Curtis Macdonald (Saxophonist, Sound Artist) Releases Three-Song EP, TWICE THROUGH THE WALL February 12, 2013

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Adam Jackson, Chris Tordini, Composer, Curtis MacDonald, David Virelles, Douglass Street Music Collective, Greenwich House Music School, Jeremy Viner, Saxophonist, Sound Artist

Curtis Macdonald, Twice Through the Wall

Featuring David Virelles (piano), Chris Tordini (bass), Jeremy Viner (saxophone), Adam Jackson (drums)

Canadian-born jazz composer and sound artist Curtis Macdonald’s new EP, Twice Through the Wall, explores the hidden potential of everyday experiences and the way those experiences can be altered and fine-tuned through metaphysical disciplines, such as classical yoga, meditation and lucid dreaming.

Travis Reuter -][- ROTATIONAL TEMPLATES

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Bobby Avey, Chris Tordin, Guitar, Jason Nazary, Jazz, Jeremy Viner, Travis Reuter

Travis Reuter ROTATIONAL TEMPLATES

Travis Reuter -][- ROTATIONAL TEMPLATES – [New Focus Recordings, 2011] – Music Reviewed

Visionary, composer and guitarist Travis Reuter has sculpted an impressive canvas of inimitable, expressive and complex tones co-exist in the body of improvised music on his latest offering “Rotational Templates.”

As I listen to the heartfelt yet multifaceted entities exposed throughout I had to take a closer look at what this involves and look beyond the scope of his technical ability to grasp the idea that this music was not merely comprise for technique purposes alone but most importantly the music comes from his heart!

From my perspective, “Rotational Templates” contains five infallible nuggets that are harmonically challenging. Moreover, this repertoire of songs is brilliantly executed by this multi-talented ensemble via their inventiveness and meticulous dialogue enabled them to transmit these odd-measured and impressionistic shapes and form them in a way the average listener can encompass this abstract soundscape.

Curtis MacDonald -][- COMMUNITY IMMUNITY

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Andrea Tynic, Becca Stevens, Chris Tordini, Curtis McDonald, David Virelles, Greg Ritchie, Jazz, Jeremy Viner, Michal Vanoucek, Saxophone, Travis Reuter

Curtis MacDonald -][- COMMUNITY IMMUNITY – [Greenleaf Music, 2011] Music Review

Saxophonist Greg Osby said, “Curtis MacDonald is a saxophonist of note, one who is worthy of great recognition.”

From the meeting, it was obvious within a lingering few notes of “COMMUNITY IMMUNITY” Curtis MacDonald was here to solidify his presence as a composer and saxophonist to immediately challenge virtually any new and seasoned jazz enthusiast who dare travel this path with this intriguing, young and inventive artist from Alberta, Canada.

Currently residing in New York, MacDonald debuts with the innovative yet fundamentally sound “COMMUNITY IMMUNITY” on Greenleaf Music. The album title derives from the idea of belonging to a community of talented musicians, this of course is crucial particularly for aspiring musicians.

While listening to this auspicious array of songs by MacDonald, I noticed the selections composed by him are very short in length. Maybe it’s a standard or unwritten rule for artists in this genre to record songs that are decidedly longer. Nonetheless, MacDonald was obviously moved to do otherwise and focus more on substance whether then appearance which is a quite refreshing approach to recording modern jazz and improvised music that boldly reflects the energy of his creative soul.