Ellington Suites

Because of the vastness of Duke Ellington's repertoire, very few musicians have thought to explore the suites he wrote late in his career. This third stream concert recording blends bassist Tony Overwater's jazz trio with the Calefax Reed Quintet, a classical group made up of five reed players. Even though the piano and brass section are missing, the blended group obtains a phenomenal sound in its interpretation of the complete Far East Suite, with tenor saxophonist Maaren Ornstein, Overwater, and drummer Wim Kegel blending rather nicely with the quintet (oboe player Oliver Boekhoorn, clarinetist Ivar Berix, alto saxophonist Raaf Hekkema, bass clarinetist Jelte Althuis, and bassoonist Alban Wesly). Anyone familiar with Ellington's own recording of this suite will enjoy the new facets revealed, with the oboe taking the place of alto sax as the lead voice in "Isfahan," the prominent role of the bass clarinet in "Agra," as well as the extraordinary voicings within "Ad Lib on Nippon." The combined groups omit the tenor sax in "The River," a less familiar suite that Ellington recorded in the studio over a series of sessions in 1970, though it was never released until well after the composer's death. The septet is equally successful with their concert adaptation of this music. This remarkable concert should be of great interest to fans of Duke Ellington's music.