''Artistry'' is an album by bassist

Sirone Sirone ( Brianzöö: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lecco in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about southwest of Lecco. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,270 and an area of .Al ...

, his first as a leader. It was recorded on July 5, 1978, at Generation Sound in New York City, and was released in 1979 by the Of The Cosmos label. On the album, Sirone is joined by flutist

James Newton James W. Newton (born May 1, 1953) is an American jazz and classical flutist. Biography He was born in Los Angeles, California, United States. From his earliest years, James Newton grew up immersed in the sounds of African-American music, inclu ...

, cellist Muneer Bernard Fennell, and percussionist

Don Moye Donald Moye, Jr. (born May 23, 1946), known as Famoudou Don Moye, is an American jazz percussionist and drummer. He is most known for his involvement with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and is noted for his mastery of African and Caribbean percuss ...

. Liner notes were provided by

Stanley Crouch Stanley Lawrence Crouch (December 14, 1945 – September 16, 2020) was an American poet, music and cultural critic, syndicated columnist, novelist, and biographer. He was known for his jazz criticism and his 2000 novel ''Don't the Moon Look ...

Reception

The editors of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

awarded the album 4½ stars. Reviewer Michael G. Nastos called it "very enjoyable." Jon Dale, writing for ''

Fact Magazine A fact is a datum about one or more aspects of a circumstance, which, if accepted as true and proven true, allows a logical conclusion to be reached on a true–false evaluation. Standard reference works are often used to check facts. Scient ...

'', commented: "it's a beautiful set, with James Newton's flute giving the quartet performances a breathy lilt, while the interaction between Sirone on bass and Muneer Bernard Fennell... on cello is lovely, particularly when Sirone is playing arco: parts of 'Circumstances' feel like they're levitating on lambent strings... Famoudou Don Moye... is a sympathetic, apposite percussionist too." Dale stated that the album's "most potent moment" is "when Sirone is playing solo, singing out from and stretching the parameters of the instrument, running rivulets of melody down the instrument's spine on 'Breath of Life'." In his book ''Vinyl Freak'',

John Corbett John Joseph Corbett Jr. (born May 9, 1961) is an American actor and country music singer. On television, he is best known for his roles as Chris Stevens on '' Northern Exposure'' (1990–1995), Aidan Shaw on ''Sex and the City'' (2000–2003 ...

described the album as "a lost treasure," and commented: "Cool cover with tipped-on corrugated cardboard frame, liner notes by Stanley Crouch, before the opening bell in New York's jazz wars had been sounded." Phil Freeman of ''Burning Ambulance'' remarked: "''Artistry'' is a stunning album unlike anything else of its era. Sirone and company came up with a collective music that combines avant-garde jazz, modern composition, and the joy of pure sound."

Track listing

All compositions by Sirone. # "Illusions of Reality" – 5:47 # "Breath of Life" – 13:56 # "Circumstances" – 8:05 # "Libido" – 14:13

Personnel

– flute * Muneer Bernard Fennell – cello *

– bass *

– percussion

References

{{Reflist 1979 albums Sirone (musician) albums