5 iunie 2018 | Sala Baroca a Muzeului de Arta din Timisoara
Transylvanian expat pianist Lucian Ban and tenor saxophonist Abraham Burton present BLACKSALT, a unique jazz amalgamation of Transylvanian and Belizean folk, improvisations and original pieces that reveal their shared interest in the flow of form and melody.
Their collaboration in powerhouse quartet ELEVATION featuring Eric McPherson & John Hebert quartet has been called by All About Jazz “a triumph of emotional and musical communication” and their latest album Songs From Afar (Sunnyside) received 5* stars in Downbeat Magazine and was named a Best Album of 2016. With BLACKSALT they bring that chemistry to the duo format, presenting a flux of songs and improvisations that touch on what one can call the poetry of melody.
Abraham Burton
New York saxophonist Abraham Burton’s music has been called exquisite jazz. New York Times says about Burton
“If the young saxophonist Abraham Burton was ever to be drawn in a cartoon, he’d have flames coming out of his saxophone. His solos are powerful and creative”
He began developing his natural skills by attending Hartford’s Hartt School of Music where he learned well from talented artists like Michael Carvin and Jackie McLean. Burton graduated from the school with a B.A. in music and a new love for the work of jazz greats such as Louis Armstrong and Lester Young.
Abraham attributes much of his success from experiences acquired performing, touring and recording with masters and being affiliated with numerous and notable musicians such as Roy Haynes, Louis Hayes, Walter Bishop jr, Horace Tapscott, Kenny Barron, Jimmy Smith, John Hicks, Santi Debriano, Gary Bartz, Victor Lewis, Michael Carvin, Mulgrew Miller, Steve Nelson, Cindy Blackman, Ray Drummond, Terumasa Hino, Billy Hart, Peter Washington, Conrad Herwig, Steve Davis, Rein De Graff, Nasheet waits, Eric McPherson, Eddie Henderson, David Murray, Antoine Rooney, James Carter, James Hurt, Marc Cary, Sam Newsome, Duane Eubanks, Winton Marcellus, Roy Hargrove, Wallace Rooney, Cyrus Chestnut, Christian McBride. For more info www.abrahamburtonjazz.com
Lucian Ban was raised in a small village in northwest Transylvania, in “the region where Bartok did his most extensive research and collecting of folk songs” and grew up listening to both traditional and classical music. He studied composition at the Bucharest Music Academy while simultaneously leading his own jazz groups, and notes that his approach to improvisation has been influenced by “the profound musical contributions of Romanian modern classical composers like Aurel Stroe, Anatol Vieru and of course Enesco”. Desire to get closer to the source of jazz brought him to the US, and since moving from Romania to New York in 1999 his ensembles have included many of New York’s finest players.