Canyon

Mike Holober | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 2, 2003)
• Original Release Date: 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sons of Sound
• ASIN: B0000C0FA7
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #531,001 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

From the Artist

"Like many musicians of my generation, I practiced Beethoven on the piano and listened to Led Zeppelin. Later, I discovered Sonny Stitt, Count Basie, and Bill Evans — ear-opening and life-changing experiences. When I wrote the music for Canyon I was striving for a form of acoustic jazz that would be evocative of the simple joy of The Beatles, the sonic bliss of Ravel, melancholy of Joni Mitchell, and the optimism of Copland."

About the Artist

An imaginative pianist and unique composer, Mike Holober is emerging as one of the freshest voices in jazz. International credits include a recent tour as guest composer, conductor and soloist with the world-renowned Stockholm Jazz Orchestra. With his reputation in Europe steadily growing, the R.I.A.S. Big Band in Berlin regularly programs his compositions, and he has recently been invited to Helsinki as a guest composer and pianist with UMO, the National Jazz Radio Orchestra of Finland.

A busy sideman on the New York jazz scene, Mike’s recordings include Pete McGuiness’ Sliding In, with Dave Liebman on saxophone; Chuck Bergeron’s Cause and Effect, with John Abercrombie on guitar and Coast to Coast, with Randy Brecker on trumpet; Charles Pillow’s In This World, with Peter Erskine on drums and Currents, with Tim Hagans on trumpet; and Davie Pietro’s Now Becoming Then, with Brian Blade on drums. Recordings with Grammy award-winning saxophonist Nick Brignola include First Set: Live at Sweet Basil and the critically acclaimed and the critically acclaimed It’s Time. A regular performer at New York’s premiere jazz venues, he has worked with the legendary Village Vanguard Orchestra and Joe Roccisano Nonet. Mike’s big band project, The Gotham Jazz Orchestra recording Thought Trains, features Ron Carter on bass and John Riley on drums, along with an all-star line up that includes Jon Gordon, Scott Wendholt, Tim Ries, Dave Pietro, Joe Magnarelli, and Dave Gilmore. As! yet unreleased, Thought Trains has already received rave reviews.

Active as a composer in the contemporary classical idiom, his recently commissioned works include "Views From A Train" for the American Saxophone Quartet’s recent release The Commission Project (Sons of Sound (Sons of Sound SSPCD009). The ASQ is comprised of members of the New York Philharmonic, and the work features Larry Combs, principal clarinetist with The Chicago Symphony Orchestra. "Road Trip," for alto saxophone and wind ensemble, was premiered by New York Philharmonic saxophonist David Demsey. "Toccata," for flute and marimba, was commissioned by flutist Karen Demsey for her recent release with percussionist Greg Gianascioli: Recollections From the Inland Sea (Capstone).

Additionally, Mike’s arrangements and compositions have been performed and/or recorded by The Village Vanguard Orchestra, the BMI Jazz Composer’s Orchestra with Joe Lovano, The NewYorkestra, The Eastman Arranger’s Festival Orchestra, Prism Saxophone Quartet, student groups such as The Eastman Jazz Ensemble, and groups such as The New York Trombone Conspiracy, The Brass Arts Collective, and the Andy Parsons/Gene Lewin Quintet.

An active educator, Mike is an Assistant Professor at the City College of New York, and he is on the faculty at New York University. Other current teaching activities include Outreach, the Summer Jazz Workshop at Schwaz, Austria.

DISCOGRAPHY Mike Holober Canyon SSPCD016 Andy Parsons/Gene Lewin Quintet A Whole Nother Story SSPCD007 The American Saxophone Quartet with Larry Combs The Commission Project SSPCD009 coming in 2004: Mike Holober & The Gotham Jazz Orchestra Thought Trains SSPCD019

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The heart of the matter, October 30, 2003

By 

Jan P. Dennis "Longboard jazzer" (Monument, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Canyon (Audio CD)

The jazz world is littered with workmanlike post-bop sessions. I think I might die if I have to listen to another one of them.

Fortunately, although ostensibly a post-bop outing, Canyon is a horse of a different color. Yes, it's classic post-bop, but it's anything but workmanlike. To make this type of jazz succeed requires equal doses of refinement and inspiration. Too often, sessions like this lack one or the other. This disc abounds in both. Mike Holober, a veteran pianist of the New York jazz scene, on Canyon debuts with a very strong release, full of attractive compositions (all except two being his), skilled and passionate playing, and a kind of je ne sais quoi that translates into soulful and rewarding jazz of the highest order.

A good deal of this has to do with his selection of like-minded playing partners, comprising Tim Ries, ts & ss; Wolfgang Muthspiel, g; Scott Colley, b; and Brian Blade, d. Hard to find a more hip, nimble, polished, and passionate crew than this. Ries and Muthspiel, names likely familiar to most jazz fans but not as well known as Colley and Blade, especially stand out. Muthspiel seems to have matured greatly since he burst on the scene a decade or so ago. Whether supplying deft counterpart or sinuous lead lines, he's always tuned into the vibe, which is one of high sophistication wrapped in surprising warmth. Ries on both horns also impresses mightily. In the past, I've often found him competent but uninspired. Here, it's almost as if someone's lit a fire under him. Blade, one of the finest and most in-demand young drummers on the scene, displays abundant chops always in service to the sophisticated conversation swirling around him. But it's the leader who makes the deepest impression, with his dancing, lilting lines, huge technique, deft touch, and a joyful playfulness that never fails to bring a smile to this listener. His comping especially stands out. Listen, for example, to the brilliant support he lends Tim Ries on his very attractive solo on "Ansel's Easel," as well as their nifty dialogic outro on the same number.

What really sets this disc apart, however, are the fascinating compositions. "Heart of the Matter," my favorite, a medium-slow meditative ballad with a very attractive and haunting seven-note figure, features Ries on soprano sax and Muthspiel reeling off inspired guitar figures, even as it conjures the grandeur of America's heartland, slowly slipping away amid interstate highways and fast-food franchises. "Same Time, Same Place," a burner, showcases some incredibly nimble group interaction in the context of a very attractive, even memorable, tune. "Roc and a Soft Place," a ballad dedicated to the late Joe Roccisano, features an intriguing melodic line reminiscent of the Mancini tune, "Summer Place." "Spin," a dizzy romp snaking in and out of waltz time, proves a wonderful vehicle for inspired soloing from the three lead voices. Closing out the original compositions is "In So Many Words," a gentle, even wistful ballad. Ries plays very convincingly here, once again demonstrating his growing maturity and insight.

Almost as intriguing is the band's take on the two standards, "You and the Night and the Music" and "Stardust." The first, taken at a brisk though not breakneck pace, undergoes some rather shocking deconstruction, especially in the radically reconceived open bars with Muthspiel's ringing guitar undergirt by a beguiling piano figure and some tricky time shifts morphing into sneaky harmonic interplay between sax and guitar. An incredible restless energy suffuses the entire piece, capped off by a short, smart Blade solo. "Stardust" is something else again, transformed into a sly faux-tango filtered through a Steely Dan vibe via "The Breeze and I." Hard to imagine? Nevertheless it works marvelously.

Although slightly to the right of my usual off-kilter nu jazz aesthetic, Canyon has seldom left my disc player these past few weeks. I'm totally blown away, and so will you be, I think.