CD Review: Fred Hersch & esperanza spalding, "Alive at the Village Vanguard"

 

I am sure a lot of the readers of this blog are familar with Fred Hersch and esperanza spalding (stylized in all lower case at artist's request).  Both artists are acclaimed as two of the most inventive Jazz performers in music today.  Fred Hersch is the senior of this creative duo, but Fred never shows his musical age because he loves to keep reinventing himself.  He has released CDs as a single, duo, trio and with large bands and orchestras.  In my opinion, his work reinventing standards through his own emotional feelings puts him in a rare group of Jazz performers.  And yet, Fred can and does play all other genre of Jazz at the very top level of performance and style.  I would consider Fred Hersch as the Jazz renaissance man, never confined to any particular area of music.

Joining Fred on this CD "Alive At The Village Vanguard" is esperanza spalding.  While five-time Grammy Award-winner esperanza spalding is much younger than Fred Hersch in age, she is so talented that she performs at a similar creative and musical level as Fred.  On their new CD recorded live at the historic and internationally known Village Vanguard, both performers delight their Jazz audience with beautiful and creative performances that will become Jazz classics in future years.  These two spactacular musicians playing together is a wonderful treat for all Jazz lovers both young and old proving that Jazz at its finest level has no age barrier.  If it is good, it's good for everyone.  The chemistry between these two Jazz giants is very apparent to anyone listening to their CD.    And recording it live a the Villiage Vanguard is a super treat.  Fred offers, "This recording sounds like you're in the best seat in the Vanguard for a very live experience.  You can really feel the vitality of the room, of the audience, and of our interplay.  We decided on the word "Alive" for the album title as you can really feel the intimacy and energy of the performance."

esperanza spalding has this to say about partnering with Fred on this CD, "Playing with Fred feels like we're in a sandbox.  He takes his devotion to the music as serious as life and death, but once we start playing, it's just fun."  In turn, Fred offers this about esperanza, "I don't think anybody's heard esperanza sing like this.  She's a fearless vocalist, and is one of the biggest talents I know.  She's got a huge reach in her intellectual knowledge and is a big thinker in both her projects and in her outlook."

I selected two songs from this album for you to sample.  The first is a well-known Hersch composition with lyrics by Norma Winstone titled "A Wish".  The second song is their particular take on the Gershwin classic, "But Not For Me".  Both songs will highlight the creativity of both of these world class musicians.  

                                                                            "A Wish"

                                                                     "But Not For Me"

 PLAYERS:

Fred Hersch- Piano

esperanza spalding- Vocals 

PLAYLIST:

1. But Not For Me

2. Dream Of Monk

3. Little Suede Shoes

4. Girl Talk

5.Evidence

6. Some Other Time

7. Loro

8. A Wish