Search - Charlie Haden, Gonzalo Rubalcaba :: Nocturnal

Nocturnal
Charlie Haden, Gonzalo Rubalcaba
Nocturnal
Genre: Jazz
 
  •  Track Listings (11) - Disc #1

Charlie Haden has a long-standing interest in Cuban music, first touched on with his Liberation Music Orchestra over 30 years ago. Nocturne expands on that affinity and on the bassist's relationship with Cuban piano virtuo...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Charlie Haden, Gonzalo Rubalcaba
Title: Nocturnal
Members Wishing: 3
Total Copies: 0
Label: Universal/Polygram
Release Date: 4/21/2001
Album Type: Import
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Latin Jazz, Modern Postbebop, Bebop
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1

Synopsis

Amazon.com's Best of 2001
Charlie Haden has a long-standing interest in Cuban music, first touched on with his Liberation Music Orchestra over 30 years ago. Nocturne expands on that affinity and on the bassist's relationship with Cuban piano virtuoso Gonzalo Rubalcaba, who introduced Haden to the tradition of the Cuban ballad, or bolero. The result is this very unusual mix of slow- to medium-tempo pieces, limpid, sometimes almost somber songs that are filled with yearning romanticism, wistful lyricism, and an inner light. The program includes five Cuban ballads, including "Tres Palabras," almost a jazz standard after recordings by Coleman Hawkins and Joe Henderson, and four from Mexico, among them Arturo Castro's beautiful "Yo Sin Ti." To this, Haden has added two originals and Rubalcaba one, and they're perfectly continuous with the traditional material. Rubalcaba is clearly devoted to these melodies, his usual pyrotechnic flights replaced by subtle harmonic shadings that enrich the original tunes. Haden seems to sculpt these songs anew in his lower register, while drummer Ignacio Berroa adds varied and lilting percussion patterns. The music is enhanced by a series of superb guest spots. Joe Lovano adds a Getz-like, lyric transparency to four of the songs (and they're all songs, whether they have words or not), while David Sanchez adds his weightier tone to two. Pat Metheny's acoustic guitar makes "Noche de Ronda" a moonlit reverie, while Uruguayan violinist Federico Britos Ruiz adds his own sweetly idiomatic touch to three tracks. Three pieces also gain increasingly dark hues from Rubalcaba's cello-thick string arrangements. Something of a departure for both Haden and Rubalcaba, Nocturne is true to its origins while creating its own ineffable moods. --Stuart Broomer

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CD Reviews

One Of The Most Beautiful Albums Ever
Nathan A. O'bryant | 07/13/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I love this album, it is so romantic in the best sense of the word! It is absolutely beautiful! The tunes are mostly ballads but it has a Latin pulse to it and is very good listening from a jazz as well as a non jazz perspective. Haden plays beautifully as usual."
Moody, very moody
Bradley F. Smith | Miami Beach, FL | 12/07/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Though some of these are Cuban ballads, the overall effect is certainly not Latin. These are very quiet, contemplative, downbeat pieces with gorgeous accompaniment by all involved. Rubalcaba is a pianist whose every note is worth hearing. I love this and have played it over and over."
Every single note is perfect!
fluffy, the human being. | forest lake, mn | 03/30/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)

"last month i experienced some horror in my life that was worthy of a stephen king novel. i wanted to listen to charlie haden's sublime album "nocturne," and i couldn't find it! it was not there where it should be amongst my other charlie haden cds! fear overtook me at once and i began turning the house upside down in my frantic search for this gem. nowhere was it to be found. my heart raced and beads of sweat formed on my forehead. i felt sick. well, amazon.com came to my rescue. i jumped online and ordered me another copy pronto. and now i have this gorgeous recording back in my home. seriously, i have over 700 jazz albums, and this one is in my top 25. like the miles davis slice of heaven "kind of blue," this charlie haden album is perfect. every second. every note. perfect and beautiful. gonazlo rubalcaba's piano work is stunning, as is the saxophone work of joe lovano and david sanchez. federico ruiz violin playing adds another great dimension here. and, of course, mr haden's bass is sublime, as always. cuban jazz for late nights, this is quiet, contemplative music at its best. may you find yourself a copy and never misplace it. i'm sure my original copy will turn up someday beneath a butter dish or amongst the dog's toy chest. that'll be great. then i will have two copies. as long as i never have to go through another day of life without this near at hand for when the mood is right!

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