Search - John Hollenbeck :: Quartet Lucy

John Hollenbeck
Quartet Lucy
Genre: Jazz

Track Listings (10) - Disc #1
1. ?Vanishing Lucy?
2. ?Ethel?
3. ?Foreva?
4. ?Materna?
5. ?Dreams For Tomorrow
6. ?Constant Conversation?
7. ?Chapel Flies?
8. ?Jazz Envy
9. ?Vira-folha?
10. ?The Music of Life?

The Music of Life — Besides the beauty of music, there is the tenderness, which brings life to the heart. For a person of fine feelings, of kindly thought, life in the world is very trying. It is jarring, and it sometimes ... more »has a freezing effect. It makes the heart so to speak frozen. In that condition one experiences depression, and the whole of life becomes distasteful; the very life that is meant to be heaven becomes a place of suffering. If one can focus one?s heart on music, it is just like warming something that was frozen. The heart returns to its natural condition, and the rhythm regulates the beating of the heart which helps to restore health of body, mind, and soul, and bring them to their proper tuning. The joy of life depends upon the perfect tuning of mind and body. The first time I ever actually spoke to drummer and composer John Hollenbeck took place immediately following the first set I heard by his Claudia Quintet. The music I?d heard combined the highly organized structural formality of chamber music with the earthy groove of post-?60s jazz and the irreverence of free improvisation ? in some of the same ways that the artists who recorded for a certain well-known progressive jazz label had pioneered in the ?70s and ?80s. "If I had to guess, I?d say that you?ve listened to a lot of ECM records," I hesitantly ventured. Hollenbeck responded that this had indeed been the case. A few days later, he informed me that ? having checked ? he owned more discs on ECM than on any other single jazz label. This came as no surprise. We had both come of age musically at the height of ECM?s popularity and influence, when the label boasted the impressionistic note-spinning fantasies of pianist Keith Jarrett, the icy Nordic stoicism of Jan Garbarek, the multicultural eclecticism of Oregon, the avant-traditionalism of the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Old and New Dreams, and the unabashedly joyful lyricism of the Pat Metheny Group. ECM was one of the fewish labels in jazz history to establish an identity so strong that its very name was sometimes used as a descriptive adjective. Virtually no other label offered so great a conceptual range, nor such a high level of excellence. Having established the Claudia Quintet as his primary compositional vehicle, Hollenbeck found that he was writing some more song-oriented pieces that called out for a different voice ? a human voice, in fact. "I needed an outlet for the world music that I loved and the spiritual paths that I had been exploring," Hollenbeck recalls. Once again, an impetus was provided by an ECM artist - the cool, yet passionate vocalist Sidsel Endressen. Unlike the Claudia Quartet ? named after a specific woman who visited an early Hollenbeck performance ? Quartet Lucy takes its name from a composite of female characters. "It?s a pet name for my college girlfriend, who was very interested in a good song," Hollenbeck explains. "It?s also the name of a girl I loved from afar in my high school days, who epitomized certain aspects of Americana that I loved. Finally, Lucy also refers to luz, the Spanish word meaning ?light? or ?enlightenment.?" Hollenbeck knew immediately that the new group would feature a vocalist ? not as a soloist in the spotlight, but as an equal member, like Pedro Aznar in the Pat Metheny Group. "I had recently started playing with vocalist Theo Bleckmann," Hollenbeck recalls, "and I was overwhelmed by his versatility, his love of music, and his eager response to my new concept." Equally at home with the conceptions of jazz singer Sheila Jordan and new music vocalist Meredith Monk ? both of whom he has performed with ? Bleckmann?s fearlessness and vocal range prove decisive in his execution of Hollenbeck?s moody tone poems. From the conventional vocalism of "dreams for tomorrow" (in which he backs himself on piano) to the free glossolalia of "jazz envy" and overtone singing in "The Music of Life," the music of Quartet Lucy proves an unparalle

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CD Details

All Artists: John Hollenbeck
Title: Quartet Lucy
Members Wishing: 1
Total Copies: 0
Original Release Date: 2/1/2002
Release Date: 2/1/2002
Genre: Jazz
Style:
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPCs: 675754478025, 090438200325

