The Seventh Century - 1971 (full album)
- 8 years ago
15-piece seventh century offers promising new blends of sound (by John S. Wilson)
A 15-piece orchestra that ranges, musically, from Renaissance to rock played at the Village Gate on Sunday. The band, called the Seventh Century ("because this is the seventh century of organized, written instrumental music" explained Alan Raph, a bass trombonist, who leads the group), is one of a series of new, contemporary groups that will perform at the Village gate on Sunday nights.
"We're using all the elements that exist today to make music", Mr. Raph said in summarizing the group's intentions. "We're dipping into Renaissance and pre-Baroque music. We're using rock for rhythm, some jazz and a modal type of jazz improvisation."
All these elements were evident in the band's performance Sunday night. Flute, organ and a seven-piece brass section sometimes sounded like a heraldic halloo at a medieval castle. But as the dreams moved in with a rock beat, the attack of the brass changed to swinging jazz. Two electric guitars joined in to extend both the rock sound and the nigh cry of the brass and as the ensemble boiled to a swirling tempest of sound that reflected the brassy influence of Stan Kenton, an alto sax rose into soaring solo that was pure jazz.
The compositions, all originals by Mr. Raph and Lee Holdridge, usually gave the band an opportunity to run its full gamut, a practice that tended to make them sound somewhat repetitious. But the concept of a band as a whole is so unusual that it can afford to be repetitious while it is establishing its identity...
This Alan Raph was evidently a very prolific trombonist back in the day, have a look at all the records he has played on. I see that he was involved in my all-time favourite jazz record, Charlie Mingus' Let my children hear music. Today he is 80 years old, and at the time of this highly progressive music he was already 41. I have to believe that somewhere there in his discography there are other such gems waiting to be unearthed. The other gentleman, Lee Holdridge, was equally prolific, but as a composer became big in soundtracks.
http://progressreview.blogspot.co.il/2014/10/the-seventh-century-from-1971.html
A 15-piece orchestra that ranges, musically, from Renaissance to rock played at the Village Gate on Sunday. The band, called the Seventh Century ("because this is the seventh century of organized, written instrumental music" explained Alan Raph, a bass trombonist, who leads the group), is one of a series of new, contemporary groups that will perform at the Village gate on Sunday nights.
"We're using all the elements that exist today to make music", Mr. Raph said in summarizing the group's intentions. "We're dipping into Renaissance and pre-Baroque music. We're using rock for rhythm, some jazz and a modal type of jazz improvisation."
All these elements were evident in the band's performance Sunday night. Flute, organ and a seven-piece brass section sometimes sounded like a heraldic halloo at a medieval castle. But as the dreams moved in with a rock beat, the attack of the brass changed to swinging jazz. Two electric guitars joined in to extend both the rock sound and the nigh cry of the brass and as the ensemble boiled to a swirling tempest of sound that reflected the brassy influence of Stan Kenton, an alto sax rose into soaring solo that was pure jazz.
The compositions, all originals by Mr. Raph and Lee Holdridge, usually gave the band an opportunity to run its full gamut, a practice that tended to make them sound somewhat repetitious. But the concept of a band as a whole is so unusual that it can afford to be repetitious while it is establishing its identity...
This Alan Raph was evidently a very prolific trombonist back in the day, have a look at all the records he has played on. I see that he was involved in my all-time favourite jazz record, Charlie Mingus' Let my children hear music. Today he is 80 years old, and at the time of this highly progressive music he was already 41. I have to believe that somewhere there in his discography there are other such gems waiting to be unearthed. The other gentleman, Lee Holdridge, was equally prolific, but as a composer became big in soundtracks.
http://progressreview.blogspot.co.il/2014/10/the-seventh-century-from-1971.html