Maria Schneider - Evanescence

[Alon Marcus]

Maria Schneider has spent a few years as an assistant to Gil Evans. It shows in her choice of instrumentation and voicings. Pieces like "Some Circles" and "Gumba Blue" remind of Evans' collaborations with Miles. Nevertheless she is a highly original and interesting composer and orchestrator.

"Wyrgly" which opens the album has grown on me with time. It's a bit complicated and condensed piece of music. It starts with short bursts of angular brass phrases laid above a steady pulse. The phrases are used as an intro and hint about what is going to happen. Later they are weaved a few times into the other themes. Next is what I call the shuffle part and only afterwards comes the main theme on which the tenorist Rick Margitza improvises. John Fedchock on trombone and Ben Monder on guitar close the song with inspired improvisations on the shuffle vamp.

Maria's music is always filled with surprises and changing moods. "Evanescence" which begins calmly with an optimistic, light and charming melody suddenly is developed into a serious and a bit sad improvisation of Rich Perry on tenor sax, which is played on an original turnaround of minor chords that create a feeling of infinity. Tim Hagans' solo is crossed with motifs from the first theme and the listener is kept in tension, always wondering about what would happen next.

The same sense of surprise characterizes "Green Piece". You just can't stop listening to this landscape of alternating moods and sounds cause you are looking forward to see how it develops and how it returns to the original theme. Kenny Werner plays a wonderful solo here and he is an important contributor to the success of the whole album.

Maria also learnt something from Duke Ellington. Some of the songs fit so perfectly the soloists (like "Some Circles", "Gush", "My Lament"), that I think they were written or at least chosen with the specific players in mind. She is also able of writing catchy tunes which make her music accessible ("My Lament", "Evanescence" and "Green Piece" are some examples).

My favorite songs are "Gumba Blue" and "Dance You Monster to My Soft Song". Gumba starts with the rhythmic contour of the main melody played by the percussions but you can only recognize it on repeated listening. This is actually a slow and a hip blues that is shifted into a very fast and sophisticated minor blues during the improvisations. Greg Gisbert (trumpet) Kenny Werner (piano) are doing a great job there. "Dance You Monster to My Soft Song" just wouldn't leave you indifferent. The music is so full of the best swing and drive possible that it turns you into a participant. Ben Monder's solo on guitar is probably one of my favorite improvisations on the disc.

Edited February 11, 2005 by Alon Marcus

[Alon Marcus]

Have no mistake I invite you to discuss the album though you don't have to reply. I hope the review and the discussion will make me and others listen to the album a few more times and a bit deeper.

[jazzbo]

Alon:

I have been enjoying this album for some time! It used to be my favorite work of hers, but the latest one (Concert in the Garden) has taken that place. Wonderful music!

[Michael Fitzgerald]

And in what is a rare example (to my memory) of good and right things at the Grammys, Concert In The Garden won for best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.

Even NOT issued on a "real" record label!

Mike

[Joe G]

I like Concert in the Garden more and more, and also enjoy Allegresse, which I picked soon afterwards. This will probaby be my next purchase of hers.

[Free For All]

My favorite cut is one that didn't get mentioned in Alon's review- Last Season. This ones builds so beautifully, and Werner, Tim Hagans and Tim Ries all play great solos. Evanescence contains what is probably the most conventional big-band type of writing (of all of her recordings), IMHO. It's interesting to listen to Maria's development in the subsequent recordings., and how her compositions and orhestrations have evolved. I think of CITG as the most

"orchestral" in nature of them all.

I like them all, and even though Evanescence and CITG are conceptually worlds apart, both bear Maria's distinct signature.

[Big Wheel]

  Free For All said:

My favorite cut is one that didn't get mentioned in Alon's review- Last Season. This ones builds so beautifully, and Werner, Tim Hagans and Tim Ries all play great solos. Evanescence contains what is probably the most conventional big-band type of writing (of all of her recordings), IMHO.

This tune is the only one of Maria's I've had the chance to play. The piano part may be the toughest big band chart I've ever had to read.

[Free For All]

  Big Wheel said:

  Free For All said:

My favorite cut is one that didn't get mentioned in Alon's review- Last Season. This ones builds so beautifully, and Werner, Tim Hagans and Tim Ries all play great solos. Evanescence contains what is probably the most conventional big-band type of writing (of all of her recordings), IMHO.

This tune is the only one of Maria's I've had the chance to play. The piano part may be the toughest big band chart I've ever had to read.

That's one of the great things about her writing- each voice has a purpose and contributes to the whole. You'll rarely see a piano or guitar part with just changes (like so many other big band charts); there will most likely be written-out sections where the piano functions like another voice in the ensemble instead of just comping at will all the time.

[fkimbrough]

You can say that again! I've played piano with Maria's band for almost 13 years, and it's been one of the greatest experiences of my life. Her music is always growing, always challenging to play, and always rewarding. There have been only a handful of personnel changes in all the time I've been in the band, and the reason for that is self-evident when you hear her recordings or hear the band live. It's an incredible band, and she's a wonderful, giving person.

At her website, in addition to all her CDs, she's making scores and individual parts available. A few weeks ago, I went to her place and we spent over 2 hours discussing a dozen or so charts from beginning to end....all of our discussions were recorded for her site. She's interviewing quite a few guys in the band to discuss how they approach their parts - tricky sections and how they're navigated, difficulties, interpretation, etc. It was very interesting and thought-provoking, and I think it'll be very beneficial for players learning the parts, or for those who just want more insight into her music. I had to explain things I had never tried to verbalize before, and learned quite a bit myself by the end of the interview. I don't know if the interviews are up at her site yet, but for those interested, check in and see - they should be up soon if they're not there already.

[Joe G]

Nice post, Frank. There are a couple of scores that I want to get copies of. I'll get around to that one day.

[Free For All]

Nice to hear from you, Frank!

[Son-of-a-Weizen]

Yes, quite...........and a nice review by Alon as well.

[Free For All]

  Joe G said:

Nice post, Frank. There are a couple of scores that I want to get copies of. I'll get around to that one day.

If you are interested in the Evanescence scores they are nicely collected in THIS BOOK.................seems to be on back order right now though.....

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Book available on the mariaschneider.com site - possible better inventory, possible better remuneration.

Mike

[Free For All]

Thanks Mike...........better to get it there.

[Joe G]

Yeah, the charts I want to see are from CITG anyway... I just saw on the website that they are going to put out "play-along" versions of some of the tunes- remixes with the soloist taken out. So I can take my fantasy of one day superceding Ben Monder one step further.

[SGUD missile]

I'm waiting for the CITG scores!!

( already have EVanescence )

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Hey - there's no waiting at all. I picked up the score to Bulería, Soleá Y Rumba just moments ago.

Mike