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The Balance

by Abdullah Ibrahim

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    本年度旭日双光章を受章! 南アフリカが世界に誇るジャズ・ピアノの巨匠、アブドゥーラ・イブラヒムの最新作。日本語ライナーノーツ(佐藤英輔)付き

    The Official Japanese Edition
    12" 33rpm Gatefold Vinyl with Obi strip
    Liner notes by Mitsuru Ogawa
    Shipping from Japan; limited quantities available from the US and UK

    Includes unlimited streaming of The Balance via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 2 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      £29 GBP or more 

     

  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    本年度旭日双光章を受章! 南アフリカが世界に誇るジャズ・ピアノの巨匠、アブドゥーラ・イブラヒムの最新作。日本語ライナーノーツ(佐藤英輔)付き

    The Official Japanese Edition
    Mini LP Replica Gatefold CD
    Liner notes by Mitsuru Ogawa
    Shipping from Japan; limited quantities available from the US and UK

    Includes unlimited streaming of The Balance via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 2 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      £15 GBP or more 

     

  • Test Pressing
    Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Limited to 1 per customer

    Comes in a generic LP sleeve

    Includes unlimited streaming of The Balance via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

    Sold Out

1.
Dreamtime 04:05
2.
Nisa 06:36
3.
Jabula 03:43
4.
Tuang Guru 05:10
5.
Tonegawa 03:32
6.
7.
ZB2 02:04
8.
Skippy 05:34
9.
Devotion 02:55
10.
The Balance 03:04

about

日本語は英語の後に続きます。

“There are few musicians in jazz who can make you feel that essentially all is right in the world.” - The Times

On The Balance:

"Getting the balance just right has always been Ibrahim’s great strength, drawing from a source but keeping it fresh..." - Julian Cowley, The Wire

★★★★★ - The Evening Standard

"A modern master... his graceful playing leans on equal measures of force and restraint, of dense clusters and open space. Mr. Ibrahim’s music is dotted by satisfying, sometimes stunning, passages of repose." - Larry Blumenfeld, Wall Street Journal

Entitled 'The Balance', this project featured his long-time septet Ekaya, a line-up that he's been recording with since 1983. In this case, the album was recorded over the course of one day at London's RAK Studios last November. The lush horn lines, lilting melodies, and uplifting chord progressions are characteristic of Abdullah's own particular brand of Township Jazz. This is contrasted with various solo piano improvisations, which epitomise the nostalgic yet hopeful nature of Abdullah's musical spirit. Hence, The Balance.

In his own words, "We push ourselves out of our comfort zones. So that we can present to the listener our striving for excellence. So that we can engage with our listeners without any barriers of our ego. It's not jazz. For us, it's a process of transcending barriers."

-----

現在85歳、アブドゥーラ・イブラヒム (別名ダラー・ブランド)が2019年にリリースした4年ぶりのニュー・アルバム『ザ・バランス』。楽曲は1曲を除き、イブラヒムのオリジナル作品。曲によってはスピリチュアルさのなかに東洋的な幽玄さも感じさせるあたりは、彼の日本文化への傾倒も活きているのかもしれない。唯 一のカヴァーである「Skippy」はセロニアス・モンクの初期ブルーノート時代の曲で、1952年に録音され、当初は10インチ78回転盤でリリースされた。
また、3曲はイブラヒムのピアノ・ソロによる。彼ならではの美と深みが溢れる「Tonegawa」 は、彼がずっと学んでいる日本古武道である八神流躰術の先生の名前だ。

今作についてイブラヒム本人は次のように語っている。「新しいものもあれば再現したものもある、多数の作品から成る小宇宙です。今も探究し続けている、人生や人間関係において必要な“バ ランス”を確立することについての経験や物語の楽曲群です。偉大なるマエストロ、デューク・エリントンの言葉を借りるのであれば、“音楽において最も重要なのは、耳を傾けること”なんです」。

山ほどあるアブドゥーラ・イブラヒムの作品中、どれを聴けばいいのか迷ってしまう人もいるかもしれない。だが、彼のキャリアを集大成したような、その様々な妙味と閃きが詰まった本作はその1番の候補となりえる好作である。

credits

released June 28, 2019

Abdullah Ibrahim: piano
Noah Jackson: double bass (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8), cello (tracks 3, 10)
Alec Dankworth : double bass (tracks 3, 10)
Will Terrill: drums
Adam Glasser: harmonica (track 10)
Cleave Guyton Jr.: alto saxophone (tracks 2, 3, 6), flute (track 1, 10), piccolo (track 4, 8)
Lance Bryant: tenor saxophone
Andrae Murchison: trombone
Marshall McDonald: baritone saxophone

Engineered by Tony Platt at RAK Studio 1.
Mixed by Caspar Sutton-Jones
Mastered and cut by Darrel Sheinman and Caspar Sutton-Jones at Gearbox Records

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Abdullah Ibrahim South Africa

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