Showing posts with label Mads Tolling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mads Tolling. Show all posts

12/04/2023

Instrumental Holiday Jazz Review: Mads Tolling - Featuring The Mads Men & Sonny Fredie-Pedersen-Cool Yule

Release Date: December 8, 2023

Label: Madsman Records

Website

Mads Tolling grew up in Denmark with a strong tradition of the Christmas season as an essential part of his upbringing. His heartfelt tribute to that time and the meaning it holds for him is preserved forever in his heart. With all that emotion and memory, he decided to record some of his family's favorite songs on Cool Yule.

Remember that the songs selected were from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Iceland. So, some tracks may only seem traditional if you have never been exposed to that country's holiday music. 

It's cool because the tracks are performed in the style of holiday music via the jazz idiom and are all instrumental, except for the title track with special guest Sonny Fredie-Pederson. Jazz music always works well with traditional and nontraditional wintertime holiday music. However, I don't recall covering a recording with the violin as the lead instrument in this type of music. 


The first question that will likely come up in your mind is, will it sound close enough to the originals? How will the violin sound as a lead instrument? Well, Jean-Luc Ponty proved it could work in the complicated music of progressive rock and beyond, so why can't Mads Tolling do the same within jazz? It is not an easy task, but I am here to tell you it works out wonderfully. One is because they keep it fresh, and the second is because the improvisation is brilliant while maintaining the true spirit of the music and its original concept and base sound. 

I, for one, have had a love for jazz for over thirty years now. That love and appreciation have grown more robust with each passing year. So, with that thought in mind and my passion for the ability of jazz to stretch out, this is an entirely enjoyable listen. 

A few good examples of the tracks taking things down a different improvisational path because of the violin are "My Favorite Things," of course, Coltrane comes to mind right away when you mention that if you are a jazz enthusiast. "Pa Loftet Sidder Nissen (The Gnome's Attic)" was extraordinary, with superb violin, bass lines, and piano. Then, there is a complete switch when you will immediately recognize "Santa Baby." One of my most unique favorites was "Jolakotturinn (The Christmas Cat)," which sounded very Celtic-influenced or something one may have heard during medieval times.

There are many reasons to appreciate and enjoy a recording like Cool Yule. Mainly because the violin takes the lead and factors like the jazz interpretations and how much ground the band covers worldwide regarding countries. All of that adds up to a unique holiday album that is suitable for listening any time of the year, and that is because eclecticism overrides all the other factors and can keep a listener engaged from start to finish. After all, isn't that what drives a musician to create in the first place? And then, to produce something so unique and significant is another surprise to find in your Christmas stocking this year.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck-MuzikMan.net Founder

December 2, 2023


Tracks:

01. The Christmas Song 5:29

02. My Favorite Things 6:10

03. Pa Loftet Sidder Nissen (The Gnome's Attic) 5:04

04. Santa Baby 3:18

05. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus 3:16

06. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town 3:28

07. Jolakotturinn (The Christmas Cat) 5:00

08. Let It Go 5:25

09. Cool Yule 3:56

10. Sankta Lucia 5:32

11. The Little Mermaid/Wonderful, Wonderful Copenhagen 4:46

12. I Am So Glad Each Christmas Eve 5:22


4/21/2022

Composer/Acoustic Guitar Fingerstyle Virtuoso Mark Vickness Releases 'Alluvial Fans' On YouTube

Mark Vickness, acoustic guitar featuring Mads Tolling, violin; Matt Renzi, oboe/English horn, Joseph Hebert, cello; Dan Feiszli, bass, MB Gordy, percussion & Ty Burhoe, tabla

Two years after releasing his highly acclaimed CD, Interconnected, composer/guitarist Mark Vickness releases Alluvial Fans on YouTube, the first composition to be released from his upcoming album, In The Rain Shadow. In addition to Mark on acoustic guitars, the ensemble brings together two time Grammy winning violinist, Mads Tolling, oboe and English horn virtuoso, Matt Renzi, cellist Joseph Hebert, Dan Feiszli on electric bass, Grammy winning percussionist, MB Gordy and tabla master, Ty Burhoe.

Says Mark, “My third solo recording project (after Places in 2017 and Interconnected in 2020) In The Rain Shadow takes its inspiration mostly from moving to the high desert (California’s Owens Valley) in 2020. Most of the titles are taken from geological or meteorological features we experience daily. This includes Alluvial Fans – music intended to reflect my appreciation for the opportunity to absorb the wonders of living in the rain shadow. It is humbling, awesome, peaceful, thrilling, tranquil and beautiful all at once.”


Mark Vickness

Mark began his musical training on piano at age six. The road from there to the composer/modern fingerstyle guitarist he is today included a bachelor’s and master’s degree in composition, studies in classical piano, guitar, sitar and tabla, years as a performing jazz guitarist, composer and arranger, several film scores and three decades of recording and performing as the instrumental half of the acoustic fusion duo, Glass House which has released three CD’s, two EPs and a host of widely viewed YouTube videos. Mark’s performing experience spans a huge range of genres from free improv to West African drum and dance ensembles, from Motown and funk bands to big band jazz and orchestral conducting. Schooled in composition by Pulitzer Prize winning composer, Mel Powell, Mark has recorded and performed with world renowned musicians including two time Grammy winners, The Turtle Island String Quartet, legendary bassist, Michael Manring, and guitarists Alex DiGrassi and Don Ross.


