Charles
Lloyd
Quartet
with special guest
Maria Farantouri
Sun 28 Apr
The uniquely expressive saxophonist
marks his 75th birthday presenting
a set of classics, alongside his 2010
ECM-released Athens concert
featuring Greece’s voice of
resistance – Maria Farantouri.
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Ahmad
Jamal
Fri 8 Feb 7.30pm
Free Programme
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Ahmad_Jamal_programme.indd 1-2
06/02/2013 15:28
Ahmad Jamal
Ahmad Jamal piano
Manuel Badrena percussion
Herlin Riley drums
Reginald Veal bass
There will be no interval in this concert
A Life less Ordinary
Golden Boy may be something of a footnote in
the history of Broadway but its characters were
far from forgettable. Adapted from a play by
Clifford Odets, the 1964 stage show featured
Sammy Davis jnr as a young prizefighter
seeking to escape the Harlem ghetto by way
of his exploits in the ring while dodging blows
from shady promoters outside of it. The play
also showed love across the colour line, to
the horror of some. Davis jnr, a known civil
rights activist, was hit by death threats.
‘This Is The Life’, one of the signature songs
of the production, is a highlight of Blue Moon,
the sumptuous album released in 2012 by
pianist Ahmad Jamal, the 82 year-old AfricanAmerican who was born just a year after
Martin Luther King jnr. In his sleeve notes for
the disc, Jamal referred to the work as ‘a
very, very important history making musical.’
This is a statement of some magnitude and
it makes a key point about worthy exponents
of what he calls ‘American classical music.’
Those who touch as well as impress audiences
often have a strong relationship with a song.
They may live with it for years. It means
something to them. Such emotional depth
can transcend time, which, for the piece in
question, amounts to almost a half century.
Jamal’s career reaches back further. In the late
‘50s he enjoyed success with several classic
albums for the iconic labels Argo and Impulse!
Hailing from Pittsburgh, where he started
playing at the age of three, Jamal would
become part of the select group of improvising
musicians to enjoy a ‘jukebox hit’ in ‘Poinciana’,
and his early ‘60s albums such as Ahmad
Jamal At The Pershing were also strong sellers.
On these recordings and the many that
dot a voluminous discography – a cursory
glance at which reveals notable entries such
as 1970’sThe Awakening and 2000’s The
Ahmad_Jamal_programme.indd 3-4
Essence – Jamal staked his claim in the canon
of bandleaders and soloists by imbuing
both standards and originals with a blend of
swaying lyricism and sharp rhythmic drive.
Chief among the pianist’s marks of distinction
was his ability to swing without pushing tempos.
His handling of the keyboard is full of poise.
Jamal’s formative years saw him play with
double bassist Israel Crosby and guitarist Ray
Crawford and the challenge of leading a
drummer-less ensemble highlighted the supreme
strength of his left hand and a desire to let richly
constructed chords take as much prominence
as single note figures. He often breaks a theme
into smaller phrases and leaves dramatic
breathing space between the teasing fragments.
With each new album, it became clear that the
pianist had a gift for blending airy melodies
with hypnotically warm grooves, as in the case
of the sashaying vamp section of ‘Poinciana’.
And if there was a bold Caribbean slant in
Jamal’s approach then it was spelled out
on 1974’s Jamalca, which was a love letter
to the rock steady sensuality of the ‘islands.
‘New Rumba’ was thus an apt title of one of
Jamal’s early, influential pieces. Miles Davis
and Gil Evans reprised it on Miles Ahead.
Although his recordings have included anything
from large string sections to solo violinists or
saxophonists like the late George Coleman,
Jamal has carved something of a niche for
himself with what is a relatively uncommon
kind of group – a quartet featuring percussion.
This is the configuration presented tonight.
Joining Jamal are double bassist Reginald
Veal, kit drummer Herlin Riley and ‘hand’
drummer Manolo Badrena, three players who,
between them, have worked with dozens of
legendary artists: Art Blakey, Weather Report,
Joni Mitchell, Cassandra Wilson, Branford
and Wynton Marsalis, to name but some.
While Veal’s robust tone gives the band a solid
backbone, Riley and Badrena, hailing from
New Orleans and Puerto Rico respectively,
cement the musical relationship that has long
existed between the American South and Latin
America, with the two men weaving intricate
lines around the basic pulse of a song. Badrena
also brings a wide range of tonal color to the
ensemble sound and his artful sprinkles of
timbales, cowbell, cuica and bongos act as a
mighty cry or bashful sigh to underscore the
wry, wistful hush of Jamal’s right hand motifs.
The net result is music whose technical
precision is channeled into a vast spectrum of
feelings. It has a strong quality of dance but
is also unashamedly romantic. Then again,
Ahmad Jamal has performed many timeless
love songs over the years, and they are often
tempered with the melancholy, struggle and
joy inherent in the human condition. ’This Is
the Life’, his latest anthem, evokes the lifeenhancing desire for fraternity. As the lyric
says ‘how sweet the song when you belong’.
Programme note © Kevin Le Gendre
Produced by the Barbican in
association with Serious
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06/02/2013 15:28