Quiver

Quiver

Ralph Alessi: trumpet<br>Gary Versace: piano<br>Drew Gress: double-bass<br>Nasheet Waits: drums <br><br>Trumpeter Ralph Alessis ECM leader debut 2013s Baida was the album where everything came together for him, according to Nate Chinen in a JazzTimes profile. Without abandoning his yen for oppositional energies, its a beautifully coherent statement, not just his most accomplished album but a contender for one of the years best.<br><br>Baida indeed went on to become the most lauded release of Alessis career, with The New York Times praising the music for its balance of elegant precision and power. <br><br>With Quiver, Alessi teams with pianist Gary Versace and the trumpeters longtime rhythm section of choice bassist Drew Gress and drummer Nasheet Waits to create a follow-up of quicksilver melodicism and subtly energized rhythm; there is a lyricism to Alessis playing that channels such forebears as Miles Davis and Kenny Wheeler, the mood reflective, even pensive. <br><br>As DownBeat says, Alessi works between the notes, his thoughtful, conversational solos as meditative as a calligraphers art, each line free-flowing and declarative but with immaculate shape and beauty.<br><br>Recorded September 29-30, 2014 at Rainbow Studio, Oslo<br>Recording Engineer: Jan Erik Kongshaug<br>DDD<br>Producer: Manfred Eicher