January Newsletter -- Read the latest e-newsletter here.
Newest Sound Around Rereleased -- Ran's groundbreaking 1962 album with vocalist Jeanne Lee, The Newest Sound Around, was rereleased January 31st after being out of print for several years.
For now, we don't know much more about it than what's listed on several websites. The big news is that the rerelease includes six bonus live cuts, as well as a 12-page booklet. According to the World Records website, the live songs are "Sermonette," "Round About," "Where Will You Be?" "The Outcast," "One Mint Julep," and "Lonely Woman." Amazon and CD Universe also are selling the rerelease. You can read AllMusic's review of an earlier version here.
Ran on YouTube, #1 -- Ran and several other NEC faculty discuss their participation in last December's concert in honor of Gustav Mahler in a six-minute video recently posted to YouTube. View it here. Lindalee Lawrence put together the video for a website called eyeJAZZ.
Ran YouTube, #2 -- A few months ago, a short video of what appears to be Justin Bieber singing along to Ran playing "Happy Birthday" appeared on YouTube. As the Boston Globe reported here, it turns out the video was created by Alex Heitlinger, one of Ran's former students. He spliced together an online clip of the teen idol with an MP3 he had of Ran. To hear the unlikely pairing, click here.
New Live Record Released -- NoBusiness Records, based in Vilnius, Lithuania, has released Vilnius Noir, a vinyl-only album of Ran's performance on December 10, 2010 at St. Catherine's Church. The album is a limited edition of 500 copies. Ran performs some songs solo and some accompanied by David "Knife" Fabris on guitar. You can sample two songs, see the track list, and order the album here. We may have a limited number for sale on ranblake.com in a month or two, but for now it's only available from the record company.
Boston Globe articles -- The Boston Globe highlighted Ran's contributions to two recent concerts at the New England Conservatory. Here's the paper's preview of Ran's annual Halloween concert, and here's a review of the November 29 tribute to composer Gustav Mahler.
Duo Album Released -- Ran's long-awaited duet album with vocalist Dominique Eade, Whirlpool, is now available from ranblake.com and cdBaby.
Dominique is on the faculty with Ran at the New England Conservatory, and the two have often performed together over the years. The album, on the Jazz Project label, features 13 songs recorded at sessions in 2004 and 2008, including "Dearly Beloved" (Jerome Kern), "The Pawnbroker" (Quincy Jones), "Out of this World" (Harold Arlen/Johnny Mercer), and Eade's "Go Gently to the Water."
Whirlpool Reviews -- Whirlpool is receiving favorable reviews. Excerpts follow:
Michael Jackson, Downbeat: "Blake never makes glib commentary; he offers a subtle harmonic roadmap where necessary, but his deeper mood illustrations are far more intriguing, here whipping up the dynamics to abet the pathetic fallacy-linking human feelings with natural forces. ... Though the intellectual interplay will interest music analysts, there are lovely pure moments: On 'Where Are You?' Eade is Wendy waiting for Peter Pan. ... Remarkably, during Blake's harmonic gutting of 'Devil Moon' and his Alice-in-Wonderland colorations on 'Falling,' he remains supportive, and Eade's ability to match his creativity without attempting to slipstream -- instead making bold long-tone decisions -- is the genius of this remarkable pairing."
Scott Albin, JazzTimes: "Blake has developed an approach that is never less than thought-provoking and is brilliantly original at its best. As for Eade, her effortless and seemingly limitless ability to vary both her vibrato and tonal quality, and cleverly utilize intervallic leaps, while speeding up or slowing down unpredictably in navigating a lyric, help make her a most flexible and adventurous match for Blake. They are harmonically and melodically attuned to one another." Read the full review.
Christopher Loudon, JazzTimes: "When Blake indulges his penchant for film-noir atmospherics, as on "My Foolish Heart," Eade provides ideally sly and shadowy responses, expertly playing the cunning Bacall to his Bogart. When she reinvestigates her own, hymnlike "Go Gently to the Water," Blake paves the way for a freshly ethereal reading. Full review.
Jazz Society of Oregon website, George Fendel: "There are very few singers who could pull this off without sounding pretentious and over the top. But Eade indulges in neither. Instead, she perfectly puts forth these new creations as though she means every word. And Blake is right there 'conversing' with her in nearly surreal alignment." Full review.
Lucid Culture blog: "Whirlpool couldn't have come out at a more appropriate time. It's the perfect autumn record: its dark clarity is absolutely chilling, and absolutely exhilarating. It makes you glad to be alive. Eade has never sung better; at 76, Blake's at the top of his game, absolutely undiminished, the indomitable master of noir piano menace and magic." Full review.
C.J. Bond, Jazz Music blog: "The implementation of this project at last, infers a very clear, focused mission, ensuring a triumphant performance that is refreshingly original, extraordinarily imaginative, brimming with ineffable confidence, shows a boldness that knows no limit, and seems to deliver itself from a source of happiness dispossessed of any particular reason ... Whirlpool presents jazz in its purest, most elemental form. Eade and Blake succeed on all levels." Full review.
