Gorgeous, lyrical, world music played on the clarinet accompanied by a rhythm section and a string quartet. Included are beautiful standards from Brazil, Israel, France as well as music by John Coltrane and a few original compositions.
Tracks: 01 - Agade Yapanit (A Japanese Tale) 06:21 02 - Hofim (Beaches) 06:38 03 - The Purple Piece 07:30 04 - Eyn Gedi 07:47 05 - La Chanson des Vieux Amants 04:08 06 - Lonnie's Lament 07:21 07 - Quando Eu Me Chamar Saudade 03:48 08 - La Casa del Llano 08:02 09 - Nigunim 03:01 10 - Cypresses 10:36
Personnel: Anat Cohen – Clarinet Jason Lindner – Piano Omer Avital – Bass Daniel Freedman - Drums (Percussion on Lonnie’s Lament) Gilad – Percussion on Cypresses ** String Quartet on tracks 4,6,9 &10: Antoine Silverman – Violin Belinda Whitney – Violin David Creswell – Viola Danny Miller – Cello
Review: Anat Cohen's Spiraling Modern Jazz Presence (author: ejazznews.com) While at Berklee College, Tel-Aviv reared multi-reed artist Anat Cohen was encouraged to pick up the clarinet by musician/educator Phil Wilson. And from her own words: “I decided to make an album to share some of what I have learned about playing the clarinet in various musical contexts.” With that, Cohen employs a jazz combo and String Quartet for the consummation of this lovely jazz-outing that touches upon multinational folk themes via a quasi, third-stream approach. It’s soft and eloquently expressed amid the strings delicate enhancements and polytonal contrasts. Cohen’s soul-stirring lines on “Hofim (Beaches)” lead a dreamy medium-tempo swing vamp, nicely interleaved by the strings unit. In other areas, Cohen’s music summons Middle Eastern folk and shades of Brazil. And she opens Coltrane’s “Lonnie’s Lament,” with an introspective muse that subsequently cascades into a peppery Latin groove. Then on “Nigunim,” the musicians’ lush overlays, accentuate Cohen’s sweet and sublime phrasings. To that end, “Poetica,” surfaces as a chain of airy themes rooted within a focused, jazz-mindset that is not overly saccharine or watered-down with orchestral innuendos. No doubt, Cohen’s spiraling modern jazz presence should get an added boost with the release of this irrefutably attractive outing. – Glenn Astarita