Welcome to the weekend and New In Music This Week: June 6th.
There is a tie for my top pick this week.
My top picks this week are:
JAZZ: THE BOOK OF ISAIAH: MODERN JAZZ MINISTRY – Isaiah J. Thompson – Mack Avenue Records
Pianist/composer Thompson was the winner of the 2023 American Pianists Awards. Previous recipients include Sullivan Fortner, Aaron Diehl and Dan Tepfer.
With this album, Thompson explores his relationship with God after dealing with challenges in his life. He also explores his relationship with jazz gods such as John Coltrane, Duke Ellington, Wynton Marsalis, Charles Mingus and Mary Lou Williams.
This is a suite of music, not a collection of songs. All are originals composed by Thompson and played by him. He’s joined by pianist Cyrus Chestnut (who co-produced the album), Marty Jaffe on bass; Julian Lee on tenor saxophone; Kaitline Obien-Thompson on vocals; Herlin Riley on tambourine and vocals; Miguel Russell on drums and Vuyo Sotashe on vocals.
Many a jazz musician has explored the divine through their music. This fine album by Thompson adds a younger voice to that conversation in a way that feels completely of our time.
It’s beautiful, challenging, comforting, questioning and satisfying in oh so many ways.
AND
JAZZ: OPEN YOUR SENSES – Tyreek McDole – Artwork Records
It would be very easy, probably too easy, for vocalist McDole to do an album of the great American songbook. He is, after all, only the second male to win the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition.
Instead, he’s chosen a more interesting and challenging path. He takes on songs written by Thelonious Monk, Nicholas Payton, Pharoah Sanders, Horace Silver and others. None of these songs are safe choices. But they are smart choices and the arrangements are terrific.
There is one song that is immediately recognizable: Everyday I Have the Blues. For those who want to know what this 25-year-old baritone would sound like doing more traditional material, this is your best option. He is an old soul with a fresh perspective.
All of this points to the vision McDole has for his career: one that challenges himself and his listeners not to expect the expected.
Amongst the musicians on Open Your Senses are Dylan Band, Kenny Baaron, Weedie Braimah, Caelan Cardello. Sullivan Fortner, Jerome Gillespie II, Emmaneul Michael, Tomoki Sanders and Rodney Whitaker.
I can’t wait to hear the next album!
Here are the other fine albums to be found on New In Music This Week: June 6th:
CLASSICAL: MOZART: PIANO SONATAS K. 457, 533, 545, 570 & 576 – Angela Hewitt – Hyperion Records
Pianist Hewitt started releasing recordings of Mozart’s Piano Sonatas in November of 2022. Less than two years later, she has come to the end of this cycle with this week’s release.
Once again, Hewitt proves why she’s admired and loved around the world. These are thoughtful, considered and passionate performances. Would you expect anything less from her?
This album marks her 50th album. This final album includes some non-sonata work by Mozart but still clocks in at 2-1/2 hours.
What will her next cycle of recordings be? She’s already recorded the complete keyboards works of Bach and Beethoven.
CLASSICAL: SYMPHONY FANTASTIQUE; VALSE – Orchestre de Paris/Klaus Mäkelä – Decca Classics
In September of last year, conductor Mäkelä led the Orchestre de Paris in a performance at the Proms that included Berlioz’s Symphony fantastique. Erica Jeal, writing for The Guardian, gave the concert a 5-star review saying the concert “was played with the kind of care and technical precision that might seem merely polished in the context of a recording, but was electrifying in the hall.”
By now she’s probably heard this stunning recording of that same piece with the same orchestra and it is far more than polished. It is, simply put, as if a piece we have all heard all our lives has been given a new lease on life. From the opening minute, there is a renewed sense of purpose and exploration that this recording possesses.
Ravel’s La valse is also wonderfully performed. This is a first-rate recording.
JAZZ: DANCE, ETERNAL SPIRITS, DANCE! AND SAM RIVERS 100 – Mark Masters Ensemble – Capri Records
These two albums showcase two legends and, in doing so, the genius of arranger/bandleader Mark Masters.
Dance, Eternal Spirits, Dance! Is a celebration of the music of saxophonist Billy Harper. Sam Rivers 100 celebrates saxophonist Sam Rivers on the centennial of his birth.