Lloyd Sachs, jazzespress blog: "Whirlpool features familiar tunes ... as well as insider jazz numbers ... But Blake and Eade treat them like classical art songs as much as popular standards. With her clear and radiant but forcefully grounded voice, Eade investigates the songs like a diamond cutter, taking time to highlight their unique harmonic facets while never losing sight of their emotional meaning. Blake's spare, elegant backing illuminates her in a wintry light, with occasional dissonant shivers." Listen to the full review here, or read the text here.
Robert Carraher, Dirty Lowdown website: "Together it becomes apparent that these two are as in tuned with each other as they are with the music. The harmony between Eade's voice and Blake deft piano work is awe-inspiring, but it is the way they nail the melody, never gliding through a note and never leaving out a nuance to bring a song alive. Eade is not an actress, delivering a tune as if it was drama, but her voice strives to be an instrument in that each word is a musical note or phrase, and she brings that to the song in such a satisfying way." Full review.
Ran in Michigan in 2012 -- Ran will perform a tribute to Abbey Lincoln on April 30 in Kalamazoo, Michigan -- her hometown -- as part of the Gilmore International Keyboard Festival. The festival runs from April 26 to May 13, and tickets go on sale in January. Read more about the festival here. As he prepares for the show, Ran is interested in getting in touch with anyone who knew Abbey well in Kalamazoo. If that describes you or anyone you know, please contact Ran at ran@ranblake.com.
Documentary Trailer Released -- During last winter's European tour, a documentary crew from LAV Pictures trailed Ran for several days in Vilnius, Lithuania. The crew recently completed the documentary, which is titled "Above the Sadness," and is seeking to have it shown at an upcoming film festival, according to LAV's Dimitrij Veller, who also eventually plans to release it on DVD. You can view a 9-minute trailer for the documentary by clicking on the image above. The trailer includes excerpts of interviews with Ran and others as well as rehearsal footage and a classroom scene.
Live Album Available From Tompkins Square -- Ran's new album, Grey December - Live in Rome, is now available from Tompkins Square Records, Amazon, iTunes, and other retailers. The album of solo piano was recorded Dec. 16 at the Casa Del Jazz in Rome. One of Ran's earlier albums was recorded in a movie theater and another in a train station, but this is Ran's first live concert recording in front of an audience in a traditional venue. The performance includes several original compositions that appear on record for the first time, as well as standards.
Hartford Advocate Article -- On May 17 Michael Hamad wrote an excellent feature about Ran in the Hartford Advocate. Read it here.
Primacy of the Ear -- The Primacy of the Ear, Ran's long-awaited book, is now available from Lulu.com. The book (shown above) outlines Ran's philosophy on development of the ear and explains how musical memory is the key to becoming a more potent musician and shaping a personal musical style.
The Primacy of the Ear includes Ran's famous "ear-robics" exercises, which musicians can use to improve their listening skills. Other key topics include:
--The Auteur Theory and how it translates into music making
--Developing and differentiating between the conscious and subconscious mind
--Listening and musical memory
--How to learn from your musical heroes without being consumed by them
--Developing and using repertoire
--How to record your music most effectively
Jason Rogers, a musician and longtime friend of Ran's, co-wrote the book. David "Knife" Fabris, Art Lange, Hankus Netsky, Larry Livingston, Dylan Charbeneau, Fred Harris and Gardiner Hartmann contributed forewords.
The book costs $30, plus $4 shipping in the U.S. You can read more about it here and order a copy here.
Two Live Videos with Sara Serpa -- You'll no doubt enjoy checking out these two videos on Vimeo of Ran performing with Sara Serpa on December 19 in Lisbon at Trem Azul. Just click on the links below and then press play:
Odds & Ends -- Critic George Grella chose Out of the Shadows as his top vocal album for 2010. Blogger Gabe Meline included Ran Blake Plays Solo Piano in his Top 25 jazz discoveries of 2010. Our Spanish-speaking readers may enjoy this interview conducted by Xavier Quirarte from Revista Anditoto, an online magazine dedicated to cultural affairs.
That Certain Feeling Reissued -- HatHut has reissued That Certain Feeling, Ran's 1991 tribute to George Gershwin that features Ricky Ford on tenor saxophone and Steve Lacy on soprano saxophone, which has been out of print for many years. The reissue is remastered and has a new cover. You can purchase it through the Discography page on ranblake.com.
Ran Blake T-shirts -- Ran Blake T-shirts featuring Ran's "black bag" logo are now available from Ran's assistant Aaron Hartley. Here's a photo. The cotton jerseys come in small, medium, large and extra large. The cost is $15 per shirt. If you're in the Boston area, you can arrange to pick them up directly from Aaron at NEC or at Ran's Brookline apartment. If you order by mail, there's an additional $4 shipping charge. For more information or to arrange an order, please contact Aaron.
Ran has performed at major jazz festivals, concert halls, jazz clubs, colleges and universities
throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, South America, and Mexico.
Appearances include Monterey Festival, Antibes Music Festival, Nancy
Jazz Festival, Third Stream Festival, Praxis Festival, Grenoble Jazz
Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Ottawa jazz Festival, Edmonton Jazz
Festival, Jazz and Blues Festival, Museum of Modern Art, Du Maurier
International Jazz festival.
Additional appearances on numerous radio and television programs.
Composition
and improvisation studies with Ray Cassarino, Willis Lawrence
James, Oscar Peterson, Bill Russo, Gunther Schuller, Mal Waldron, and
Mary Lou Williams
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