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MP3 Miles Okazaki - Mirror
15 MP3 Songs
JAZZ: Traditional Jazz Combo, JAZZ: World Fusion
Details:
This 3-part suite of 15 rhythmic explorations was written by New York guitarist Miles Okazaki over the last five years and recorded in the Spring of 2006 at Systems Two Studios, Brooklyn.
Miles Okazaki: guitars, percussion, computer
Dan Weiss: drums, tabla, percussion
Christof Knoche: soprano + alto sax, bass clarinet, harmonica
David Binney: Alto Sax
Miguel Zenon: Alto Sax
Chris Potter: Tenor Sax
liner notes and score available at https://www.tradebit.com
"The guitarist Miles Okazaki composed all of the music on "Mirror," his ambitious and involving debut. He also produced the album, created its striking cover illustrations and released the thing himself. . . . Mr. Okazaki, who finished a strong second in last year''s Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition, has produced a work of sustained collectivity as well as deep intricacy. While certainly a personal outpouring, it reflects the shared preoccupations of a cadre of New York-based players like the alto saxophonists David Binney and Miguel Zenon.
Chief among those preoccupations is a rhythmic ideal that combines restlessness with control. Mr. Okazaki embraces it fully, secure in his bond with the bassist Jon Flaugher and the drummer Dan Weiss. Their grooves often contain cyclical patterns and elliptical hiccups, with properties that suggest either raga-inspired fusion or kinetic funk. Most of the improvisational space goes to Mr. Binney, Mr. Zenon or the multi-reed player Christof Knoche; Mr. Okazaki indulges his proficient technique throughout, but almost always within the churn of the ensemble."
--Nate Chinen, New York Times "Critics Choice"
"Mirror is the culmination of five years of work, and the results are simply outstanding. . . . This is not your typical jazz guitar recording with a ''listen to my chops'' persona, but make no mistake about it: Okazaki’s performance and writing are at the center of every piece—with vivid rhythm and chord work, intense solos, harmonic string colorizations, in a variety of moods both intense and tender. Though each piece is individually satisfying, the overall concept is better appreciated upon listening to the recording in its entirety, as the connected members form an elaborate and cohesive matrix. . . . From the tension-building and explosive “Volcano,” where Okazaki’s guitar rocks amidst a magma flow of horns and drums, to the peaceful “Chorale,” Mirror is a dynamic work of ingenuity. This intelligent, unique recording is one of this year''s best releases."
--Mark F. Turner, https://www.tradebit.com
“Mirror is a landmark in recorded guitar literature. It represents a unique blending of jazz and world music, flawlessly executed by the best and brightest young jazz musicians of today. Miles’ compositions are rich and complex, filling the mind with visions and ideas, while at the same time, they are drenched with soulfulness and feeling through his amazing guitar artistry. Mirror is a must for anyone who wants to catch the musical wave of the future. For musicians, it should be studied as an example of guitar, compositional, and musical genius, woven together in a tapestry of sound. I have found Mirror to be inspiring and motivating as a player and a listener. You will too.”
--Rodney Jones
“Miles Okazaki left the Pacific Northwest in the mid-1990s not at all sure that he wanted to be a professional musician. Somewhere along the way, however, he figured all that out – and how. Today the ultra-versatile guitarist, a Port Townsend native who was converted to jazz by attending Centrum Jazz Workshop, is a master of many varieties of guitar music. And he has worked all his experience into a heady mix that makes his just-released debut album as a leader Mirror compelling and powerful. It confirms the faith that the judges of the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition showed in Okazaki last year when they named him runner-up in the competition, which focused in 2005 on guitar performance.”
“He excels on classical and electric guitar, and has steeped himself in several musical traditions: he has a huge vocabulary at his disposal. Apprenticing himself to leading instructors, he has devoted serious, deep attention to Brazilian music, South Indian rhythmic theory, and many styles of jazz and pop guitar. All of this, and more, expresses itself on Mirror. The disc opens with a delightfful count-off by little kids that sets the tone for the whole disc: surprise and freshness abound as he explores within modern acoustic and electric jazz settings. Okazaki wields a wicked electric guitar, but his acoustic playing also features prominently. Elements such as the complexities of Indian classical rhythmic forms rarely announce themselves overtly, but rather are embedded within the overall intent and realization of the music.”
“As the lineup on Mirror bears out, Okazaki’s talent has drawn plenty more, from New York’s endles mazes of it. Together they create complex, attractive music, with pinpoint ensemble playing, and a muscular range of pacing, rhythm, mood, and emphasis. It’s a heady mix that doesn’t fall into any one style, nor does it lapse into the mix-of-this-and-that category. While Okazaki’s experience in different styles go into the output, they’re integrated and transformed far beyond pastiche. As he puts it, similar concepts run throughout, in terms of sound and style, but “I’m leery of self-definition, saying it’s a combination of this and that. I just put if forward as music. What you call it doesn’t really matter. That’s where I’m coming from.” He does point out that the album primarily compositional, rather than improvisational. He says that was a conscious choice: he wanted to document all the music he’d been writing. “A lot of it is pretty complex, so there’s not a lot of soloing, although everybody has a few features.” And he might have added, each of the musicians reveals chops to burn.”
--Peter Monaghan, Earshot Jazz
"I''ve been impressed with Miles Okazaki since I first had the opportunity to play with him last year at the Thelonius Monk competition. To me, he represents the essence of why jazz is alive and well. He''s thoroughly grounded in the roots & traditions but not afraid to explore the far reaches of new & creative ideas. So I was eager to check out his new CD and was delighted to discover all the fascinating and adventurous new music it contains. Now I''m even more
of a fan and highly recommend that you check it out!"
--Bob James
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