Liner Notes
Lest we forget, 17th Century America was already home to music from three continents: Africa, Europe and the New World itself. Music of three complex cultures soared side by side from the very inception of what became America and the United States. American Rhapsody presents beautiful and compelling performances of these melodies, recorded for vinyl records, CD and digital distribution, with performances in Washington, DC, Rome, Italy and New York City.
The program is populated by 16th and 17th century Native American, African and European music, providing a side-by-side experience that becomes a revelation for the listener.
Following the regime upheaval, political and religious mayhem, witch burnings, wars, and assassinations of the Reformation, a new breed of European explorer emerged. Survivors of political and religious persecution headed to North America to find relief, pursued by disease and death both mid- journey and upon arrival in the New World. These were often profoundly pious, humble folk who confronted their own mortality, as well as that of their families on a daily basis.
How these godly, devout pilgrims wound up destroying or marginalizing hundreds of indigenous nations and importing 12 million Africans into slavery has yet to be satisfactorily explained. We cannot solve that question, but we will simply address the parallel cultural phenomena represented by the music of three divergent cultures that could not have been more dissimilar.
Locating records of native American music at the time of the European arrival is not an easy task. We were pleased to find transcriptions of music of that period from Nova Scotia to Brazil through the research of historian Victoria Lindsay Levine. Transcriptions by Portuguese, British and French explorers, including lyrics and European-style settings of the melodies for vocal ensembles are found in
Writing Native American Music, 2002
Actual transcriptions of African music of the same time period were even more difficult to find but include at least two important sources by contemporary explorers. The first was the Irish explorer and naturalist Sir Hans Sloane, (1660-1753) who ordered transcriptions of African melodies during his travels to Haiti in the mid-17th century. These transcriptions have been further collected and amplified by the Musical Passage project and enhanced by publication by Mary Caton Lingold and others in her 2023 publication
African Musicians in the Atlantic World: Legacies of Sound and Slavery.
The second African source is the work of the English writer Thomas Edward Bowdich (1791-1824), author of Mission from Cape Coast Castle to Ashantee, 1819. Bowdich includes transcriptions, some with texts, of two dozen African melodies of Ashanti, Kerrapi, Fantee, Mallowa, Empoöngwa, Imbekee and Mosee populations. Bowdich's writings are thoroughly examined in the indispensable The Music of Black Americans by Howard University Professor Eileen Southern.
The European musical component was already a work in progress, a result in part of the Reformation: Age of Mayhem recordings, and concerts in London, Berlin and Prague. King Henry VIII himself contributes a melody. There is also a German hymn and a 16th century French song, "A Moment Lost", (L'Occasion Manquée) that made its way to Quebec. The French song was revived by Julien Tiersot in his Forty-Four French Folk Songs and Variants--from Canada, Normandy, and Brittany, published in 1910.
The Artists
Bassist Alex Blake began his career at age 16, recording and touring with Sun Ra, followed by tours with Dizzy Gillespie, Pharoah Sanders and a host of the most progressive voices in American modern music. His singular style of playing makes him instantly recognizable, whether in person or on recordings. Alex spent 25 years recording and performing with NEA Jazz Master Randy Weston and the African Rhythms Ensemble in settings around the world. More about Alex at AlexBlakeBass.com
Tabla virtuoso Hamid Habib Zadah hails from Herat, in western Afghanistan. While performing regularly in high profile events in Herat and Turkmenistan, Hamid attended music conservatories in Herat and Kabul, elevating him into upper tier of traditional Afghan performers. A recent émigré to the U.S., Hamid has already performed in concerts in New York City, California, Washington, DC and with the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra.
Pianist/Composer Burnett Thompson has allowed music to draw him into countless corners of the planet, from the mountains of Yunnan, China, the mews of London, cellars of Vienna, medinas of north Africa, and back to the alleys of Beijing. He has collaborated with Lorin Maazel, Arturo Sandoval, Alex Blake, the Manchester String Quartet, cellist Han-Na Chang, and directed a host of remarkable concert series, including Castleton in Performance, Hill Center Concert Series, Jazz on Jackson Place, the Foggy Bottom Chamber Ensemble, and Piano Jazz at the Arts Club. Recent projects have included Autumn in Yunnan, ethnic music of southwest China, and Reformation, a fresh take on 15th century secular and sacred music of middle Europe. Burnett played a large role in exposiing Chinese jazz and traditional performers to the American audience. . More about Burnett at HERE
Burnett and Alex perform regularly at Mezzrow Jazz Club in New York where they performed the Chinese traditional music of Autumn in Yunnan, and music of 15th and 16th century Europe with the Reformation: Age of Mayhem recording and tour. They previewed the current album at Mezzrow in December, 2023. Hamid joined them on the PianoJazz DC series in 2022, and the trio will perform American Rhapsody on the PianoJazz DC series, followed by Mezzrow Jazz Club Dec. 9 in NYC.
The Concerts
Decatur House Museum
Mon, November 4, 2024 at 7pm
748 Jackson Pl NW
Washington, DC 20006
TICKETS
Mezzrow Jazz Club
Monday, December 9, 2024 at 7:30 and 9:00pm
7th Avenue & 10th St
New York, NY 10014
TICKETS
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