Mads Tolling

An internationally renowned violinist and composer, Mads is a two-time Grammy Award-Winner and the 2016 DownBeat Critics Poll Rising Star winning violinist. As a former member of both Turtle Island Quartet and bassist Stanley Clarke’s band, Mads has spent most of his professional life touring internationally. Mads has been featured on NPR’s Morning Edition and his recordings have received rave reviews in Downbeat Magazine, Strings Magazine, The Washington Post and the San Francisco Chronicle. He has performed with The Who, Chick Corea, Ramsey Lewis, Paquito D’Rivera and many others. Most recently he has been touring with Bob Weir and the Wolf Pack.


Matt Renzi

Matt has been a sought after wind player (oboe, English horn, saxophone) and composer in the U.S. and internationally for the past twenty years as a soloist and the The Matt Renzi Trio. He holds a Bachelor’s in Music/Performance from the Berklee College of Music and a Master of Arts in Classical Composition from San Francisco State University. Matt has performed and recorded with Marc Johnson, Michael Formanek, Eddie Marshall, Herbie Lewis, Ben Monder, Eberheard Weber, and Bobo Stenson.


Joseph Hebert

Joe has recorded and performed across multiple genres with hundreds of artists including Carlos Santana, Stevie Wonder, Tower of Power and Ray Charles. He is Assistant Principal cellist with the Oakland East Bay Symphony. The Oakland Tribune describes him as “one of the most eloquently expressive cellists in the San Francisco Bay Area.


Dan Feiszli

Dan has performed with such notable artists as James Moody, Raul Midon, and Mickey Hart. He has toured nationally and internationally with artists including Julio Iglesias, Nicole Yarling and Raul DiBlasio, and played in the pit orchestras for musical theatre productions including Hamilton, The Lion King and Billy Elliot. In addition to his career as a performer, Dan is featured on hundreds of recordings as both a bassist and recording engineer, and has recorded and mixed albums reaching the highest positions on the US Top 40 and Jazz Radio Charts. Dan’s work with Mark dates back years as both a bassist performing with Glass House and recording engineer for Places and Interconnected.


Ty Burhoe

A disciple of the great tabla maestro, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Ty is internationally recognized for being instrumental in creating unique collaborations that weave tabla with other world traditions. He has been featured on many soundtracks including the academy award winning documentary, "Born into Brothels." Ty has recorded and performed with a broad range of artists including Zakir Hussain, Art Lande, Bela Fleck, Walter Becker (Steely Dan), Mamadou Diabate, Kitaro, Jon Anderson (Yes) and many more. Ty’s collaboration with Mark dates back to early recordings with Glass House.


MB Gordy

One of the top studio session players in Los Angeles, Grammy-winning percussionist, MB Gordy has recorded on releases by artists such as Neil Diamond, Aaron Neville, Faith Hill, f.u.n., Green Day, My Chemical Romance, Josh Groban, Guns and Roses, Childish Gambino, and Beck as well as on hundreds of film and television scores (including Agent Carter, American Sniper, Battlestar Galactica, Bourne Legacy, Frozen, Game of Thrones, Spiderman, Straight Outta Compton, Terminator, and many more). MB has toured internationally with Rita Coolidge, Three Dog Night, the Doobie Brothers, John Tesh, and Josh Groban, and performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, The National Symphony, Frank Zappa, Jacky Evanho, Andrea Bocelli, Johnny Mathis, Yoko Ono, Seal, and Idina Menzel. Having earned his Master’s Degree in Music from the California Institute of the Arts with extensive study in ethnic percussion, over the last three decades he has worked in a wide variety of roles as performer, composer, professor, and recording musician.

Alluvial Fans was recorded, engineered and mixed by Dan Feiszli at his studio in El Cerrito, CA and at 25th Street Recording in Oakland, CA. It was mastered by Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering, Burbank, CA. Video by Maximum Flavor Media, San Francisco, CA.

Mark is endorsed by Greenfield Guitars, Montreal. He plays a Michael Greenfield G4 fan fret and a Greenfield G2B baritone guitar.

The fingerstylist makes the most of this opportunity to showcase the limitless sounds and textures that can be achieved primarily with his custom Michael Greenfield steel-string guitars.” - Pat Moran, Acoustic Guitar (on Places)

“’Vickness’ acoustic compositions allow him to use his wonderful technique to convey atmospheric, emotional music that immediately draws attention. His stunning harmonics, perfect chord changes and ability to use the guitar as a percussion instrument are an amazing blend.” - Vintage Guitar Magazine

Mark Vickness has created something so special and timely. It’s such a hopeful album, packed with artistry and stirring, deeply personal pieces. “Interconnected” is not only the title of the album but the driving force it seems, the purpose and the reason. What better way to perform songs full of power and whimsy, melancholy and heart than with a real sense of togetherness. I love this album! A breath of desperately needed grace and sweetness . . . with a perfect balance of skill and passion . . . glorious harmony of guitar, cello, viola, bass and tabla. Brilliant!” Samantha Simmonds-Romceros – NoHoArtsDistrict.com.

In The Rain Shadow is scheduled for release Winter, 2022. The group is looking forward to touring in support of the new album release.

YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/b9b3xwYvrjo

For more information:
Website: MARKVICKNESS.COM
Facebook: facebook.com/mark.vickness

Press inquiries: Glass Onyon PR, Billy James, PH: 1-828-350-8158 (US), glassonyonpr@gmail.com