"Paloma is a Phenom whose music shows maturity way past her years." - LA MUSIC CRITIC
Fresh off of her debut album, Thirteen, Paloma Dineli Chesky a new vocal phenomenon with a sultry powerful voice way beyond her years will be releasing her new single "War," a reimagining of Edwin Starr's classic hit, on April 1st. Paloma is one of New York's most engaging young artists.
Coming to The Audiophile Society on November 11th and all other platforms on December 2nd.
Pianist George Vatchnadze collaborates with conductor Norichika Iimori and the Japan Century Symphony Orchestra to bring forth a powerful performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3.Vatchnadze’s sublime, advanced playing abilities beautifully intertwine with the elegant sounds of the orchestra, creating a gem that is further enhanced by The Audiophile’s signature Mega-Dimensional Sound. This experience is brought to life, creating a sense of presence in your home, as if you were in the concert hall that he and the orchestra created this superb recording. The resulting mix does everything but disappoint the ears of audiophiles.
About George Vatchnadze
Vatchnadze has appeared with orchestras throughout the world and has performed at festivals such as the Hollywood Bowl Festival, Ravinia Festival, Stresa Festival and Rotterdam Philharmonic’s “Philips Gergiev” Festival. He has appeared on live broadcasts of the Dutch National Radio, BBC and NPR’s “Performance Today.” In 1999 Mr. Vatchnadze made his New York recital debut at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, of which critics cited: “Vatchnadze is a consummate artist, now at the height of his musical and intellectual powers. He can do absolutely anything he wants at the piano. He commands delicate pianissimi, massive diapasons and everything in between.” His most recent engagements include appearances at the Osaka Symphony hall with Japan Century Symphony Orchestra, Great Philharmonic Hall and Mariinsky Piano festival in St. Petersburg, Stravinsky and Shostakovich Festivals in Washington DC, Woodstock Festival (NY), Stanford Stravinsky Festival, Pacific Symphony Rachmaninoff Festival, SYArts Festival in Taiwan, performances in Japan, Georgia, Italy and others. In addition to his skill as a performer, Vatchnadze is an associate professor and throughout his teaching career, his students have won top prizes at the numerous international competitions and have performed extensively throughout the world. He is also founder and artistic director of the Villa Sandra International Piano Academy in Lesa (Lago Maggiore), Italy.
About Norichika Iimori
Norichika Iimori graduated from the conducting course of the Toho Gakuen School of Music. After studying in Berlin and Munich, beginning in 1994 he held successive posts including Resident Conductor of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Guest Conductor of the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra of Moscow Radio, and Resident Conductor of the Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra. In 1996 he led the European tour of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra and was lauded in a newspaper which said, “Iimori will surely go on to attract international attention.” In 2006 he was awarded the “Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists” from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Iimori has been invited to conduct many world-class orchestras including the Radio Symphony Orchestra Frankfurt, Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic, and Prague Symphony Orchestra. In 2001 he became General Music Director of the Württemberg Philharmonic Orchestra, with which he recorded the complete Beethoven Symphonies and carried out a successful Japan tour in 2006. Currently, Norichika Iimori is Music Director of the Pacific Philharmonia Tokyo, Principal Conductor of the Japan Century Symphony Orchestra, Conductor Laureate of the Yamagata Symphony Orchestra, Principal Conductor of the Izumi Sinfonietta Osaka, Principal Guest Conductor of the Württemberg Philharmonic Orchestra, Principal Guest Conductor of the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra, and Principal Guest Conductor of the Chubu Philharmonic Orchestra. In April 2023, he will become Principal Conductor of the Gunma Symphony Orchestra.
