jjswjazzman
There is something alluring and imaginative about the structure of this music. It's angular and follows rhythmic and melodic patterns that I associate with Armenian and Azerbaijanian music (in the latter case, as expressed by Aziza Mustafa Zadeh (also a pianist)). And on this album I enjoy the soprano sax playing. Albums that hold my attention after the first 2 tracks are a 'must-buy' for me; this falls straight into that category.
Favorite track: Timeless.
Variously described as “ethno-jazz”, “world-jazz”, and “folk-jazz fusion”, Zela Margossian’s music rises above all these labels as a product of her own unique constellation of influences and lived experiences.
Raised in Beirut of Armenian heritage, her childhood years were marked by the conflict and political instability of the region; themes she would later explore in her music. In her early twenties, Margossian moved to Yerevan, Armenia to study classical piano at the Komitas Conservatorium. But it was after class, in the local jazz-clubs listening to artists of the likes of Arto Tunçboyacıyan and Vahagn and the Cats, that her love for jazz was stoked. A move to Australia some years later saw her take the bold step to fully transition from her classical roots and find recognition among her jazz peers, as a composer and improviser of note.
In 2017, the Zela Margossian Quintet (ZMQ) was formed and quickly found a warm embrace in the Sydney jazz scene. Comprising of renowned, versatile performers: Stuart Vandegraaff (woodwinds), Jacques Emery (double bass), Adem Yilmaz (percussion) and Alexander Inman-Hislop (drum kit), the band has appeared on Australia’s mainstages and internationally including at: the Beirut International Jazz Festival (2018), SIMA’s Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival (2017, 2019 and 2020), Wangaratta Festival of Jazz & Blues (2020), the Sydney Opera House (2020), and Sydney Festival (2021).
In 2019 the band’s debut album, Transition, was released by Art As Catharsis to critical acclaim, also receiving an ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) nomination for Best World Music album.
The Road is their much anticipated second album, promising the rich instrumental textures, the distinct compositional voice, as well as the narrative and thematic depth Margossian is known for.
credits
released February 25, 2022
Zela Margossian: Piano
Stuart Vandegraaff: Saxophones
Jacques Emery: Double Bass
Adem Yilmaz: Percussions
Alexander Inman-Hislop: Drums
Produced by Zela Margossian
All tracks composed by Zela Margossian
Recorded and mixed by Richard Belkner at Free Energy Device Studios in Sydney, Australia.
Mastered by Michael Lynch
A story of sadness, confusion, and despair ending in hope and certainty that the cosmos is not a random and meaningless jumble of atoms populated by mindless mechanical men, but a world of meaning, beauty, and truth. Emotions and the heart are not everything, but they are an essential part of being human. ianjworsomething