Synopsis

Album Description

The Music of Life
Besides the beauty of music, there is the tenderness, which brings life to the heart. For a person of fine feelings, of kindly thought, life in the world is very trying. It is jarring, and it sometimes has a freezing effect. It makes the heart so to speak frozen. In that condition one experiences depression, and the whole of life becomes distasteful; the very life that is meant to be heaven becomes a place of suffering. If one can focus one?s heart on music, it is just like warming something that was frozen. The heart returns to its natural condition, and the rhythm regulates the beating of the heart which helps to restore health of body, mind, and soul, and bring them to their proper tuning. The joy of life depends upon the perfect tuning of mind and body. The first time I ever actually spoke to drummer and composer John Hollenbeck took place immediately following the first set I heard by his Claudia Quintet. The music I?d heard combined the highly organized structural formality of chamber music with the earthy groove of post-?60s jazz and the irreverence of free improvisation ? in some of the same ways that the artists who recorded for a certain well-known progressive jazz label had pioneered in the ?70s and ?80s. "If I had to guess, I?d say that you?ve listened to a lot of ECM records," I hesitantly ventured. Hollenbeck responded that this had indeed been the case. A few days later, he informed me that ? having checked ? he owned more discs on ECM than on any other single jazz label. This came as no surprise. We had both come of age musically at the height of ECM?s popularity and influence, when the label boasted the impressionistic note-spinning fantasies of pianist Keith Jarrett, the icy Nordic stoicism of Jan Garbarek, the multicultural eclecticism of Oregon, the avant-traditionalism of the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Old and New Dreams, and the unabashedly joyful lyricism of the Pat Metheny Group. ECM was one of the fewish labels in jazz history to establish an identity so strong that its very name was sometimes used as a descriptive adjective. Virtually no other label offered so great a conceptual range, nor such a high level of excellence. Having established the Claudia Quintet as his primary compositional vehicle, Hollenbeck found that he was writing some more song-oriented pieces that called out for a different voice ? a human voice, in fact. "I needed an outlet for the world music that I loved and the spiritual paths that I had been exploring," Hollenbeck recalls. Once again, an impetus was provided by an ECM artist - the cool, yet passionate vocalist Sidsel Endressen. Unlike the Claudia Quartet ? named after a specific woman who visited an early Hollenbeck performance ? Quartet Lucy takes its name from a composite of female characters. "It?s a pet name for my college girlfriend, who was very interested in a good song," Hollenbeck explains. "It?s also the name of a girl I loved from afar in my high school days, who epitomized certain aspects of Americana that I loved. Finally, Lucy also refers to luz, the Spanish word meaning ?light? or ?enlightenment.?" Hollenbeck knew immediately that the new group would feature a vocalist ? not as a soloist in the spotlight, but as an equal member, like Pedro Aznar in the Pat Metheny Group. "I had recently started playing with vocalist Theo Bleckmann," Hollenbeck recalls, "and I was overwhelmed by his versatility, his love of music, and his eager response to my new concept." Equally at home with the conceptions of jazz singer Sheila Jordan and new music vocalist Meredith Monk ? both of whom he has performed with ? Bleckmann?s fearlessness and vocal range prove decisive in his execution of Hollenbeck?s moody tone poems. From the conventional vocalism of "dreams for tomorrow" (in which he backs himself on piano) to the free glossolalia of "jazz envy" and overtone singing in "The Music of Life," the music of Quartet Lucy proves an unparalle

CD Reviews

Transparent, open sonic fields of beauty!

trevor james | chicago ,IL, USA | 02/27/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I picked this up after digging the claudia quintet by Hollenbeck. This CD is vastly different but equally enjoyable!
It's delicate beauty and moodiness stunned me. It has some folk influences and I guess some ECM influences but on the whole a original and juicy sonic palette. Skuli Sverrisson creates these open fields of sound that the others play on. Bleckmann is an original-a musician who happens to be a singer (sorry, but I'm usually dark on "jazz" singers-he is much more). The Oboe was a great surprise-what a cool exotic sound! Easy to listen to without being "easy listening". Deep, almost sacred music. Why isn't Hollenbeck a household name?"