About the Japan Century Symphony Orchestra
Established in 1989 as an orchestra for Osaka, it was named the Osaka Century Symphony Orchestra after an open call from the citizens of Osaka. In 2011, the Japan Century Symphony Orchestra became independent from Osaka and in 2019 celebrated its 30th anniversary. The orchestra is actively engaged in various forms of concerts transcending genres, performing more than 200 times a year, which includes commissioned performances, chamber music concerts, and school performances. “Communicate the power of the region through excellent performances;” “Provide excitement and healing through the orchestra;” “Discover outstanding talent and contribute to the development of the next generation;” “Actively contribute to international mutual understanding and peace.” Based on these four philosophies, the orchestra hopes to spread bright dreams in the hearts of many people through their performances and aims to develop a new era for the orchestra.
Mark Sherman sat down this week with Audiophile Society Label Manager Matt Rose to discuss his new album, Bright Light, now available exclusively at TheAudiophileSociety.com.
MR: You've done a piano record before, but of course you're most well known for your work as a vibraphonist, how did this album come to be: Mark Sherman on piano?
MS: The truth is piano was my first instrument at 8, and when I started playing drums at 13, I eventually at 16 met Kenny Kirkland, and playing drums in his trio. As a teenager when we were growing up in New York, I created the long term quest of learning the poetic language of jazz improvisation. I was always looking over Kenny’s shoulder to learn the language both rhythmically and harmonically. In my mid twenties, I also worked with the great Mike Renzi for many years with all the singers, and I was always hanging with and learning from Mike. So both of those mentors taught me much. I have always done all my writing and teaching at the piano. Learning to reharmonize like Mike Renzi has always been my quest. Anyway, I played as a sideman on piano with Larry Coryell and others for many years, but I never broke out as a leader on piano until the VENTURE band with Mike Clark and Felix Pastorius. I also played vibes in that band. My first real piano leader CD was “My Other Voice”in 2019. Basically, I love playing the piano as much as I love playing the vibes and drums. I just really am motivated by the music, development, and the spirituality of it all.
MR: How was the approach for this album different from past albums?
MS: After “My Other Voice “ which featured an amazing band in Vincent Herring, Ray Drummond, Carl Allen, and Nana Sakamoto, we got hit with the pandemic, and I wrote many new compositions during the 2 year period. I decided it was time to reunite, my band of 6 CDs, and many tours between 2004 and 2012. That would be the band on the current CD. Joe Magnarelli, Dean Johnson, and Tim Horner have always played my original music with the utmost care and purpose set forth. We are all very bonded as friends and musically after 20 years of recording and touring together. This one is different than all others as I feel I have matured a lot more as I have gotten older, and also my language and technique on the piano has grown enough to give me maybe a more solid voice on the music. For me that would be of great importance.
MR: You're joined by the fantastic Joe Magnarelli on the record. What was it like working with Joe?
MS: Joe is a gentle giant of a musician. He has always been the greatest example of mixing the old school and the new school. He is one of the most considerate musicians on the planet. Every note has a purpose. Additionally commitment is the big word. Ex: Mags came to the studio with no music for my originals. When I asked if he had everything he said yes. He memorized 6 originals for the record date. Top tier professional.. That is the way to do it. I always try to do the same. Come to the date studied. It’s a code to live by. I have the utmost respect for Joe. You just need to listen to the uplifting spiritual sound and approach he brings to the music. So deeply rooted and expressive.
MR: This record features seven original songs. What was the process like for writing them, and in particular Suddenly, which is dedicated to your friend Frank Kimbrough.
MS: My writing is what I am most proud of. I feel great when someone likes my tunes. The process is playing the piano and settling on ideas in a symmetrical and enable way. I like using many different styles of chord changes that pretty much all the masters like Parker, Coltrane, Benny Golson, Jimmy Heath, Joe Henderson and all the other great jazz composers have used. I additionally tap into the harmony of composers like Alan Menken and Stephen Sondheim. I like that Disney sound with the Sus-chords and the Sus-add 3. For me, that sound mixed with jazz harmony reaches right into you and touches the heart. My ultimate quest is to do just that.
