''Balance'' is an album by American jazz guitarist
Joe Morris which was recorded in 2013 and released on the Portuguese
Clean Feed
Clean may refer to:
* Cleaning, the process of removing unwanted substances, such as dirt, infectious agents, and other impurities, from an object or environment
* Cleanliness, the state of being clean and free from dirt
Arts and media Music A ...
label. It was the return of the quartet with violinist
Mat Maneri
Mat Maneri (born October 4, 1969) is an American composer, violin, and viola player. He is the son of the saxophonist Joe Maneri and Sonja Maneri.
Career
Maneri has recorded with Cecil Taylor, Guerino Mazzola, Matthew Shipp, Joe Morris, Ger ...
, bassist
Chris Lightcap
Chris Lightcap is an American double bassist, bass guitarist and composer born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.
Career
In addition to his work as a bassist he has led a variety of bands since 2000 and has produced six albums of original music. Lightcap' ...
and drummer
Gerald Cleaver, the same lineup that recorded in the 90s ''
Underthru'' and ''
At the Old Office''.
[''Balance''](_blank)
at Clean Feed
According to Morris, the album complete a three part series of recordings inspired by the influence of the visual arts. The series began with ''
Colorfield'' and continued with ''
Camera
A camera is an Optics, optical instrument that can capture an image. Most cameras can capture 2D images, with some more advanced models being able to capture 3D images. At a basic level, most cameras consist of sealed boxes (the camera body), ...
''. This final part addresses the influence of 20th Century sculpture made by artists like
Alexander Calder
Alexander Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, his static "stabiles", and his ...
,
Anthony Caro
Sir Anthony Alfred Caro (8 March 192423 October 2013) was an English abstract sculptor whose work is characterised by assemblages of metal using ' found' industrial objects. His style was of the modernist school, having worked with Henry Moor ...
,
David Smith and
Richard Serra
Richard Serra (born November 2, 1938) is an American artist known for his large-scale sculptures made for site-specific landscape, urban, and architectural settings. Serra's sculptures are notable for their material quality and exploration o ...
.
[Original Liner Notes by Joe Morris]
Reception
The
All About Jazz
''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...
review by Glenn Astarita states "Among other positives, Morris' quartet is a unit you can count on for extending the limits of whatever improvisational model(s) they process, coinciding with the artists' dynamic interactions and dizzying rhythmical measures."
[Astarita, Glenn]
''Balance'' review
at All About Jazz
''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...
The ''
Down Beat
' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...
'' review by Bradley Bambarger notes that "Maneri’s viola sings and saws through imaginative solos and commentaries, and it blends wonderfully with the
guitarist’s flinty single-note lines and harmonic shards, evoking whole worlds of music—not only shades of
Ornette Coleman
Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter, and composer known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Jazz: A Colle ...
but abstractions of Africa, India and Appalachias."
[Bambarger, Bradley. ''Balance'' review. ''Down Beat'' December 14: page 85. Print.]
Track listing
# "Thought" – 3:35
# "Effort" – 11:22
# "Trust" – 9:23
# "Purpose" – 12:38
# "Substance" – 6:36
# "Meaning" – 12:13
Personnel
*
Joe Morris -
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
*
Mat Maneri
Mat Maneri (born October 4, 1969) is an American composer, violin, and viola player. He is the son of the saxophonist Joe Maneri and Sonja Maneri.
Career
Maneri has recorded with Cecil Taylor, Guerino Mazzola, Matthew Shipp, Joe Morris, Ger ...
–
viola
The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...
*
Chris Lightcap
Chris Lightcap is an American double bassist, bass guitarist and composer born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.
Career
In addition to his work as a bassist he has led a variety of bands since 2000 and has produced six albums of original music. Lightcap' ...
–
bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range:
** Bass (instrument), including:
** Acoustic bass gui ...
*
Gerald Cleaver –
drums
A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
References
{{Authority control
2014 albums
Joe Morris (guitarist) albums
Clean Feed Records albums