Tao-Njia
| Tao-Njia | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by Wadada Leo Smith | ||||
| Released | 1996 | |||
| Recorded | November 17 & December 14, 1995 | |||
| Studio | Capital Recording, Los Angeles, CalArts, Valencia, California | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 43:00 | |||
| Label | Tzadik | |||
| Producer | Wadada Leo Smith | |||
| Wadada Leo Smith chronology | ||||
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Tao-Njia is an album by American jazz trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith which was recorded in 1995 and released on the Tzadik Records' Composer Series.
Music[edit]
"Another Wave More Waves" is performed by Smith's ensemble N'Da Kulture. "Double Thunderbolt" is a composition in six movements created as a memorial for Don Cherry with poetry by Smith's wife, Harumi Makino Smith. On the title track, the trumpeter is backed by the California E.A.R. Unit, a chamber ensemble conducted by Stephen "Lucky" Mosko.
Reception[edit]
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz |  [2] |
| Down Beat | [3] |
In her review for AllMusic, Joslyn Layne states "Incorporating personal philosophy and beliefs into his compositions through mood and accompanying texts, Smith creates a warm album of spiritual instrumental music."[1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz notes "Recent years have seen Smith personally and musically involved with Oriental culture, and this is strongly reflected in Tao-Njia. Acoustically, it is one of his most remarkable records, a rich montage of sounds that are at once new and inmediately familiar."[2]
The Down Beat review by John Corbett says "Tao Njia's three pieces are gentle, deceptively spacious compositions loaded with the gestural oomph of a master calligrapher. One might call them 'chamberish,' but that would be to miss their stylistic breadth, their Asian classical overtones and the force of Smith's soloing."[3]
Track listing[edit]
- All compositions by Wadada Leo Smith
- "Another Wave More Waves" - 9:30
- "Double Thunderbolt: Memorial for Don Cherry" - 12:14
- "Tao-Njia" - 21:16
Personnel[edit]
- Wadada Leo Smith - trumpet, flugelhorn, bamboo flute, nohkan, axatse, monophony-bar, Indian low bell, Japanese high bell, pre-recorded mbira
- David Philipson - two low drums, frame drums, bansuri, axatse, Tibetan temple bells
- Mika Noda - vibraphone, tubular bells, timpani
- Harumi Makino Smith - poetry
- Dorothy Stone - flute, alto flute, piccolo
- Martin Walker - clarinet, bass clarinet
- Vicki Ray - piano, celesta
- Robin Lorentz - violin
- Erika Duke - cello
- Stephen Lucky Mosko - conductor
References[edit]
- ^ a b Layne, Joslyn. Wadada Leo Smith - Tao-Njia: Review at AllMusic. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
- ^ a b Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2002) [1992]. The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (6th ed.). London: Penguin. p. 1361. ISBN 0-14-051521-6.
- ^ a b Corbett, Joihn. Tao Njia review. Down Beat April 97. Print.