With “Suddenly” I have done just that with the mixture of harmonic elements used in this tune. This one is emotional for me as I one day received the call of Frank Kimbrough’s death. The title explains it all. I was saddened and in shock after spending 13 years teaching in the very next room from Frank, and playing gigs and jazz camps together. He was a unique and very special musician and person. And the tune has an off center approach which is exactly how Frank was. Always innovative and deceptive.
MR: You've said before that this is the best presentation you've ever done on piano, why do you think that's the case?
MS: I have grown on the instrument in the last 2-3 years of being deep in the shed, practicing and writing. And, I am flat out having fun doing it. It is what we do. The power of seeking your level spiritually, technically, and musically. This recording is simply documentation of how I was playing and interpreting the music on that day. For me documentation helps the growth.
MR: This record was mixed with The Audiophile Society's Meta-Dimensional Sound. Having been involved in Aayushi Karnik's recent record and now your own, how do you think this sound influences the record? How would you describe the sound?
MS: As you know Chesky Records and particularly David Chesky have been a leader in audiophile technology for many years, and have produced maybe over 1000 recordings using this “live” capturing of the authentic sounds of the instruments in real time. The Audiophile Society is using what they call Meta-Dimensional sound processing which creates additional depth and dimension for the listener. You can set the ensemble in many different settings like Carnegie Hall, Village Vanguard, Madison Square Garden etc, but the main advantage is the listener feels the front back and two side views of the music when listening. It has given a real warm quality to the instruments on this current CD “Bright Light”, Joe Magnarelli’s horn sounds like it is coming from the heavens. Very organic sounding to me. I am appreciating what David is doing with this technology. It has literally added additional dimension and appeal to the music.
Aayushi Karnik grew up in perhaps the most untraditional place for an aspiring blues guitarist: Surat, India. Yet despite that, the 26 year-old Karnik sounds like a young Stevie Ray Vaugh or Buddy Guy. On her debut album Troublemaker, the follow up to her debut EP The Summer Children, Karnik showcases her generational talent alongside two New York City veterans, Todd Turkishir (drums) and Gregory Jones (bass).
Karnik originally hails from a town called Surat in Gujarat, Western India. As she describes, “It is a dry state, so there are no night clubs to perform. I was mostly a bedroom shredder imagining that I'm playing on a stage.” Despite the limited exposure to Western music, Karnik started out playing a lot of acoustic guitar, singing, and songwriting, but her musical trajectory began to change when she attended blues festivals in Mumbai, which included acts like Buddy Guy, Derek Trucks, Eric Gales, and homegrown Indian blues artists. “My father drove me to Mumbai so that I could attend this festival when I was sixteen, and after hearing just one set of Robert Randolph playing, I knew that his is what I had to do.” Shortly after, Karnik started a classic rock band with friends in Surat. “What made me serious about the blues/rock stuff was Led Zeppelin and John Mayer. We used to drive around the town listening to all the great music by Led Zeppelin, John Mayer, Stevie Ray Vaughn, AC/DC, Steppenwolf, and the list goes on. Though listening to Stevie Ray was the light flip moment.”
Eventually, Karnik left Surat and moved to New York City to attend Julliard, where she continued to develop as both a guitarist and songwriter. In April of 2021, she released her debut EP The Summer Children, of which Rolling Stone India said, “In addition to agile and intricate guitar work, the singer in Karnik leaps out expressively and unfiltered.”
Troublemaker features seven new songs by Karnik, as well as classic songs such as Willie Dixon’s “Spoonful”, B.B. King’s “Every Day I Have the Blues,” and Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Jerry Leiber, and Mike Stoller’s “On Broadway.” The album showcases Karnik’s versatile and complex jazz harmony and vocabulary and places it into a blues and rock context. The next great blues guitarist is here, and her name is Aayushi Karnik.
Troublemaker was recorded at Spin Studios in New York City on January 17th, 2021. Produced by David Chesky & Mark Sherman. Recording Engineer Nicholas Prout.
Track Listing
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