Stopped Me in My Tracks!!

ROGER L. FOREMAN | Bath, Maine | 01/21/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Wow. I hate cliches like "Wow," but I'm going to need a moment to gather my thoughts. The Amazon notes and previous reviewer have hit the nail on the head (another wonderful cliche. . .). Hollenbeck originally came into my line of sight in the Claudia Quintet (I CLAUDIA, then SEMI-FORMAL) and further blew me away with his Large Ensemble (A BLESSING, which had better win the Grammy Award for which it was nominated this year. . .). I purchased this CD from his web site, since I've liked his other work so much. I love it when I do something smart. . . !

So many groups are going for an "outside the box" sound but make their "sound" completely abstract/improvisational and virtually unlistenable to the average ear. Hollenbeck manages to be way outside of any box I can think of, yet still manages to be very "listenable," something that I could recommend to a "non-jazz" kind of person. The influences and stylistic overtones are abundant, but Hollenbeck uses them to create his own sound, not to be boxed in and "categorized."

The vocals on "Vanishing Lucy," "Foreva" & "Jazz Envy" (tracks 1, 3 & 8), in particular, are vaguely reminiscent of Bobby McFerrin in his MEDICINE MAN or SPONTANEOUS INVENTIONS days or his "vocalesing" with Manhattan Transfer on "Another Night in Tunisia." "Vira-Folha" (track 9) sounds like something very Middle Eastern, yet somehow a bit Celtic or Irish (or something. . .). "Chapel Flies" (track 7) floored me with the simple piano lines, repetitive in a hypnotic kind of way, melded with a horn and vocal background; the added cello part is gorgeous on this track--striking chord structures in the seemingly simple eighth- or quarter-notes of the piano line. "Constant Conversation" (track 6) is a long exploration with a bunch of instruments getting their chance to lead the climb. "Dreams for Tomorrow" (track 5) is left to be a fairly simple melody and lyric, with some fascinating percussion, strings, and horn action going on all the while--easily could have been ruined by "more" of anything. Same with the closing track, "The Music of Life." Hollenbeck lets the lyrics and virtually monotone melody carry the weight of this closing piece, allows the background instruments to supplement, and, in the middle of the song, allows his vocalist to do some experimentation that is hardly traditional "jazz vocals."

While many on the jazz scene today are all about "loud," "fast," or "complicated," Hollenbeck, on this CD, allows for some space, leisure, simplicity/profundity, quietness, and rest. The previous reviewer mentioned the term "sacred," and it fits well. This could easily be a very spiritual experience for the listener, and I'm guessing it was for the musicians. You aren't going to have to turn down the stereo or headphones. You can let the music take you to a place that you haven't been before, or to a place you want to revisit, or to right where you are. It doesn't force you to do anything. It allows you just to enjoy and appreciate it.

There are shades of the ECM label here, maybe some Keith Jarrett on a slow day; Tord Gustafsen and his trio came to mind on occasion, along with trumpeter Mark Isham's BLUE SUN or one of his movie soundtracks, Vardan Ovsepian's AKUNC, maybe E.S.T. without the caffeine. . . . Nothing more than occasional vague similarities, though. Hollenbeck really does create his own sound here, which is very rare in today's music scene. He uses a somewhat eclectic variety of instruments on this CD, somewhat reminiscent of Tin Hat Trio, another very cool group that is unconventional in its instrumentation. It doesn't fit into a "traditional" jazz trio/quarter/quintet of any sort, nor does it need to do so.

BOTTOM LINE: Hollenbeck is on the cutting edge here and in several other settings. Why isn't he a household name, even in the jazz community. . . ? Maybe I'm just late to the party. . . . Perhaps the Grammy nomination will draw listeners to his Large Ensemble project (which would garner a similar review in terms of uniqueness of sound with a whole different deal going on), which will, in turn, draw them to Hollenbeck's work with Claudia and Quartet Lucy. I hope they get some publicity next time they put out a CD. This music needs to be more accessible, because it is absolutely and simply spectacular."