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John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble + Kenny Wheeler, Claudia Quintet +1’s New Album Now Available

JHLE will play music by and with Kenny Wheeler at the Jazz Standard this weekend 

Yes, you read that correctly. The persistently huge John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble will be performing at the ninth Festival of New Trumpet Music at the Jazz Standard on Friday October 21st and Saturday October 22nd in tribute to (and alongside!) octogenarian vet Kenny Wheeler. You can familiarize yourself with the work of Mr. Wheeler, noted by NYT‘s critics pick-er Nate Chinen as “a trumpeter of integrity”, with the video above, and purchase tickets for the event right here. For those keeping score, here’s this weekend’s batting lineup on team JHLE:

On the drums: John Hollenbeck, drums

On trumpet: Kenny Wheeler, Shane Endsley, Jon Owens, Nate Wooley, and Tony Kadleck

On trombone: Alan Ferber, Jacob Garchik, Mike Christianson, and Rob Hudson

On tenor sax: Chris Cheek, Dan Willis

On alto sax: Jeremy Viner and Jon Gordon

On baritone sax, Bohdan Hilash

Matt Mitchell will be on piano

Kermit Driscoll will be on acoustic bass

Brad Shepik is on guitar

Theo Bleckmann will bring his voice

J.C. Sanford will conduct.

CQ+1’s latest album What Is The Beautiful? is available now

Claudia Quintet+1, alongside Theo Bleckmann and Kurt Elling, have just released a brand new full-length LP, dedicated to and featuring the poetry of Kenneth Patchen. The album may be bought in a series of easy keystrokes from this swift and powerful website here.  The Times’ Ben Ratliff praised its title track as “a marvel of composition,” while All About Jazz opined it was “a sophisticated work of art whose emotional resonance is as profound as the intricate formal elements that support it.” Over at the LA Times, the vocalists are singled out for praise, noting the ethereal quality lent the record by Theo’s “otherworldly voice”, and how “Elling nearly steals the record with his trademark baritone.”

All online orders come with an instant digital download of two tracks–”Job”, off WITB?, and “No D”, recorded live from Texas. You can also visit this page to order other excellents heapfuls of JH music, including Claudia’s Royal Toast, and JHLE’s Grammy-nominated Eternal Interlude. 

Meanwhile, for those of you who love CQ+1 and are not afraid to make known that love to the Internet universe, we invite you to join our the ever-growing Facebook-Based Pro-Claudia Adoration Center (better known as the CQ “Fan” page). Surely there’s no better place on the web for simpatico CQ fans to join forces, make friends, and rally around a common clause. There you’ll also find news, announcements, breaking media and, if the heavens align just so, the occasional easter egg. See you there!

These words have been brought to you by Jacques Swartz, Chronicler of John. Jacques would like to reaffirm for all interested parties that he is not, in fact, Mr. John Hollenbeck, nor is he Mr. Hollenbeck’s imaginary alter-ego, but rather a fully discrete being in his own right. All queries, complaints, kind remarks and general feedback regarding this blog may be directed to Jacques at johnhollenwebpr@gmail.com

Claudia Quintet+1’s New Album What Is The Beautiful? Has Arrived

john sends greetings from natal

 

Deep breaths, friends. Endless-feeling moments of raw wait are now over. Today, Claudia Quintet+1, alongside the mighty voices of Kurt Elling & Theo Bleckmann, release What Is The Beautiful?, a brand-new full-length LP dedicated to and featuring the poetry of Kenneth Patchen. Father Time and Mother Nature have stepped aside, and now you may purchase this record whenever you want, from anywhere, at this lovingly effective website here. All orders come with an instant digital download of two tracks–“Job”, off WITB?, and “No D”, recorded live from Texas. You can also visit this page to order other excellents servings of JH music, including Claudia’s Royal Toast, and JHLE’s Grammy-nominated Eternal Interlude. 

Curious what the hired pens have said? Of the album’s title track, NYT’s Ben Ratliff offers this: “For seven minutes, everything logically and constantly grows, until the chilling and unresolved end. It’s a piece with a lot of improvisation, one that takes a lot of cues from its literary source, but at the same time it’s a marvel of composition.” All About Jazz is already all about it. Their review calls WITB? “A unique merger of evocative poetry and avant-garde jazz…a sophisticated work of art whose emotional resonance is as profound as the intricate formal elements that support it.” Washington City Paper feels similarly, with particular love for Kurt & Theo’s poetic evocations and the ways they’re underpinned by deft work from the band.

More sentiment printed and otherwise is certainly on the way, but wow, as the professional reviewers file in, the voice we want most to hear from now is yours. Come join our nascent Facebook-Based Pro-Claudia Adoration Center (better known as the CQ “Fan” page) and make known your love. There you’ll find like-minded Claudia Quintet fans of all stripes, organized in neat pixels and at the ready to talk Hollenshop with you and yours all day long. There you’ll also find news, announcements, breaking media and even, if you’re very good, the occasional easter egg. We can’t wait to see you there.

Oh yeah, the dates: November 18th, CQ+1 will madly pillage the Stone in New York, followed by a November 19th date at Philadelphia Art AllianceOn November 20th they appear, with Theo, at the Cuneiform Records Showcase in Baltimore, MD December 16th-17th CQ+1 will touchdown at The Cornelia Street Café. Finally, on February 18th, JHLE enlivens Amherst College, in Massachusetts. We can’t wait to see you there either.

These words have been brought to you by Jacques Swartz, Chronicler of John, to whom John has relegated all duties pertaining to web PR and general online upkeep. Jacques would like to reaffirm for all interested parties that he is not, in fact, Mr. John Hollenbeck, nor is he Mr. Hollenbeck’s imaginary alter-ego, but rather a fully discrete being in his own right. All queries, complaints, kind remarks and general feedback regarding this blog may be directed to Jacques at johnhollenwebpr@gmail.com