:11 	
4 	Circle Games	7:50 	
5 	Maine Song	7:12 	
6 	Compay Doug		8:47 	
7 	Not Now, Right Now	5:05 	
8 	In Whom I Am Well Pleased	9:28 	
9 	V.F.S.		6:31 	
10 	Peace	4:22 

Livio Almeida - tenor saxophone
Shawn Conley - treumpet 
Adam O’Farrill - trumpet
Arturo O’Farrill - piano
Zack O’Farrill - drums
Travis Reuter -  guitar

You know that you are in the presence of musical royalty when an O’Farrill strikes up the band. Recently that has become more regular, with Arturo O’Farrill, pianist and prince of the O’Farrill line, who has inherited the best of his father Chico O’Farrill to pass it down to the third Generation of O’Farrill’s, his sons, drummer Zack and trumpeter Adam, both of whom share the stage on his latest Zoho Music release, 2016’s Boss Level. This album also debuts the latest incarnation of the Arturo O’Farrill Sextet, reconstituted after the 2010 version that produced Risa Negra for the same label. Boss Level we are told, has been put down on record after a short residency at Birdland. It seems the music’s time had come and that would be a classic understatement.

Arturo O’Farrill has been mining gold from music for several years. His genius for composition has won him many accolades including a Grammy Award for his work on Cuba: The Conversation Continues (Motéma, 2015), a monumental album by any standards. O’Farrill has also successfully run large ensembles and small ones and if he thrives in larger format orchestras, it is because his palette is unusually large. His Cuban heritage and New York upbringing sits well with the lessons he has learned from his celebrated father.

But there is something about his piano playing that also begs attention. His virtuosity remains hidden away in the complex music that he writes and directs from the keyboard and listeners are apt to be distracted by the extra-pianistic commands that he gives. But every once and awhile the sparkles show whether in notes that gleam like rare gems as they are strung up in a necklace to form enduring phrases and melodic lines. And although you do not have to wait for the opportune moment to hear this you will hear what I mean if you wait for Horace Silver’s ‘Peace’ which lies at the very end of this album.

This is a serious band and has many wonderful things going for it. There is a musical bonding that is unlike what you will hear in many bands. O’Farrill’s unbridled ingenuity for arrangements draws the members of the band closer together as they explore his wonderful contrapuntal passages. Moreover each member of this band feeds off the other and when improvising you can see how thoughts and ideas flow from one musician to the next. This is beautifully captured on ‘Maine Song’, a contribution from O’Farrill’s trumpet playing son, Adam.

You will also hear how the pianist is the glue for the spidery nature of the bands’ unfolding of the extraordinary composition ‘Compay Doug’, a piece written for Doug Rice using that characteristic four-note phrase that leads to imaginative explorations from each member of the band. Guitarist Travis Reuter is another big reason for the sound of the sextet. His tonal colours and textures brought about elongated notes on ‘Miss Stephanie’ are quite masterful. Make no mistake, though, each musician in this sextet has something special to offer. And this is what makes Boss Level a must for an aficionado of good music. ---Raul da Gama, latinjazznet.com

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