A Tale of God's Will (A Requiem for Katrina)

Terence Blanchard

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 14, 2007)
• Original Release Date: August 14, 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Blue Note Records
• ASIN: B000SUKPNY
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #13,858 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

For all the anger and devastation trumpeter Terence Blanchard has felt in the months since Hurricane Katrina ravaged his hometown of New Orleans--and the federal government failed it so shamefully--this elegiac orchestral work is remarkably clear-eyed, restrained, and, in the end, hopeful. That isn't to say pieces like "Funeral Dirge" and "Levees" don't impart deep and dark emotion. But even with strings at their back, Blanchard and the members of his first-rate working quintet (all of whom contribute compositions) never indulge in sentimentality. Blanchard's debt to Miles Davis is pronounced in his pinched lyricism and the economy of his virtuosic effects. The richly hued work washes over the listener, revealing more with each playing. --Lloyd Sachs

Product Description

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, New Orleans native son Terence Blanchard has created an impassioned song cycle, A Tale of God's Will (A Requiem for Katrina), as his third album for Blue Note Records. (Since signing with the label in 2003, Blanchard has released two other critically-acclaimed albums, Bounce and Flow, the latter of which received two Grammy nominations in 2006. This 13-track emotional tour-de-force of anger, rage, compassion, melancholy, and beauty features Blanchard's quintet- pianist Aaron Parks, saxophonist Brice Winston, bassist Derrick Hodge, drummer Kendrick Scott- as well as a 40-member string orchestra.

An important jumpstart for A Tale of God's Will was director Spike Lee's decision to document the aftermath of Katrina on film, in what turned out to be the four-hour award-winning HBO documentary, When the Levees Broke, which aired last year. Lee, who has enlisted Blanchard on numerous occasions to score his films, such as Mo' Better Blues, Malcolm X, and Inside Man, tapped him once again for his documentary. Four of the tracks from the documentary were given new arrangements and expanded rounding out an album of nine new tracks inspired by New Orleans during and after Hurricane Katrina.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Could Katrina be given a more fitting requiem?, September 25, 2007

By	Olukayode Balogun (Leeds, England) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

I sincerely doubt it. I also don't think there's much of substance that I can add to what previous reviewers have said about this CD. I've known of trumpeter Blanchard for some time now and have been aware of his well-established working partnership with filmmaker Spike Lee but it wasn't until I heard his score for Inside Man (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), that I actually began to sit up and take notice. Then the Lee documentary When the Levees Broke came out and I remember wishing when I reviewed the DVD that the music from the documentary would be released on CD. Blanchard's work on it is truly amazing.

Well, we haven't got that exactly but we've got the next best thing and probably the nearest thing to it we'll ever get. I'm on vacation in northern California at the moment so I can't be 100% certain but I think three or four of the songs here are from the documentary (or revised and/or expanded versions of them) and all the others are definitely inspired by it. In the inner-sleeve notes, Blanchard walks us through various scenes in the documentary and explains how these inspired the various pieces of music. Others are inspired by the effect the disaster has had on Blanchard's own life, the lives of the people he loves and indeed, the life of his home city.

It's an incredible set. He's joined by Brice Winston, particularly impressive on tenor & soprano saxophones, Aaron Parks (who is also tremendously impressive here) on piano, Derrick Hodge on acoustic and electric basses, Kendrick Scott on drums & percussion and Zach Harmon on tabla & the happy apple - whatever THAT is. Kudos to the band as a whole though; they are as talented, tight and expressive as ever. But there's even more: they are joined by The Northwest Sinfonia, conducted by Blanchard; contractor and concertmaster, Simon James.

The New Orleans tragedy is still ongoing by all accounts and this must be incredibly painful for the people who live in the city and love it as much as Blanchard obviously does. The emotions he freely shares with the listener, I find mournful, plaintive and yet hopeful (though that last one might just be me projecting). Listening to this CD is a strange experience but not an unpleasant one by any means, though I was moved to tears more than once. I've been to The Big Easy twice myself and have fond memories of the place but I haven't been back since Katrina. A debate is ongoing in my head on that subject.

But back to the music. This is undoubtedly one of the most rewarding CDs I've bought this month and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Jazz trumpet and strings - what's not to like? If you're already a fan of Blanchard's music of course this one's a no-brainer. But if you like the string-backed stuff by people like Chris Botti or Roy Hargove, while they're cool and all, this one's on a completely different level. The references to Miles Davis aren't misplaced either in my view. I truly believe this is the kind of music Miles would be making today, if he was still with us. Try putting this one on in the dead of night while the city around you sleeps. It will take you places, I guarantee it. The seventy-two and a half minutes or so will have flown by before you've realised it. This is one of those instances where I feel that five stars just aren't enough.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a beautiful, haunting love letter, August 14, 2007

By	A. Davila "Armandito" (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Terence Blanchard is no stranger to penning good music, but in every note, chord and lick of the snare, I could feel his love for New Orleans on this musical masterpiece. Thank you for the opportunity to share in your 'Requiem' Mr. Blanchard. It was an experience just to hear it through my iPod. I await the day you pass through the DC/Baltimore area so I can experience this wonderful music live.

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful Score and Jazz Composition, August 21, 2007

By	Birdman (Minnetonka, MN USA) - See all my reviews

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For those who did not see Spike Lee's WHEN THE LEVEES BROKE, the experience of listening to this emotional music conjures up images of loss and perseverance after Katrina.

Blanchard has roots in Miles Davis's long, lonely notes, his drawn-out cadence. He also draws on the indigenous music of Louisiana -- in particular, New Orleans funeral music -- in his quiet pieces. This is night music of the highest order, enhanced by an amazing quintet and a jazz orchestra that plays with distinction. I can't single out this cut or that because the work hangs together as a whole

If you relished Miles Davis in the 1950's and '60's, this release will fit you like a glove -- all 72 minutes of it. The whole set is a bit like 'Round Midnight, but with much more exploration and more ties to time and place.

There is currently no parallel to this work in jazz. A beautiful, thoughtful album by one of the leading jazz musicians of this generation.