Cuban jazz pianist and composer, David Virelles, has been widely solicited by the attentive musicians on the current scene, who immediately recognized his outstanding creative capabilities. In the recent past, he has played key roles in projects led by trumpeter Tomasz Stanko and saxophonists Henry Threadgill and Chris Potter.
As a leader, Virelles always brings heritage into the game, and both Continuum (Pi Recordings, 2012) and Mboko (ECM, 2015) received accolades from the specialized media for his inventive avant-Afro-Cuban-jazz venture. Last year, the multifaceted pianist left everyone mouth-watering with the Vinyl/EP Antenna, a fully experimental mix of Latin rhythms, electronic vibes, and avant-garde jazz.
His roots and devouring appetence for experimentation becomes decisive again in Gnosis, meaning an intuitive apprehension of spiritual truths, his new CD and the second on the reputable ECM label.
Lacking the electronic maneuvers that once worked in his favor, the album consists of 18 short compositions (the longest has about six minutes while the shortest 40 seconds) that attempt to transform the Cuban tradition, strongly represented by the Abakua rhythms, into eclectic and sometimes abstract pieces of modern jazz.
Sparse piano strokes, bass perambulations, and multiple percussive approaches set the mood of the amorphous …show more content…
A more meditative examination was selected for “De Cuando Era Chiquita”, despite the pianist’s low-pitched blows on the lower octaves and dramatic voicings on the higher. The quasi-childish, totally-singable melody expressed before the finale and its subsequent inspired groove made me wish the tune's duration had been
As a leader, Virelles always brings heritage into the game, and both Continuum (Pi Recordings, 2012) and Mboko (ECM, 2015) received accolades from the specialized media for his inventive avant-Afro-Cuban-jazz venture. Last year, the multifaceted pianist left everyone mouth-watering with the Vinyl/EP Antenna, a fully experimental mix of Latin rhythms, electronic vibes, and avant-garde jazz.
His roots and devouring appetence for experimentation becomes decisive again in Gnosis, meaning an intuitive apprehension of spiritual truths, his new CD and the second on the reputable ECM label.
Lacking the electronic maneuvers that once worked in his favor, the album consists of 18 short compositions (the longest has about six minutes while the shortest 40 seconds) that attempt to transform the Cuban tradition, strongly represented by the Abakua rhythms, into eclectic and sometimes abstract pieces of modern jazz.
Sparse piano strokes, bass perambulations, and multiple percussive approaches set the mood of the amorphous …show more content…
A more meditative examination was selected for “De Cuando Era Chiquita”, despite the pianist’s low-pitched blows on the lower octaves and dramatic voicings on the higher. The quasi-childish, totally-singable melody expressed before the finale and its subsequent inspired groove made me wish the tune's duration had been