Both Harper and Rivers have vast careers, but very different paths. Rivers was a fierce advocate of free jazz. Harper has found his place in the hard bop world. Rivers passed away in 2011. Harper is not just still with us; he’s still making music. He appears on both records.
Now to Masters. His reimagining of these two men’s work is outstanding. He not only respects the original compositions, but he also knows how to make them work for his ensemble.
I went track-by-track through Sam Rivers 100 to listen to how Sam Rivers presented his songs and then how Masters does. The foundation of Rivers’ work is alive and well in Masters’ arrangements. Yet they sound fresh and completely new.
Not having the time to hear Harper’s recordings of his songs, I’ll assume they are just as respectful. Otherwise, he wouldn’t appear on either album. What a gift it is to hear him in these new recordings.
Check out both of these fine albums and don’t forget to visit (or re-visit) the original works. That is probably the highest praise you can give Masters for these two records.
MUSICALS: BOOP! THE MUSICAL – Original Broadway Cast Recording – Melody Place
This new musical, based on Max Fleischer’s animated character Betty Boop, places the character front and center as she leaves the routine of her black-and-white world to explore life in New York City with its vibrant colors, music (by David Foster and Susan Birkenhead) and a lot of tap-dancing (Jerry Mitchell.)
Jasmine Amy Rogers plays Boop! She, along with choreographer Mitchell (who also directed) and costume designer Gregg Barnes, received Tony Award nominations. Hearing this album gives a great sense of how deserving Rogers is of her nomination. I simply loved listening to her “I want” song, Ordinary Day. It is a wonderful set-up for the journey she’s about to embark on.
Also appearing in the show are Faith Price, Erich Bergen and Stephen DeRosa. This is a fun cast album fully anchored by Rogers.
MUSICALS: F*CK 7th GRADE – Original Cast Recording – Pinko Records
This musical by Jill Sobule was performed at Wild Project in New York in the fall of 2022. It was re-mounted in the winter of 2023 and again in the fall of 2023. It was also performed in November of 2024. It had quite a following amongst fans of the show and the critics. It was a New York Times Critic’s Pick and the recipient of a Drama Desk nomination for Best Musical.
Using many of Sobule’s own songs from her recordings, the musical is a queer coming-of-age musical that mirrors in many ways Sobule’s own growing up.
The cast included Nin Camp, Kristen Ellis-Henderson and Julie Wolf – all of whom play multiple characters and serve as the on-stage band.
This recording has a raw, independent feeling that totally suits the nature of the story being told.
Unfortunately, this story has a sad ending. Sobule was killed in a house fire on May 1st. Having this album is a great reminder (as if we needed it) of how wonderfully talented she was.
MUSICALS: REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES: THE MUSICAL – Original Broadway Cast Recording – Ghostlight Records
I’ve seen this crowd-pleasing musical that wears its heart and its wonderful message on the hem of its many dresses. The show received a Tony Award for Best Original Score (Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez).
As I mentioned in my Best Bets when the show officially opened, this musical has a moment so surprising that it would be a major disservice to reveal what it is before you can see it. And you must see it. The audience was on its feet. And it wasn’t an 11 o’clock number. Just a beautifully choreographed and emotionally charged performance of the title song.
Other songs I enjoyed (both on stage and on this recording) include Flying Away, If I Were a Bird, Adiós Andre and Life is Like a Dance.
If you can’t make it to New York to see this musical, this cast album, filled with joy, emotion and heart, will do the trick.
OPERA: DER RING DES NIBELUNGEN – Bayreuth Festival Orchestra/Daniel Barenboim – Warner Classics
This is a CD re-issue of the legendary Harry Kupfer production from 1991-1992. Daniel Barenboim conducted a cast that included Poul Elming singing Siegmund; Anne Evans as Brünnhilde; Günter von Kannen as Alberich; Siegfried Jerusalem as Siegfried; Nadine Secunde as Sieglinde and John Tomlinson as Wotan.
This production was also filmed, so DVDs still exist for those who still play them. Which begs the question, who still listens to CDs?
I didn’t have the 13 hours to listen to this entire recording, but it isn’t because I didn’t want to. It’s truly wonderful.
That’s all for New In Music This Week: June 6th.
Enjoy the music!
Enjoy your weekend!