Kabocha Records to Release
"Duocracy,"
A Duo Album by Trumpeter Ian Carey &
Pianist Ben Stolorow,
February 25
"Duocracy,"
A Duo Album by Trumpeter Ian Carey &
Pianist Ben Stolorow,
February 25
First Collaboration by the Bay Area Musicians
CD Release Shows
February 21 at the Jazzschool, Berkeley &
March 7 at St. Hilary's, Tiburon
February 21 at the Jazzschool, Berkeley &
March 7 at St. Hilary's, Tiburon
510-234-8781
hudba@sbcglobal.net
www.terrihinte.com
Follow:
In the musical realm of Duocracy, the new CD by trumpeter Ian Carey and pianist Ben Stolorow,
"two" rules. Mainstays on the Bay Area jazz scene, Carey and Stolorow
have released highly regarded albums as leaders but found their way to
the duo format after several satisfying gigs together last year. They
chose to capture their singular improvisational ensemble on record, and
Carey's Kabocha label will release the inventive results as Duocracy on February 25.
"It's super-naked and
that was intimidating at first, especially once the tape started
rolling, but it's also really freeing. On my last album I felt like I
was trying to build something perfect," Carey says referring to Roads & Codes,
an album selected by many critics as one of 2013's best releases. "This
was about going in and enjoying playing with each other, about playing
jazz and seeing what we could come up with, and letting these tunes
shine."
Carey credits a
satellite radio station focusing on recordings from the 1940s with
reigniting his love for vintage pop tunes. Struck by the effortless
swing that was the era's rhythmic default, he and Stolorow decided to
keep the duo loose and limber, unencumbered by involved arrangements.
Opening with Walter Donaldson's lilting "Little White Lies,"
the pair also includes Rodgers and Hart's "You Took Advantage of Me," a
piece that showcases Stolorow's gift for melodic invention, and Henry
Mancini's "Two for the Road," a standout Latin-tinged ballad performance
that highlights Carey's gorgeous tone. They co-wrote the album's sole
original, "Comin' Along," an abstract tune built upon
the chord changes of Benny Golson's standard "Along Came Betty." Closing
with a pair of enduring standards, the Gershwins' jaunty "How Long Has This Been Going On," and Kern's masterpiece "All the Things You Are," the duo departs in a blaze of beauty, refreshing the ubiquitous songs with unfussy eloquence.
"We're drawn to a lot
of the same repertoire, lovely mid-century well-crafted pop tunes,"
Carey says. "What makes working with Ben so satisfying he is very into
the idea of breaking out of traditional duo roles. There's a lot left to
discover."
Duocracy is the fourth album for Ian Carey, 39, who previously has written for and recorded his audacious, highly cohesive working quintet on Sink/Swim (2005), Contextualizin' (2010), and Roads & Codes
(2013). The Binghamton, New York native earned a New School degree in
Jazz and Contemporary Music and spent five post-grad years in New York
City before relocating to San Francisco, where he has performed with
top-notch ensembles like the Contemporary Jazz Orchestra,
multi-instrumentalist Adam Theis's Realistic Orchestra, accordionist Rob
Reich's Circus Bella, and vocalist Betty Fu, which is how he started
playing with Stolorow.
Ben Stolorow,
37, was born in New York City but had settled in Los Angeles by the age
of 12. In 1994 he moved to the Bay Area to attend UC Berkeley, studying
piano with Bill Bell, Susan Muscarella, and Dick Hindman and before
long joining the Jazzschool faculty. His 2008 debut album I'll Be Over Here,
is a highly interactive trio session focusing on his lustrous originals
with bassist Ravi Abcarian and drummer Greg German. On his 2011
followup with bassist Dan Feiszli and drummer Jon Arkin, Almost There,
Stolorow deals more explicitly with song forms. The partnership with
Carey grew out of their accompanying Betty Fu, and was fed by their
camaraderie on and off the bandstand.
When Carey moved to
the East Bay, just a few miles north of Stolorow, proximity allowed them
to start playing together informally, which led to several gigs at an
art space in Berkeley. "It was really successful," says Stolorow. "I had
this idea to record to see what happens, and Ian felt, if not now,
when?"
Photography: James Knox
Web Sites:
iancareyjazz.combenstolorow.com
Media Contact:
