A New Beginning: Alto Saxophone With Strings (HighNote)
Eric Alexander
Released April 28, 2023
DownBeat Four-and-a-Half-Star Review
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lhFw9M7v-VJZRD5zwh5Qh3izbV6sKRg4c
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About:
As difficult times often beget new beginnings, the COVID-19 quagmire gave birth to alto saxophonist Eric Alexander.
To some, a tenor-to-alto switch may not seem to be a newsworthy matter, but for the initiated it’s the stuff of headlines. An inveterate tenor at the apex of the scene for more than three decades, Eric put the alto away in his teen years and never looked back. “But with the dearth of opportunities to play during the pandemic, I started to work on it,” he confesses.
After successfully pitching the idea of using his second saxophone-with-strings project as a debut on alto, the present recording is quite simply astounding. Working with his regular rhythm section and adding ace string arrangements, this altoist delivers one revelatory performance after another.
Track Listing:
1. Blues For Diane (Eric Alexander) 5:42
2. Embraceable You (George & Ira Gershwin) 5:42
3. All My Tomorrows (Sammy Cahn / Jimmy Van Heusen) 4:56
4. Maybe September (Ray Evans / Jay Livingston) 7:20
5. To Love And Be Loved (Sammy Cahn / Jimmy Van Heusen) 4:55
6. Anita (Eric Alexander) 3:43
7. She Was Too Good To Me (Richard Rodgers / Lorenz Hart) 4:46
8. Too Late Now (Alan Jay Lerner, Burton Lane) 5:41
9. Blues For Diane (Alternate Take) (Eric Alexander) 6:47
Personnel:
Eric Alexander: alto saxophone
David Hazeltine: piano
John Webber: bass
Joe Farnsworth: drums
String arrangements and conducting by Bill Dobbins (tracks 2 – 8 only)
Eric Alexander Quartet recorded at Van Gelder Recording Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ on August 28, 2021.
Strings recorded at The Studios at Linden Oaks, Rochester, NY on December, 14 2021
Recording Session Produced by Diane Armesto
Engineered by Maureen Sickler
Mixed by Chris Sulit
Mastered by David Darlington
Photography by Keiji Obata
Review:
Any alto saxophone recording with strings will invariably stoke the long-dead coals of Charlie Parker, and Eric Alexander does this with panache right from the start of A New Beginning. Yes, the incomparable Bird flutters from Alexander’s horn, and riffs and tremolos dart seamlessly through a string of evergreens, most lushly on “All My Tomorrows.” Bracketing the seven ballads with the strings arranged and conducted by Bill Dobbins is “Blues For Diane,” and it lends straightahead bop licks to the quartet’s artful tincturing of such beautiful tunes as “Maybe September” and “To Love And Be Loved.” On these occasions, Alexander and pianist David Hazeltine take turns authoring rippling forays through the lush orchestrations. Their notes roll with a bright continuity off the string voicings, blending at moments almost imperceptibly. One of the loveliest tracks here is “Anita,” an Alexander original that is gorgeously rendered. They are a commanding duo, guiding drummer Joe Farnsworth and bassist John Webber on the vastly reimagined “She Was Too Good To Me,” and Alexander is particularly creative in his treatment of this timeless standard. Many will recall Alexander’s previous venture with strings on tenor saxophone, and perhaps charting a fresh direction with the alto is what A New Beginning means. Whatever the case, this is great Alexander, priceless Hazeltine, with a Joe and John in the mix — and strings attached — making it a replay-demanding production.
Herb Boyd (DownBeat)
